Tax Education and Tax Compliance among Informal Sector Operators in Bayelsa State, Nigeria

Low tax Compliance is now a serious issue in most developing economies. This is because it affects revenue generation which adversely affects the realization of government objectives. To achieve and sustain tax compliance especially in the informal sector has become a source of concern among government and scholars have not been able to find a lasting solution to it. Scholars, tax authorities and policy makers are still pondering on how to find a solution to it.. The study examined the influence of tax education on tax compliance among informal sector operators in Bayelsa State, Nigeria. In carrying out the study, literature were reviewed, four objectives, four research questions and four hypotheses were proposed, answered and analysed respectively. The research design adopted in the study is the cross-sectional survey design, using 237 registered self-employed taxpayers from the informal sector. Data were collected through structured questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression in SPSS. The findings revealed that legal tax education significantly improved returns filing and tax payment compliance, while procedural tax education exerted a positive and significant influence on both compliance dimensions. It was concluded among others that, improving taxpayers’ legal understanding and practical knowledge of tax procedures promotes voluntary compliance and strengthens domestic revenue generation. It thus recommended sustained taxpayers’ enlightenment campaigns, simplified filing procedures, and continuous collaboration between the Bayelsa State Internal Revenue Service and informal sector associations.