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    The applicability of the OTS Complexity Index to comparative analysis between countries: Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, and the UK
    (Univ New South Wales, Fac Law, 2016) Budak, Tamer; James, Simon
    Tax systems world-wide are becoming more complex for a variety of reasons. Countries such as Australia, New Zealand (NZ) and the UK have attempted to simplify their taxes but with limited success. The Complexity Index produced by the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) in the UK is an important contribution in this field. This paper considers general issues in relation to complexity and simplification and then examines the usefulness of the OTS Complexity Index for making international comparisons by applying it to income tax and VAT or GST in Australia, NZ, Turkey and the UK. It finds some striking differences in the complexity of the taxes in these countries. For example, Turkey's score is much better in terms of total underlying complexity, whereas NZ's score is better in terms of total impact complexity for taxes. This paper provides evidence that identifies certain areas where the level of complexity might be unnecessarily high. It also finds that the OTS Complexity Index is not appropriate for international comparative analysis although it can be utilised to gather common data in different countries. This paper suggests that by creating an international index based on the OTS method would make a major contribution to the development of a new approach in tax simplification.
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    How seriously do taxpayers regard tax evasion? A survey of opinion in England
    (Emerald Group Publishing Ltd, 2019) James, Simon; McGee, Robert W.; Benk, Serkan; Budak, Tamer
    Purpose Numerous studies have been done on various aspects of tax evasion in recent years. Some studies focus on compliance, while others examine more esoteric topics, such as optimum tax evasion. A third group of studies discusses theoretical issues, such as when tax evasion can be justified on moral grounds. A few studies have addressed the relative seriousness of tax evasion compared to other infractions. The purpose of this paper is in the latter category. Design/methodology/approach Wave 6 of the World Values Surveys (2010-2014) asked hundreds of questions to participants in 57 countries. One of those questions asked whether it was justifiable to evade taxes if one had the opportunity to do so. Another question asked whether it was justifiable to pay cash to avoid paying taxes. It also asked questions about other ethical issues such as bribery, avoiding a fare on public transport, claiming government benefits and buying stolen goods. The present study included those questions in a survey that was distributed to 485 students and faculty members at the University of Exeter in England to determine the relative seriousness of each act. They were asked to select a number from 1 (never justifiable) to 10 (always justifiable) to show the extent of their agreement or disagreement with the commission of the six acts. The goal was to determine how serious tax evasion was compared to other acts that might be considered unethical. One-sample t-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) methods were used for the data analysis. Findings The results of the study show that the act considered least serious was paying cash for services to avoid tax followed in order of seriousness by avoiding a fare on public transport, cheating on taxes if you have a chance, buying stolen goods, claiming benefits without entitlement and, with least justification, accepting a bribe in the course of one's duty. Some interesting results emerged by examining the responses of different groups. Like other studies, the results indicate older groups tend to have a higher respect for the law than younger ones. This was true for the cheating on taxes possibility, but the 30-49 years age group were more opposed than the other two groups to paying cash for services to avoid taxes. In terms of gender, females were significantly more opposed than males to cheating on taxes if you have a chance. The respondents who are married were more opposed to the six acts, including of course, the two tax ones, than non-married persons. There was also evidence that the level of higher education makes a difference to individuals' opinions. Originality/value This is an important study in relation to England. It is the first study to do so. The relative seriousness of tax evasion is compared to other offenses. Mean scores are used to rank the various offenses in terms of relative seriousness. Various demographics are also examined to see whether some groups view tax evasion as more serious than other groups. Those demographics included gender, age, academic major, education level and marital status.
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    International experiences of tax simplification and distinguishing between necessary and unnecessary complexity
    (Univ New South Wales, Fac Law, 2016) Budak, Tamer; James, Simon; Sawyer, Adrian
    Calls for the simplification of taxation are frequently heard but attempts to achieve actual tax simplification have rarely met with lasting success. To investigate further, the present authors asked relevant experts to report on the experience of tax simplification in Australia, Canada, China, Malaysia, New Zealand, Russia, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, the UK and the USA. In addition to tax simplification, the country experts were asked to provide information on simplification in relation to the following aspects: tax systems, tax law, taxpayer communications, tax administration and any more fundamental approaches. Their accounts were published in a book edited by the current authors early in 2016. This paper analyses the experiences of the 11 countries and it is clear that a considerable degree of complexity is inevitable given the different aims of taxation and the complex socioeconomic environments in which tax systems have to operate. The key question is how to distinguish complexity which is necessary for the functioning of a successful tax system from that which is not. This paper focuses on the relevant factors and issues involved in classifying unavoidable and unnecessary complexity not only with respect to legislation but also tax policy and administrative systems.