In 2001 the Russian government introduced a bold reform of its tax system, which included the adoption of a flat-rate income tax. Until then, only a few countries, including the transition countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, had adopted a flat-rate income tax. This reform has naturally...

Using micro-level data, we examine the effects of Russia's 2001 flat rate income tax reform on consumption, income, and tax evasion. We use the gap between household expenditures and reported earnings as a proxy for tax evasion with data from a household panel for 1998-2004. Utilizing...