For several years, the government of Paraguay has sought to address the issue of informality, both as a response to poverty reduction and a means to expand its tax base. While effort has been undertaken to describe informality, the government lacks the capacity and perhaps the will to analyze the phenomenon through a robust empirical lens. Hence, little is known about the informal economy beyond anecdotes, personal interactions, and description. This book is the first to comprehensively, rigorously, and empirically study the determinants of informality in Paraguay. This book is of vital interest to those studying the Paraguayan economy, development economics, Latin American economics, and informality.

Paraguay’s economy features a high degree of informality. Based on different estimation approaches, informal activity represents more than half of total employment in Paraguay, a higher rate than those observed in its Latin American and the Caribbean peers. Theoretical and empirical considerations support the notion that regulations, enforcement policies, and government effectiveness are the ultimate determinants of informality. In all of these areas Paraguay performs weakly compared to regional peers. Using household and enterprise surveys, we find that Paraguay’s informal sector absorbs the most vulnerable workers but affects negatively medium and large firms in the formal sector. DSGE model simulations suggest that the optimal combination of policies to reduce informality is not straightforward, and needs to reflect the specific circumstances and objectives of the country.

Paraguay's economy features a high degree of informality. Based on different estimation approaches, informal activity represents more than half of total employment in Paraguay, a higher rate than those observed in its Latin American and the Caribbean peers. Theoretical and empirical considerations support the notion that regulations, enforcement policies, and government effectiveness are the ultimate determinants of informality. In all of these areas Paraguay performs weakly compared to regional peers. Using household and enterprise surveys, we find that Paraguay's informal sector absorbs the most vulnerable workers but affects negatively medium and large firms in the formal sector. DSGE model simulations suggest that the optimal combination of policies to reduce informality is not straightforward, and needs to reflect the specific circumstances and objectives of the country.

Paraguay: Selected Issues

In developing countries, such as Paraguay, informality remains a prevalent and persistent issue. Many avoid formal registration with the authorities and evade tax payments. However, a growing academic literature argues for an interrelation between a broader tax base and a country’s economic and democratic development. A strand of this literature focuses on the means of taxing the informal sector and argues for positive revenue and growth effects. This Palgrave Pivot analyses Paraguay’s 2004 and 2012 tax reforms using both qualitative and quantitative data. It illustrates that the country’s personal income tax, as well as other alterations in the tax system, constitute an incentive and nudging mechanism that leads to a formalisation process of economic activity, and consequently to a broader tax base. Using interview and tax data, the book demonstrates how the reform initiates a rising demand of formalised purchases from both customers and businesses. It further suggests a potential way of how the taxpayers respond politically to the enhanced fiscal imperative.

In developing countries, such as Paraguay, informality remains a prevalent and persistent issue. Many avoid formal registration with the authorities and evade tax payments. However, a growing academic literature argues for an interrelation between a broader tax base and a country's economic and democratic development. A strand of this literature focuses on the means of taxing the informal sector and argues for positive revenue and growth effects. This Palgrave Pivot analyses Paraguay's 2004 and 2012 tax reforms using both qualitative and quantitative data. It illustrates that the country's personal income tax, as well as other alterations in the tax system, constitute an incentive and nudging mechanism that leads to a formalisation process of economic activity, and consequently to a broader tax base. Using interview and tax data, the book demonstrates how the reform initiates a rising demand of formalised purchases from both customers and businesses. It further suggests a potential way of how the taxpayers respond politically to the enhanced fiscal imperative.