The shadow economy

Foreword.

Muqaddima.
For some people, the shadow economy is a great example of free economic activity at work. It is entirely unregulated except by the participants themselves; no tax is paid on shadow economic activity; and it may be possible to pursue activities in the shadow economy which are prohibited by law unjustly. Indeed, the smugglers of Sussex are still commemorated by the uniforms worn by members of bonfire societies on Guy Fawkes Night and they were, indeed, known as ‘free traders’.
Ba'zi odamlar uchun yashirin iqtisodiyot erkin iqtisodiy faoliyatning mukammal namunasidir. Ishtirokchilarning o'zlari bundan mustasno, butunlay tartibga solinmaydi; yashirin iqtisodiy faoliyat uchun soliq to'lanmaydi; shuningdek, qonun bilan taqiqlangan yashirin iqtisodiyotdagi noqonuniy faoliyat. Haqiqatan ham, Sasseks kontrabandachilari hali ham Guy Foks kechasi gulxan atrofidagi jamiyatlar a'zolari tomonidan kiyiladigan formada esga olinadi va ular haqiqatan ham "erkin savdogarlar" sifatida tanilgan.

At the very least, it is certainly true that, in a world in which developed country governments are spending and borrowing more and more, the possibilities for shadow economic activity place a restraint upon governments. One of the reasons for the “Laffer curve” effect, whereby tax revenues can start to fall as tax rates are increased, is the movement of economic activity out of the taxed economy and into the shadow economy.

Hech bo'lmaganda, rivojlangan mamlakatlar hukumatlari ko'proq mablag' sarflayotgan va qarz olayotgan dunyoda yashirin iqtisodiy faoliyat imkoniyatlari hukumatlarga cheklovlar qo'yishi haqiqatdir. "Laffer egri chizig'i" effektining sabablaridan biri, soliq stavkalari oshishi bilan soliq tushumlari kamayishi mumkin, bu iqtisodiy faoliyatning soliqqa tortiladigan iqtisodiyotdan yashirin iqtisodiyotga o'tishidir.
A different perspective can be taken, however. Firstly, shadow economy activity can be marred by gang violence and coercion with little legal redress for its victims – this was certainly true of seventeenth and eighteenth-century smuggling. Secondly, operating in the shadow economy is a serious impediment to the expansion of businesses. Obtaining insurance, formalizing employment relationships and advertising can all be difficult when a business is not legally registered. Thirdly, the existence of a large shadow economy means that tax rates are higher for those in the legal economy.
Biroq, boshqa nuqtai nazarni ham qabul qilish mumkin. Birinchidan, yashirin iqtisodiyotning faoliyati guruh zo'ravonligi va majburlash bilan zararlanishi mumkin, bunda uning qurbonlari uchun qonuniy choralar ko'rilmaydi - bu, albatta, 17 va 18-asr kontrabandasiga tegishli. Ikkinchidan, yashirin iqtisodiyotda ishlash biznesni kengaytirishga jiddiy to'siq bo'lmoqda. Agar biznes qonuniy ro'yxatdan o'tmagan bo'lsa, sug'urta olish, mehnat munosabatlarini o'rnatish va reklama qilish qiyin bo'lishi mumkin. Uchinchidan, katta yashirin iqtisodiyotning mavjudligi soliq stavkalari huquqiy iqtisodiyot bilan shug'ullanuvchilar uchun yuqori ekanligini anglatadi.

Whichever way one looks at it, the shadow economy should be of interest to those studying the operation of markets. The argument for free-market economists being interested in the shadow economy grows stronger when the causes of its growth are examined. As this monograph – written by two of the world’s leading figures in this area – shows, the level of tax is one of the major drivers of shadow economic activity. If governments keep tax rates low, the shadow economy is likely to be smaller. Furthermore, if tax rates are low and the shadow economy smaller, then it is more likely that citizens will think that the tax system is ‘fair’. This, in turn, raises ‘tax morale’ and puts further downward pressure on the shadow economy.

Qaysi tomondan qaramang, yashirin iqtisodiyot bozorlar qanday ishlashini o‘rganuvchilarni qiziqtirishi kerak. Bozor iqtisodchilarining xufiyona iqtisodiyotga qiziqishi haqidagi argument uning o‘sish sabablarini o‘rganilsa, kuchayadi. Dunyoning ikki yetakchi arbobi tomonidan yozilgan ushbu monografiyada ko‘rinib turibdiki, soliqlar darajasi yashirin iqtisodiy faoliyatni belgilovchi asosiy omillardan biridir. Agar hukumatlar soliq stavkalarini past darajada ushlab tursa, yashirin iqtisodiyot kichikroq bo'lishi mumkin. Shuningdek, soliq stavkalari past va yashirin iqtisodiyot kichikroq bo‘lsa, fuqarolar soliq tizimini “adolatli” deb bilishadi. Bu, o'z navbatida, "soliq ruhini" oshiradi va yashirin iqtisodiyotga yanada pastga bosim o'tkazadi.

