Attitudes Toward Taxation in Myanmar: Insights from Urban Citizens

Abstract

Taxation has a bad reputation. It is often a dry subject filled with technical jargon. Few look forward to the taxpaying experience. Most of the time ignored, when the topic of taxes does come up in the media it is usually in the form of an article about one group or another opposing tax changes. It takes a brave politician to propose even a modest tax increase and an unusual citizen to welcome one. Such views are heard in many countries, but particularly in Myanmar, where the tax take is among the lowest in the world as a share of GDP. It is widely accepted that citizens are fervently anti tax, thanks to decades of military authoritarianism that failed to meet the needs of the people. “Increase taxes? There will be riots on the streets,” warned one senior policy maker. But how accurate are tax officials’ and policymakers’ prevailing views of citizens’ attitudes towards taxation? What do citizens really think and know? These questions matter because taxes matter. Myanmar now finds itself in the early stages of a democratic transition and the gradual upgrading of its governance systems. Taxes have the potential to be a key tool in supporting these transformations. They are a sustainable and reliable means to raise government revenues to fund the public goods and services that the people want and need. Paying taxes is at the heart of the social contract between government and citizen. When people pay taxes, they fulfil a core duty as citizens. This act can empower them to demand that their government work better. Tax policy and the taxpaying experience also matter because they influence citizens’ views of their government. They can determine whether they see their government as transparent, fair, and accountable or extractive, dismissive, and self-serving.