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The distribution of UK personal income tax compliance costs

Author

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  • Laurence Mathieu
  • Catherine Waddams Price
  • Francis Antwi

Abstract

Governments are committed to reducing the regulatory burden on business and individuals, while at the same time transferring many tasks from bureaucrats. One such example is tax compliance where self-assessment (SA) has raised concerns that such transfers may place a particularly heavy burden on lower income and elderly taxpayers. This is the first study since its introduction into the UK in 1996 of the regulatory burden, which SA imposes on individuals. We identify both the total compliance burden and its components for individuals who might be expected to incur high compliance costs because they pay tax on nonbusiness employment income. We use a specially designed questionnaire and find that within this group the burden seems to have increased by less than 25%. Compliance costs are regressive, but do not impinge disproportionately on the elderly. The compliance burden is determined by income, occupation, education (but not specifically in accounting subjects) and difficulty in attending to tax affairs, indicating some possibilities for reducing these compliance costs.

Suggested Citation

  • Laurence Mathieu & Catherine Waddams Price & Francis Antwi, 2010. "The distribution of UK personal income tax compliance costs," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 42(3), pages 351-368.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:applec:v:42:y:2010:i:3:p:351-368
    DOI: 10.1080/00036840701604370
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    1. Smith, Adam, 1977. "An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations," University of Chicago Press Economics Books, University of Chicago Press, number 9780226763743 edited by Cannan, Edwin, December.
    2. Smith, Adam, 1776. "An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations," History of Economic Thought Books, McMaster University Archive for the History of Economic Thought, number smith1776.
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    Cited by:

    1. Naoto Jinji & Yoshihiro Mizoguchi, 2016. "Optimal Rules of Origin with Asymmetric Compliance Costs under International Duopoly," Journal of Industry, Competition and Trade, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 1-24, March.
    2. Ioana Alexandra Horodnic & Colin C. Williams & Rodica Ianole-Cãlin & Adrian V. Horodnic, 2023. "Exploring the illegal practice of under-reporting wages in the construction industry: some lessons from Romania," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(26), pages 2978-2992, June.
    3. Sebastian Eichfelder & François Vaillancourt, 2014. "Tax Compliance Costs: A Review of Cost Burdens and Cost Structures," Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics, IEF, vol. 210(3), pages 111-148, September.

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