What drives the performance of value-added tax? : investigating the effectiveness of tax administration in Serbia

It is generally accepted that within nations devoid of significant limitations on administrative capacity, all products and services should be subject to a uniform value-added tax (VAT). If compliance is impeccable, the c-efficiency of VAT in these countries, which measures actual revenue over prospective revenue, should be one. The establishment of a proficient VAT administration, characterized by streamlined processes and procedures, is advantageous for many stakeholders. This includes national administrations as well as individual taxpayers and citizens. The study used primary data sources to identify the relationship between tax administration and the performance of VAT. This paper offers an assessment of tax administration effectiveness in Serbia in the period from 2005 to 2022. The investigation aims to accumulate empirical information regarding administrative components that affect the c-efficiency ratio through careful observation and data collection. The study assured that tax administration significantly affects the performance of VAT. The outcome variable, the c-efficiency ratio is highly affected by the effectiveness of tax administrators.