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Informality and Tax Community of Practice

The Community of Practice on Informality and Tax is a global network of practitioners and scholars committed to improving both knowledge and policy on how tax authorities engage with informal economies. Building on ICTD’s growing body of research and its strong engagement with partners in the field, the Community of Practice will foster peer-to-peer learning, share cutting‑edge evidence, and co‑design practical tools for governments, development partners, and civil‑society groups.

By convening this diverse mix of actors, ICTD hopes to bridge the gaps between evidence, policy design, and implementation on the ground.

Key Areas of Focus include:

  • How to better design simplified and presumptive tax schemes
  • Revenue authorities’ experiences with digitisation
  • Data assessing equity and compliance impacts in markets

For more information about ICTD work on informality and tax, check out our research and publications pages.

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News and events

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Event
Webinar on presumptive taxes invitation card
17 September 2025
Webinar: Presumptive Taxes – What New Evidence Means for Policy and Practice

Presumptive taxes are one of the most used tools through which tax authorities engage with informal economies. However, until recently, there has been very limited research on their actual performance and impact….

News
July 2025
ICTD, WIEGO extend research partnership on informal sector taxation

The International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with global research and advocacy network WIEGO last week, formalising an existing collaboration on various research around informal sector taxation….

News
Wide shot of a large group of people facing the camera.
May 2025
ICTD launches new community of practice on informality and tax

Revenue authorities, researchers and civil society actors now have a space to map new ways for…

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[email protected]

Blogs

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Aerial photo of a tomato market at Mile 12 in Lagos, Nigeria.
June 2026|
Blog

Taxing the informal economy: should businesses formalise or should tax systems adapt?

by Kanuda M. Buluba

Across Africa, discussions on taxing the informal economy often begin with a familiar assumption that informal businesses remain outside the tax system because they are unregistered, invisible, or non-compliant….

Addis Ababa busy street view
February 2026|
Blog

Roadblock taxation: the dangers of extra-legal payments in Ethiopia

by Zerihun Asegid

In recent years, Ethiopia has witnessed a significant rise in one particularly harmful extra-legal practice: roadblock taxation. …

Cultural Parade in Zaria City, Nigeria where informal tax has become a lifeline for basic services
October 2025|
Blog

How faith and culture shape accountability in Nigeria’s informal tax system

by Jacob Aondohemba Iormbagah

In early October, I was in Cape Town for the 10th ATAF Annual Congress, where I…

Wide shot of a small artisan store in Mexico, with a small crowd of people gathering to check the displayed items.
July 2025|
Blog

Toward formalisation: Can simplified tax and social security contributions help?

by Guillermo Montt

As interest in simplified tax grows, African countries can look at Latin America for lessons learned from the informal sector. …

Wide shot of a large group of people facing the camera.
March 2025|
Blog

Reasons to be Optimistic about Tax and the Informal Sector

by Max Gallien & Vanessa van den Boogaard

There are many reasons to be anxious about the taxation of informal sectors in lower income…

Publications

Partner Publication

Beyond the state, but reinforcing it? Informal tax institutions and state legitimacy in the Democratic Republic of Congo

February 2026
Vanessa van den Boogaard, Yannick Lokaya Bokasola, Gayatri Sahgal & Caleb Jérémie Dohou
Working Paper

Variations in Accountability Systems of Informal Taxation Across Regions in Kaduna State, Nigeria

February 2026
Jacob Aondohemba Iormbagah
Working Paper

Zakat as Non-State Social Welfare Provision: Distributional Dynamics and Gender Equity in Pakistan

January 2026
Max Gallien, Umair Javed & Vanessa van den Boogaard
Journal Article

Predatory Peace: Fiscal Fragmentation and Coercive Statebuilding in South Sudan and Beyond

December 2025
Matthew Benson
Working Paper

Thinking Beyond Revenue: Estimating the Cost Effectiveness of Ghana’s Presumptive Tax Stamp

December 2025
Max Gallien & Alex Kombat
Policy Brief

Why the Informal Sector Is Not a Tax Goldmine

October 2025
Max Gallien
See all Related Publications
[email protected]
+44 (0) 1273 606261
International Centre for Tax and Development, Institute of Development Studies (IDS) Brighton, BN1 9RE, United Kingdom
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