Building a tax culture: A case of taxpayer education in Greece

A new EU-wide digital instruction resource (short e-Learnings on taxes) – now available in Greek – will make it fun and easy to inculcate a taxpaying culture among Greece’s future taxpayers.
 

Schools can play a big role to help improve tax compliance and boost tax morale. But raising the next generation of taxpayers requires more than lessons in reading, writing and arithmetic. Thanks to TAXEDU, teachers now have an arsenal of strategies at the ready.

Greece is taking the lead with plans to promote the use of this ambitious EU tool in public schools nationwide. A staunch supporter of TAXEDU from the very beginning, Greece’s Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE) has consistently included taxpayer education as a main priority in its Annual Operational Plans since 2016. It will also be included in its 2019 plan.

Most recently, the Tax Compliance Directorate, an Independent Authority for Public Revenue Directorate, submitted an official proposal to the Education Ministry for the inclusion of 12 TAXEDU micro-learning clips for children (short animations, already translated into Greek) on the national educational platform Photodentro. The proposal was approved. Once uploaded here, the micro-learning clips will be available to educators all over Greece.

According to officials at AADE, which is spearheading this effort, it is important to introduce taxes to younger audiences in an engaging manner – using new technologies, cartoons, attractive infographics and short videos that encourage interaction and active participation.

According to TAXEDU, promoting tax compliance is more than ensuring citizens pay their taxes on time. It’s about building a culture of ethics and compliance. It is designed to educate about tax and how it affects our lives.

With TAXEDU, taxpayer education can help bridge the gap between tax authorities and a future generation of taxpayers. TAXEDU is also flexible, allowing Greece’s national authorities to mix and match the material to fit their priorities, as regards educational programmes in primary and middle school curricula.

And, it’s bound to play a bigger role by expanding to secondary schools. A proposal to target teenagers is currently being hammered out by Greece’s officials.