Reducing tax evasion: what have national flags got to do with it?

Description

Income tax evasion is one of the principal concerns that tax authorities face. In the United States, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) estimates that tax evasion reduced government revenue by about USD458 billion between 2008 and 2010. In Australia, the Australian Tax Office (ATO) estimates a tax gap of $8.7 billion for individuals – this is the gap between the amount of tax collected and the amount of tax that would have been collected if every Australian taxpayer was fully compliant with the law. Tax evasion is a major concern for governments because they require the tax revenue to generate economic development and finance government transfers.