It is easy to assume that people never feel happy about paying their taxes, but the latest survey of the public’s perception of the tax system suggests that while they might not be happy about it, most see taxes as necessary – although not always fair.
Public trust in tax 2025: Asia and beyond is the seventh edition in ACCA’s series and the most expansive yet, covering 29 countries. Last year’s report took a deep dive into Latin America; this year, it is Asia’s turn.
Respondents worldwide were more likely to see tax as a legal rather than a moral issue
The latest report focuses on attitudes worldwide to tax morale, and the results will be used to inform work on the subject to be carried out by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which collaborated on the project with ACCA, the International Federation of Accountants and Chartered Accountants ANZ. It is hoped that insights from the data will enhance understanding of tax morale and help support countries build effective and trusted tax systems.
Generally, the report suggests that the fiscal contract is in reasonable health. In every country, people saw taxes as a contribution to the community rather than as a cost to them. Overall, 52% of all respondents agreed with this view, down slightly from 53% in the 2024 report.
Respondents worldwide were more likely to see tax as a legal rather than a moral issue: 47% of all respondents agreed that paying taxes is mainly a matter of laws and regulations, while 13% said it is a matter of morals and fairness, and 40% agreed it was a combination of both.
In South Asia respondents were more likely to justify cheating on tax, as ‘everyone does it’
While this result has not significantly altered since 2024, there are some hints elsewhere in the report of rising feelings of recalcitrance. In last year’s survey, 61% of all respondents said that it was never acceptable to cheat on tax, but this year that proportion fell to 54%. The most common reason for this view was the perception that taxes are too high, but in South Asia respondents were more likely to justify cheating on taxes on the basis that ‘everyone does it’.
Over 40% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the tax system collects taxes in a way that is equitable and in proportion to the taxpayers’ ability to pay – an increase from 32% in 2024 – but the results from each region throw up a more complex story.
Respondents from Asia, for example, were more likely to agree that the tax system is equitable, but elsewhere the majority of respondents from every country apart from UK and Australia disagreed.
‘This result is interesting,’ says the report, ‘as tax systems in Western Europe and the Anglophone Pacific tend to be more progressive than those in Asia, yet the former’s tax systems were seen as less equitable and fair.’
Tax accountants remain the most trusted source of tax information
The report points out that respondents seemed to be comfortable with taxpayers minimising their taxes, but less so for multinationals (vs local companies) and high earners (vs those on low or average incomes).
Successive reports have tracked the most and least trusted sources of information on tax over the years, and this year’s will not make welcome reading for politicians, who are one of the least trusted sources of information in all but three countries in the survey. Levels of distrust in politicians were especially high in Latin America and in Western Europe, where in all countries apart from the UK, more than half of respondents said they did not trust politicians as a source of information about tax.
Accountants most trusted
Tax accountants remain the most trusted source of tax information – and trust levels in accountants have increased in all regions except central Asia and Turkey since last year – but sadly, they remain one of the least consulted (media reports remain the most frequently consulted sources).
Strong support for the fiscal contract in Asia may reflect higher levels of tax education in schools
The good news for tax authorities is that communication between taxpayers and tax authorities seems to be improving: 57% of all respondents said it was generally easy to find information about their tax obligations, 56% said it was easy to file their tax return, and 50% agreed that it was generally easy to understand tax laws and communications from tax authorities. The report points out that respondents who found communications from the tax authorities easier to understand were around four times more likely to trust the authority.
Focus on Asia
Respondents in South East Asian countries (see the Asia data) were found to have the most positive views and experience of the tax system. Overall, 65% of respondents in this region saw taxes as a contribution to their community rather than a cost – compared to 52% of all respondents worldwide, and 46% of respondents in Latin America.
Respondents from Asia were also more likely to support the role of tax in sustainable development. In every country in the region apart from Japan and Singapore, more than 50% of respondents said they saw tax as essential or important to sustainable development. Even countries in Asia with the highest GDP appear more likely to see a link than those in high GDP countries elsewhere.
There are suggestions, too, that the strong support across Asia for the fiscal contract principle might be connected to the fact that respondents in Asia were most likely to have been taught tax at school; 63% of respondents in South Asia and 59% in South East Asia,had learned about tax at school – and 73% and 68%, respectively, had found it useful.
