Since the mid 2000’s, the Danish Tax Administration has conducted public opinion polls in order to measure perceptions, norms and values related to filing and paying taxes. These polls have expanded over the years in terms of the coverage of subjects and has gone from being conducted bi-annually (before 2010) to annually (from 2010 onwards). Some of the questions dating back to the very beginning includes perceived risk of detection related to tax non-compliance in general as well as undeclared work specifically:
• Do you believe that the risk of being caught cheating on taxes is … [very large/large/small/very small]?
• Do you believe that the risk of being caught doing undeclared work is … [very large/large/small/very small]?
Questions of personal norms related to tax compliance and perceptions of the degree to which others follow the same norms – i.e., whether respondents consider such norms to exist at the social level – were part of these surveys to begin with, too:
• It is important for me to be perceived as someone who does not cheat on taxes [agree/disagree, 5-point scale]
• To what extent do you find it acceptable to cheat on taxes if one has the opportunity to do so? [not at all/very much so, 10-point scale]
• To what extent do you find it acceptable that a household has undeclared work carried out by a private company? [not at all/very much so, 10-point scale]
• To what extent do you find it acceptable that a private company has undeclared work carried out by an individual? [not at all/very much so, 10-point scale]
• To what extent do you believe other citizens are compliant with their taxes? [not at all/very much so, 10-point scale]
In 2014, a general trust question was introduced to the survey, reflecting an increased awareness of the need to try to monitor taxpayers’ trust in the tax authority. This question was added alongside other questions addressing perceptions of correctness, fairness and equality before the law:
• I trust the tax administration (as a public authority) [agree/disagree, 5-point scale]
• I trust that the tax administration calculates my taxes correctly [agree/disagree, 5-point scale]
• The tax administration is fair and just [yes/no]
• The tax administration treats all taxpayers with tax duties and liabilities like mine equally [agree/disagree, 5-point scale]
In recent years, trust in the Tax Administration has become one of the most salient issues on the political agenda concerning tax administration, leading to trust and public reputation getting their own dedicated survey from 2019 onwards. These developments reflect not only an awareness of the importance of trust in the tax administration in itself but, equally, an appreciation of the importance of trust for tax compliance intentions and the likelihood of compliant tax behaviour.
Trust & Compliance
