Research and analysis

Measuring the “tax gap” – an update (2005)

Analysis from 2005 that attempted to derive broad-brush estimates of the direct tax gap

Documents

HM Revenue and Customs Working Paper 5a: Measuring the “tax gap” – an update

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Details

HM Revenue and Customs Working Paper 5a: Measuring the “tax gap” – an update

Details of analysis from 2005 that attempted to derive broad-brush estimates of the direct tax gap (i.e. across all taxes) at the start of the decade.

These 2005 estimates, with a range of between £10bn and £40bn (roughly 5% to 15% of liabilities), are not only subject to a wide margin of error, but are based on historical data prior to the major transformation in HMRC’s strategy, so don’t reflect today’s situation.

Published 12 March 2008