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Tax penalties in SME tax compliance

Author

Listed:
  • Artur Swistak

    (Warsaw School of Economics, Warsaw, Poland)

Abstract

Small business tax compliance requires special attention. On the one hand small businesses are often incapable of rigorously fulfilling their tax obligations, more vulnerable to external risks and tempted to exploit opportunities to be non-compliant. On the other hand, unlike larger businesses, they are usually sole proprietors or owner-operated businesses, hence highly responsive to personal, social, cognitive and emotional factors. These attributes pave the way to a better use of measures designed to influence their behavior and choices. This paper discusses the role and effectiveness of tax penalties in enhancing tax compliance in small businesses. It argues that tax penalties, although indispensable for tax enforcement, may not be a first-choice tool in ensuring tax compliance. Too punitive a tax regime is an important barrier to business formalization and increasing severity of tax penalties does not produce the intended results. To be effective, tax penalties should deter and motivate taxpayers rather than exert repressive measures against them.

Suggested Citation

  • Artur Swistak, 2016. "Tax penalties in SME tax compliance," Financial Theory and Practice, Institute of Public Finance, vol. 40(1), pages 129-147.
    • Handle: RePEc:ipf:finteo:v:40:y:2016:i:1:p:129-147
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Vanina Adoriana Trifan & Silviu Gabriel Szentesi & Lavinia Denisia Cuc & Mioara Florina Pantea, 2023. "Assessing Tax Compliance Behavior Among Romanian Taxpayers: An Empirical Case Study," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(3), pages 21582440231, September.
    2. Ha Thi Hai Do & Yen Thi Hai Mac & Hoa Thi Van Tran & Thuy Thi Le Nguyen, 2022. "The impact of attitude towards an e-tax system on tax compliance of Vietnamese enterprises: Adoption of an e-tax system as a mediator," Journal of Entrepreneurship, Management and Innovation, Fundacja Upowszechniająca Wiedzę i Naukę "Cognitione", vol. 18(1), pages 35-64.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    tax penalties; tax enforcement; SME’s tax compliance; SME taxation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H26 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Tax Evasion and Avoidance
    • H32 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - Firm
    • H83 - Public Economics - - Miscellaneous Issues - - - Public Administration
    • K42 - Law and Economics - - Legal Procedure, the Legal System, and Illegal Behavior - - - Illegal Behavior and the Enforcement of Law

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