This monograph analyses the conditions in which gains or losses from international tax avoidance are more or less likely for the avoiding taxpayer, the rest of the taxpaying community and the tax authorities at home and abroad and names the countries whose tax systems render them most exposed to these gains and losses. The conclusion is that national governments and intergovernmental organisations seeking to suppress international tax avoidance may do more harm than good to the tax revenues as well as to the taxpaying communitites of the countries concerned, especially if the avoidance is formal rather than substantial in character, and that all measures against international tax avoidance should be supported by an economic estimate of the gains and losses from avoidance and the losses and gains from its suppression.

Covering the period from the 1920s, when international tax policy was solely about avoiding double taxation, to the present era of international tax competition, Rixen investigates the fate of 'the power to tax' in an era of globalization, illustrating that tax sovereignty is both shaped and constrained by an international tax regime.

Tax compliance issues enjoy an unprecedented degree of public attention today and are of great importance to governments and policymaking. This single volume provides an overview of some of the most significant contributions to the economic analysis of tax avoidance and evasion and also sheds light on broader questions of social organization, behaviour, and compliance with the law. With an original introduction by the editor, this insightful book provides researchers and students with a guide to the fundamental intellectual developments that have shaped the economic understanding of tax avoidance and evasion, along with a framework for placing these contributions in their intellectual context.

Covering the period from the 1920s, when international tax policy was solely about avoiding double taxation, to the present era of international tax competition, Rixen investigates the fate of 'the power to tax' in an era of globalization, illustrating that tax sovereignty is both shaped and constrained by an international tax regime.

This book identifies sources of power that help business and economic elites influence policy decisions.

High-profile scandals and increasing public debt after the financial crisis have put international taxation high on the political agenda. This book offers a rare combination of empirical analysis with normative and institutional proposals for global tax governance.