Center for Global Tax Policy

Individual Tax Compliance and Complexity

The full cost of a tax system is more than simply the amount of tax paid. It also includes the cost of tax planning and paperwork. Economists call these “tax compliance” costs, and the IRS estimates Americans spend 6.6 billion hours per year filling out tax forms—including 1.6 billion hours on the 1040 form alone.

Featured Research

Insights into the Tax Systems of Scandinavian Countries

February 24, 2021

What the U.S. Can Learn from the Adoption (and Repeal) of Wealth Taxes in the OECD

February 5, 2021

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