The Effect of Behavioral Nudging and Deterrence Factors on the Tax Amnesty Participation Process

Tax amnesties are implemented for a variety of reasons, including political, economic, and financial motivations. Academic literature encompasses research on the effects of tax amnesty programs on tax revenues, compliance, and justice. Behavioral economics has become increasingly important in the fields of public finance as well as other fields. Behavioral economics offers invaluable insights for policymakers, providing a deep understanding of individual behavior. This knowledge significantly aids in the effective management of policy processes, enabling the development and implementation of more targeted and impactful policies. The comprehension of human behavior concerning public finance will lead to the for- mulation of appropriate policies. The study examines how taxpayers interact with tax amnesty programs using a behavioral economics framework. This study aims to assess the impact of behavioral nudging and deterrence factors on taxpayers’ decisions to participate in tax amnesty programs. This study seeks to examine the impact of variables such as “punishment,” “audit,” “morality,” “justice,” and “social norms and the importance of public services.” The research was carried out using a personal interview survey of 473 individuals who pay income taxes in Türkiye. The participants were categorized into three groups: two groups for treatment and one group for control. The data collected from the fictitious survey were examined using logistic regression analysis. The examination focused on analyzing variables in the study, documenting taxpayers’ ideas and attitudes regarding their involve- ment in tax amnesties, and exploring the demographic characteristics of taxpayers and their point of view on tax amnesties. The study sought to ascertain the ele- ments that impact taxpayers’ engagement in tax amnesty. The results indicated that the variables “Perception of Audit,” “Perception of Justice,” and “Perception of Social and Public Norms” had a substantial impact on individuals’ willingness to participate in tax amnesty. The frequent implementation of tax amnesty poses challenges for taxpayers in meeting their tax obligations. It is essential to identify the influential elements that contribute to participation in tax amnesty in order to successfully implement comprehensive and efficient tax amnesty policies. Additionally, it is crucial to take taxpayer behaviors into account while formulating tax amnesty policies to improve tax compliance among taxpayers.