Reactions of taxpayers in Turkey to special consumption tax rate and base changes: Measuring the effects on Alanya district motor vehicles and white goods consumers

With the Special Consumption Tax (SCT) Law No. 4760, which came into force in Turkey in 2002, many products were collected in this category. Needs such as imported products, which are especially considered within the scope of luxury consumption needs, are collected under the umbrella of this tax. Alcohol, tobacco products, technological products and the automotive sector are considered within the scope of this tax. The study investigates the impact of the Special Consumption Tax (SCT) applied in Turkey on the purchasing behavior of individuals through the white goods and automotive sectors, taking Alanya district as an example. In this study, the effects of changing tax rates and bases applied to the white goods and automotive sectors within the scope of special consumption tax on individuals' consumption habits and purchasing behaviors in economic, financial, social and environmental terms were examined. In the first part of our study, the defined purposes of taxes and the classification of taxes are discussed. In addition to the conceptual framework, the historical development of taxes in the world and in Turkey is discussed. In the second part, the legislative evaluation and historical development of SCT is discussed. In addition, the implementation of this tax system in Turkey and other countries was discussed and the SCT applied by Turkey, which is a candidate country for the EU, was compared with the SCT practices of EU countries. In the third part of the study, the reaction of SCT increases and decreases on consumers was evaluated in the context of the Alanya district example. In this subsection, the survey results and analysis results of similar studies and research conducted in the literature are included. In the conclusion section, which is the last part of the research, the data we obtained from the survey results were discussed and evaluated. KMO and Bartlett Sphericity Test were applied for factor analysis and significance level of the results we obtained. As a result of the findings we obtained in the study, it was concluded that SCT has significant effects on consumers in terms of base and rate in terms of economic, social and financial aspects, and their white goods and automotive buying and selling behavior. According to the data obtained from the survey results, it was concluded that consumers responded significantly to the increases and decreases in SCT bases and rates, and that these reactions differed according to variables such as consumers' age, education, income level and gender. Keywords: Tax, SCT, White Goods, Automobile, Purchasing Intention and Behavior