Designing a Tax Administration Reform Strategy: Experiences and Guidelines

Katherine Baer and Carlos Silvani

No 1997/030, IMF Working Papers from International Monetary Fund

Abstract: Building on previous FAD work in the tax administration field, this paper defines broad criteria for diagnosing the problems in a country’s tax administration and formulating an appropriate reform strategy. To be effective, this strategy should be based on the size of the tax gap and the country’s particular circumstances. This paper discusses some guiding principles which have provided the basis for successful reforms, including: reducing the tax system’s complexity, encouraging taxpayers’ voluntary compliance, differentiating the treatment of taxpayers by their revenue potential, and ensuring the reform’s effective management. Also discussed are specific bottlenecks that hinder the effectiveness of the tax administration’s operations.

Keywords: WP; tax administration; reform strategy; personnel policy; enforcement action; reform effort; tax administrator; information systems operation; reform measure; reform project; reform process; paper workload; audit program; Tax administration core functions; Tax collection; Auditing; Taxpayer services; Value-added tax; Western Europe; Global (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 36
Date: 1997-03-01
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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