Public Awareness of Tax Reforms in Ghana: Implication for Tax Evasion in the Wa Municipality
Lydia Faith Nsubuga, Dr Fredrick T Sai, Felicia Naatu

Abstract
The Internal Revenue Act, 2000 (Act, 592) of Ghana provides offences and penalties for non-compliance with tax regulations in order to facilitate revenue mobilization. Public awareness of such regulations is necessary for compliance. Yet the extent to which the Ghanaian public is aware of the tax regulations is uncertain. This paper assesses the extent of public awareness of tax reforms and its implication for tax evasion in the Wa Municipality of Ghana. A survey involving the use of semi-structure questionnaires was conducted to gather primary data from 120 respondents selected through a multi-stage sampling procedure. Descriptive statistics and chi-square test were used to analyse the data. The results reveal the inadequacy of knowledge on the tax regulations as a major but not sufficient factor for non-compliance as there were respondents who were well-informed yet evaded payment citing various reasons. Hence, compliance enforcement should embrace variety in targeting.

Full Text: PDF