Evaluation of practices to improve voluntary tax compliance within the context of Constitutional taxation principles

Although taxation is based on the financing of state expenditures, it is also a financial tool that the state can use for economic and social intervention. The state collects taxes based on its sovereign right which is defined by constitutional and legal framework. Even though taxpaying has been defined as a constitutional duty and mandatory financial obligation, as social tax paying consciousness increases taxpaying is accepted as a voluntary duty that serves the purpose of obtaining public objectives. The short-term important result of voluntary tax compliance is seen as the taxpayers fulfilling their duties without interruption and this brings out full and complete collection of the tax. Continuity of compliance will create a tax-conscious society and ensure that tax policies are carried out in social and legal justice. From this perspective the properties of taxation policies which are inciting taxpaying citizens to voluntary compliance gains importance. Even though taxpayers obliged to pay taxes are much more aware recently, in order to increase tax compliance and consciousness; legal regulations and tax administrative implementations have to be executed meticulously for this purpose. Another issue that should be taken into consideration while implementing voluntary compliance practices is that they should be compatible with the Constitutional taxation principles. The source of both the rights and freedoms of individuals and the taxation authority of the state is the Constitution. Therefore, in general, taxation processes and transactions and all tax regulations should be made by adhering to the Constitution and Constitutional principles. In the study, the compatibility of some practices arranged for voluntary compliance with the taxation principles arising from the Constitutional framework has been discussed. In our country, it has been observed that tax compliance legal regulations and practices have been implemented by the revenue administration, especially in recent years, by adopting a taxpayer-oriented approach. In addition, it has been observed that there has been an increase in articles, academic studies and professional publications about opinions, suggestions and possible results. In this study, firstly the concept of tax, general taxation principles and constitutional taxation principles will be described, and after that the concept of tax compliance is examined and tax compliance regulations and implementations to obtain voluntary tax compliance is defined. As a result of the study, the relationship and suitability of each of these practices and regulations with the constitutional taxation principles has been revealed.