It is an indictment of modern government that the shadow economy is so large. A shadow economy equal to 9–12 per cent of total economic activity is not untypical for Anglo-Saxon countries, and levels of 20–30 per cent are common in southern Europe. Not only could tax rates be lower if the shadow economy were smaller but, if the size of the state were smaller, the shadow economy would be smaller.

Zamonaviy hukumat yashirin iqtisodiyot juda katta ekanligi uchun qoralanadi. Umumiy iqtisodiy faoliyatning 9-12 foizini tashkil etuvchi yashirin iqtisodiyot Anglo-Sakson mamlakatlarida odatiy hol emas, Janubiy Yevropada esa 20-30 foiz darajasi keng tarqalgan. Agar yashirin iqtisodiyot kichikroq bo'lsa, soliq stavkalari nafaqat past bo'lishi mumkin, balki davlat hajmi kichikroq bo'lsa, yashirin iqtisodiyot ham kichikroq bo'lar edi.
As well as looking at the size and causes of the shadow economy, the authors examine detailed evidence about participation in the shadow economy. These issues are also important. If participants in the shadow economy are also claiming welfare benefits for unemployment the focus when dealing with the shadow economy should, perhaps, be on the welfare system. On the other hand, if shadow work is mainly being undertaken in the spare time of people who are in the regular labour market, strategies should be different.
Yashirin iqtisodiyotning hajmi va sabablarini ko'rib chiqishdan tashqari, mualliflar yashirin iqtisodiyotda ishtirok etish dalillarini batafsil ko'rib chiqadilar. Bu savollar ham muhim. Agar yashirin iqtisodiyot ishtirokchilari ham ijtimoiy ishsizlik nafaqalarini talab qilsalar, unda yashirin iqtisodiyotni ko'rib chiqishda, ehtimol, ijtimoiy ta'minot tizimiga e'tibor qaratilishi kerak. Boshqa tomondan, agar er osti ishlari asosan oddiy mehnat bozorida bo'lgan odamlar tomonidan bo'sh vaqtlarida amalga oshirilsa, strategiyalar boshqacha bo'lishi kerak.

Indeed, the authors do examine strategies for reducing shadow economic activity. Policy proposals include making it easier for businesses to legally register their activity and also tax amnesties. In many cases, these policies have a proven record of success in other countries. To this policy armoury should be added a wider policy agenda of deregulation and lower taxation which, according to the earlier parts of the study, are policies that are likely to be conducive to a smaller shadow economy.

Darhaqiqat, mualliflar yashirin iqtisodiy faoliyatni kamaytirish strategiyalarini ko'rib chiqadilar. Siyosat boʻyicha takliflar tadbirkorlik subʼyektlariga oʻz faoliyatini qonuniy roʻyxatdan oʻtkazishni osonlashtirish, shuningdek, soliq amnistiyalarini oʻz ichiga oladi. Ko'p hollarda bu siyosat boshqa mamlakatlarda o'z samarasini ko'rsatdi. Ushbu siyosat arsenaliga, tadqiqotning oldingi qismlariga ko'ra, yashirin iqtisodiyotni kamaytirishga yordam beradigan siyosatlar bo'lgan tartibga solish va soliqlarni kamaytirishning kengroq dasturini qo'shish kerak.

Understanding the shadow economy is important for understanding the impact that the growing size of government has on our lives. This area is a notoriously difficult one to research – after all, the activity is illegal and so will not be officially recorded. The authors of this monograph have done a marvelous job in compiling and analysing this information, and the IEA is delighted to bring it to a wider audience through our Hobart Paper series.

Hukumatning o'sib borayotgan hajmi hayotimizga ta'sirini tushunish uchun yashirin iqtisodiyotni tushunish juda muhimdir. Bu hududni o'rganish juda qiyin - axir, faoliyat noqonuniy va shuning uchun rasman ro'yxatga olinmaydi. Ushbu monografiya mualliflari ushbu ma'lumotni to'plash va tahlil qilish bo'yicha ajoyib ishni amalga oshirdilar va IEA uni bizning Xobart seriyamizda kengroq auditoriyaga etkazishdan mamnun.

The views expressed in this monograph are, as in all IEA publications, those of the authors and not those of the Institute (which has no corporate view), its managing trustees, Academic Advisory Council members or senior staff. With some exceptions, such as with the publication of lectures, all IEA monographs are blind peer-reviewed by at least two academics or researchers who are experts in the field.

Ushbu monografiyada, barcha IEA nashrlarida bo'lgani kabi, mualliflarning fikrlari Institut (korporativ istiqbolga ega emas), uning boshqaruvchi ishonchli shaxslari, Ilmiy maslahat kengashi a'zolari yoki yuqori lavozimli xodimlariga tegishli emas. Ma'ruzalarni nashr qilish kabi bir nechta istisnolardan tashqari, barcha IEA monografiyalari ushbu sohada mutaxassis bo'lgan kamida ikkita olim yoki tadqiqotchi tomonidan ko'r-ko'rona ko'rib chiqiladi.