Simplicity in taxation has considerable potential advantages. However, attempts to simplify tax systems are only likely to be successful and enduring if they take account of the reasons why taxation is complex. There are strong pressures on tax systems to accommodate a range of important factors, as well as complex and changing national and international environments within which modern tax systems have to operate. This book explores the experiences of simplification in a range of countries and jurisdictions. The authors analyse a range of manifestations of simplification, including tax systems, tax law, taxpayer communications and tax administration. They also review the longer term or more fundamental approaches to simplification, suggesting that in order to strike the optimum balance between simplicity and the aims of a tax system in terms of efficiency and equity, a range of complex environmental factors must all be taken into account. With chapters reflecting on experiences from Australia, China, Canada, Malaysia, New Zealand, Russia, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, the UK and the US, the authors illustrate differences between jurisdictions and the changing environment in which they operate. This book addresses the crucial balance between simplicity and the other objectives of tax design and reform, and suggests that reformers of the tax system should include simplicity as one of the key evaluators of any design or reform proposal.

Why are tax systems so complex? What are the causes of tax law complexity? What are the consequences? Why is tax simplification so difficult to achieve? These, and related questions, lie at the core of this volume on tax simplification featuring chapters by leading tax experts around the world. The quest for simplicity è^' or at least some move towards simplification è^' has been a fixation of governments and others for many years, but little appears to have been achieved. Tax simplification is the most widely quoted but the least widely observed of the usually stated goals of policy (equity and efficiency being the others). It has been used (and abused) as a primary justification for tax reform over the last century, and typically it is seen as è^-a good thingè^-- è^' to say that one is in favour of tax simplification is tantamount to stating that one is in favour of good as opposed to evil.

This new and updated edition of The Flat Tax—called "the bible of the flat tax movement" by Forbes—explains what's wrong with our present tax system and offers a practical alternative. Hall and Rabushka set forth what many believe is the most fair, efficient, simple, and workable tax reform plan on the table: tax all income, once only, at a uniform rate of 19 percent.

This proceedings volume presents new methods and applications in applied economics with special interest in advanced cross-section data estimation methodology. Featuring select contributions from the 2019 International Conference on Applied Economics (ICOAE 2019) held in Milan, Italy, this book explores areas such as applied macroeconomics, applied microeconomics, applied financial economics, applied international economics, applied agricultural economics, applied marketing and applied managerial economics. International Conference on Applied Economics (ICOAE) is an annual conference that started in 2008, designed to bring together economists from different fields of applied economic research, in order to share methods and ideas. Applied economics is a rapidly growing field of economics that combines economic theory with econometrics, to analyze economic problems of the real world, usually with economic policy interest. In addition, there is growing interest in the field of applied economics for cross-section data estimation methods, tests and techniques. This volume makes a contribution in the field of applied economic research by presenting the most current research. Featuring country specific studies, this book is of interest to academics, students, researchers, practitioners, and policy makers in applied economics, econometrics and economic policy.