High income earners are reluctant to part with their tax breaks in part because they think of themselves as battlers, new research suggests.

Two-thirds of the highest-earning households surveyed by Ipsos Australia for MLC Wealth define themselves as "middle class" or "lower middle class" or "working class".

Each brings home at least $200,000, putting it near the top 10 per cent of households.

Yet, according to the survey to be released on Monday, only 2 per cent of the high earners define themselves as upper class and only 31 per cent as upper middle class.