Effectiveness of one stop centre on tax compliance: the case of large tax payers, Dar es Salaam

The purpose of the study was to examine the effectiveness of one stop center on tax compliance. Specifically, the following are the objectives that the study focused: to determine the performance of large taxpayers in terms of tax compliance, to determine the contribution of tax audit function in the Large Taxpayer Unit (LTU) revenue collection, to find out the views of the taxpayers on the importance of one stop center and to assess the performance of LTU in terms of revenue collection. In this research a case study approach was applied. The study carried out at the Large Tax Payers’ Department, headquarters in Dar es Salaam. The Large Tax Payers Department’s officials and its clients is a well-defined group of individuals which was considered as a population of this study. A sample involved a total of 110 respondents. Judgmental (purposive) and stratified sampling technique were used to select sample for the study. The study applied primary and secondary data. The data were collected using questionnaires, interview and documentation. The study applied both qualitative and quantitative data analysis techniques in order to come up with better results The findings indicate that there is better performance on tax compliance after introduction of one stop center in the country as perceived through large taxpayers’ compliance at Large Taxpayer Department (LTD). The study also found that the contribution of tax audit function in the LTD revenue collection has been very significant. The findings further show that revenue collection increased and taxpayers recognize the importance of the one stop center as their vehicle towards positive tax compliance. The study recommends that it is a good practice to provide special attention on few large taxpayers that account for a large percent of total tax collection. Policy makers should therefore keep in mind the lesson of LTD for a wider application.