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Entrepreneurship in the Shadows: Wealth Constraints and Government Policy

Author

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  • Semih Tumen

Abstract

I develop a dynamic model of forward-looking entrepreneurs, who decide whether to operate in the formal economy or informal economy and choose how much to invest in their businesses, taking government policy as given. The government has access to two policy tools: taxes on formal business activity and enforcement (or policing) discouraging informality. The main focus of the paper is on transitional dynamics under different initial wealth levels. Whether an initially small business will be trapped in the informal economy and remain small forever or grow quickly and become a large formal business depends on tax and enforcement policies. High tax rates accompanied by loose enforcement�which is mostly the case in less-developed countries (LDCs)�induce tax avoidance, discourage investment in formal businesses, and drive the entrepreneurial activity toward the informal sector even though the initial wealth level is high. Lowering taxes on formal activity joined with strict enforcement can help reducing the magnitude of poverty traps in LDCs�such as the MENA region, Latin America, and developing Asia.

Suggested Citation

  • Semih Tumen, 2016. "Entrepreneurship in the Shadows: Wealth Constraints and Government Policy," Working Papers 1623, Research and Monetary Policy Department, Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey.
    • Handle: RePEc:tcb:wpaper:1623
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    File URL: https://www.tcmb.gov.tr/wps/wcm/connect/EN/TCMB+EN/Main+Menu/Publications/Research/Working+Paperss/2016/16-23
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    Cited by:

    1. Sacchidananda Mukherjee & R. Kavita Rao, 2019. "Value Added Tax and Informality: Determinants of Registration of Enterprises under State VAT in India," Margin: The Journal of Applied Economic Research, National Council of Applied Economic Research, vol. 13(1), pages 21-48, February.
    2. Mukherjee, Sacchidananda & Rao, R. Kavita, 2017. "Determinants of Registration of Unincorporated Enterprises under State Value Added Tax Act in India," MPRA Paper 81236, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Philippe Aghion & Ralph Haas & Guido Friebel & Sergei Guriev & Jan Luksic, 2017. "Introduction to the Special Issue on the Economics of the Middle East and North Africa," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 25(2), pages 141-148, April.

    More about this item

    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • E26 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Informal Economy; Underground Economy
    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
    • O17 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements

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