The Impact of Tax Morality on Tax Evasion: Evidence of EU Countries

Abstract

A set of direct and indirect factors that affect the changing trends of the main indicators of its functioning and determine the key vectors of state policy define the pace of the country’s economic development. At the present stage of economic development, along with the objective factors influencing the behavior of economic entities, of great importance are subjective, determined by age, psychological, religious, and other individual characteristics of the individual’s perception of economic and political processes in the country. One of the indirect factors of influence is tax morale, the low level of which determines the tendency of taxpayers to evade their tax obligations and negatively affects the level of international tax competitiveness of the country, the share of the shadow sector, the level of corruption. The purpose of the study is to find the nature of the tax morality impact on tax competitiveness indicators of the country. The methodological tools of the research include the analytical method, methods of analysis and synthesis, econometric analysis methods (Panel unit root test, Pedroni panel cointegration tests, Pearson’s correlation test, Greanger test, Panel Vector Error Correction Estimate model). The objects of the study are tax competitiveness indicators of the country and the level of tax morale of EU countries for the period 2010-2020. The information base of the study is the data of the World Value Survey and the International Social Science Panel. The results of the analysis showed a significant impact of tax morale on the resulting indicators. Decreasing the level of tax morale leads to an increase in the level of the shadow economy in the country and the volume of tax evasion. The results of the calculations can be useful for representatives of state institutions in the context of the policy of de-shadowing the economy, the fight against corruption, both through restrictive and stimulating tools to influence the behavior of economic entities.