IMF Working Papers

Leveraging Anti-money Laundering Measures to Improve Tax Compliance and Help Mobilize Domestic Revenues

By Emmanuel Mathias, Adrian Wardzynski

April 21, 2023

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Emmanuel Mathias, and Adrian Wardzynski. Leveraging Anti-money Laundering Measures to Improve Tax Compliance and Help Mobilize Domestic Revenues, (USA: International Monetary Fund, 2023) accessed September 19, 2024

Disclaimer: IMF Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to encourage debate. The views expressed in IMF Working Papers are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF, its Executive Board, or IMF management.

Summary

The paper advocates leveraging anti-money laundering (AML) measures to enhance tax compliance, tackle tax crimes, and, in turn, help mobilize domestic revenues. While AML measures have already been deployed to improve tax compliance, including during the European debt crisis, the benefits that such measures could bring to the integrity of the tax system are yet to be fully realized. In recent years, the relevance of AML measures for tax purposes resurfaced in public discourse in light of numerous data leaks that provided ample evidence of the closely intertwined nature of tax crimes and money laundering. There might now be the right political momentum for greater utilization of AML measures given post-pandemic calls for a more progressive tax system, elevated sovereign debt burdens, a challenging global economic outlook, and widespread cost-of-living crisis. In this context, the IMF has stressed the importance of rebuilding fiscal buffers, as countries with more fiscal room are better placed to weather the economic slowdown and protect households and businesses.

Keywords: Anti-money laundering, Predicate offenses, Tax crimes

Publication Details

  • Pages:

    51

  • Volume:

    ---

  • DOI:

    ---

  • Issue:

    ---

  • Series:

    Working Paper No. 2023/083

  • Stock No:

    WPIEA2023083

  • ISBN:

    9798400240409

  • ISSN:

    1018-5941