FURTHER STUDIES ON THE PHENOMENON OF TAX OPTIMISATION VERSUS TAX EVASION - THE SCOURGE OF CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY

Abstract

In this paper we aim to study the phenomen of tax evasion and tax optimization at the European Union level, in particular on value added tax, in order to outline the concept of the VAT revenue shortfall and to identify its determinants. Tax evasion is a complex and persistent problem faced by most countries around the world. This harmful practice affects the budgets of countries, reducing their revenues and jeopardising the sustainability of tax systems. Either tax evasion or tax optimisation both have the same strategic objective, namely to reduce through legal or illegal means the financial resources allocated to the state budget as taxes or duties. In order to ensure that we achieve the above-mentioned goal, we have set ourselves the objective of carrying out a study in EU member countries on the determinants of the VAT gap.