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What Makes a Tax Evader?

Author

Listed:
  • Marcelo L. Bergolo
  • Martin Leites
  • Ricardo Perez-Truglia
  • Matias Strehl

Abstract

Why do some individuals evade taxes while others do not? We study this question using administrative tax records from Uruguay linked to a tailored survey of taxpayers. Using third-party reports, we measure individual income under-reporting as an indicator of evasion. We then examine how three factors predict who evades: social preferences (e.g., honesty measured through incentivized laboratory games), peers (e.g., the behavior of current and former coworkers), and economic factors (e.g., the marginal tax rate). We find that social preferences have little power to predict evasion, while economic factors matter more and peer behavior is the strongest predictor.

Suggested Citation

  • Marcelo L. Bergolo & Martin Leites & Ricardo Perez-Truglia & Matias Strehl, 2020. "What Makes a Tax Evader?," NBER Working Papers 28235, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:28235
    Note: LE PE
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    Cited by:

    1. Antoine Malézieux & Benno Torgler, 2021. "Culture, Immigration and Tax Compliance," CREMA Working Paper Series 2021-23, Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts (CREMA).
    2. Gil, Patricia & Holz, Justin & List, John A. & Simon, Andrew & Zentner, Alejandro, 2024. "Toward an understanding of tax amnesty take-up: Evidence from a natural field experiment," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 239(C).
    3. Gerson Javier Pérez-Valbuena & Diana Ricciulli-Marín & Jaime Bonet-Morón & Gisell Katerine Barrios-Pacheco, 2024. "Situación fiscal en América Latina, 2000-2022," Documentos de trabajo sobre Economía Regional y Urbana 330, Banco de la Republica de Colombia.
    4. Giorgio Gulino & Federico Masera, 2023. "Contagious Dishonesty: Corruption Scandals and Supermarket Theft," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 15(4), pages 218-251, October.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • H24 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Personal Income and Other Nonbusiness Taxes and Subsidies
    • H26 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Tax Evasion and Avoidance
    • K42 - Law and Economics - - Legal Procedure, the Legal System, and Illegal Behavior - - - Illegal Behavior and the Enforcement of Law
    • Z1 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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