De La Feria, R and Schoeman, A (2019) Addressing VAT Fraud in Developing Countries: The Tax Policy-Administration Symbiosis. Intertax, 47 (11). pp. 950-967. ISSN 0165-2826
Abstract
Tax administration is often perceived as separate from tax policy, and at best as the implementation of tax policy. The aim of this article is to highlight the necessary mutual dependence that exists between tax policy and administration, designated here as tax policy-administration symbiosis. It employs the case-study of VAT fraud in African countries, where this phenomenon is thought to be commonplace, to consider the range of anti-VAT fraud measures that have been installed in those developing contexts. It is argued that fighting this fraud requires a concerted approach that encompasses various twinned measures of both a legal/policy and administrative nature; in contrast, ad hoc measures, whether legal or administrative, are unlikely to yield as significant results. Specifically, it is defended that administrative measures which seek to enhance compliance are at their most effective when adopted in conjunction with, or in the context of, a legal system that has been designed to minimize the incidence of fraud. Conversely, whilst policy measures can significantly contribute to an increase in VAT compliance in developing countries – particularly through the introduction of a broad base – such measures will be most effective when adopted in conjunction with administrative measures that take into account the administrative constraints, as well as other social factors, that are often present in those settings. The article concludes by asserting that combating VAT fraud in developing countries requires recognition of the wider dynamics of the tax policy-administration symbiosis.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | Copyright © 2019 Kluwer Law International. This is an author produced version of a paper published in Intertax: international tax review. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Education, Social Sciences and Law (Leeds) > School of Law (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 26 Jul 2019 09:34 |
Last Modified: | 13 Oct 2021 08:05 |
Published Version: | https://kluwerlawonline.com/journalarticle/Interta... |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Kluwer Law International |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:149052 |