Legal changes in the fiscal system require inclusion and dialogue

The content of tax legislation is simple in most Western Balkan countries. But, given the concern presented by civil society and various experts and organizations in Albania, but perhaps also in neighboring countries, the governments should aim for more citizens to be involved in the process of discussing laws and bylaws.

Lack of institutionalized experience with tax legislation means that the process often does not go smoothly, does not involve adequate consultation and often does not involve people with the necessary expertise at the relevant stages of the process.

Tax policy high officials and their foreign advisers often see tax policy issues as a fire hearths to be extinguished rather than an ongoing long-term effort to prevent the catastrophe. The thesis of this adapted publication is that substantial improvements in tax legislation can result if those responsible for tax reform focus as much on the process as they do on the substance.

The process by which tax legislation is developed can be of key importance in determining its quality, effectiveness and acceptability.

Problems in existing legislation arise from a variety of sources: new tax policy choices, changes in the economy, improved tax evasion techniques, and previous bad policy choices, design, and administration. To ensure that tax laws are able to respond to each of these problems, the Ministry of Finance in each Balkan country should undertake a continuous review of tax laws based not only on a single person or a closed group of persons and lobbying, but the review should come from any area of ​​substantive tax expertise, with the government approaching to coordinate processes.

Because tax laws over time seem to be tending to be numerous and complex, it would be impossible for them all to undergo a complete review at any time. It should be the duty of the parties involved in the review process to work closely with the tax administration and public finance officials, which is likely to be the primary source for reporting problems, and engaging directly with research staff. Private sector professional associations have proven to be an excellent source of information about problems.

Foreign advisors can also serve with an important impact in identifying problems of problems. To the extent of their expertise in comparative law, they are often able to observe difficulties that have arisen with similar rules in other jurisdictions.

Establishing a review process should include an effort to keep tax laws as consistent as possible while minimizing the frequency of changes. Frequent changes in tax legislation disrupt investor expectations and make it difficult for taxpayers to understand and abide by the law. A careful consideration of the proposed reforms can minimize the degree of change needed through technical corrections and through budgetary compensation for hastily and generously adopted provisions.