The Development of the Excise Gap on Mineral Oils: Recent Evidence from Slovakia

Tax evasion and avoidance are both phenomena that are probably as old as taxation itself. Wherever and whenever authorities decide to levy taxes, individuals and firms try to avoid paying them. Though this problem has always been present, it becomes more pressing in the course of globalization as this process extends the range of opportunities to circumvent taxation while simultaneously reducing the risk of being detected. In recent years, an increasing numbers of tax authorities have attempted to estimate the amount of tax that is legally owing to their government but not collected. This amount is commonly referred to as "tax gap" which is the difference between the theoretical tax liability due in accordance with the tax legislation and the actual revenue collected. The aim of this paper is to analyse the collection efficiency of the excise duty on mineral oils in Slovakia.