Identifying the Influential Components of the Taxpayer Participation Model for Tax Policy-Making in the Iranian Tax Administration

Abstract

The objective of this study was to identify and conceptualize the key components that influence taxpayer participation in the process of tax policy-making within the Iranian Tax Administration. This study adopted an exploratory qualitative research design grounded in thematic analysis. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with thirty-five experts and elites in the fields of taxation and public finance, including senior tax administrators from high-performing provinces and university faculty members specializing in tax policy. Participants were selected using snowball sampling, and data collection continued until theoretical saturation was achieved. Interview transcripts were analyzed through an iterative coding process involving open coding, development of basic themes, and abstraction into higher-order organizing themes to construct a comprehensive participatory model. The analysis revealed seven interrelated organizing components shaping taxpayer participation in tax policy-making: knowledge and awareness, cultural factors, technology and infrastructure, administrative structure, legal and regulatory requirements, economic conditions, and governance. The findings infer that effective participation emerges when professional competence and ethical orientation are aligned with cultural legitimacy and public trust. Digital infrastructure and electronic tax systems were inferred to function as critical enablers by reducing complexity and enhancing transparency. Administrative coherence, regulatory stability, and accountable governance structures were found to condition the institutionalization of participation, while perceptions of economic fairness and revenue utilization were inferred to strengthen taxpayers’ willingness to engage. The study concludes that taxpayer participation in tax policy-making is a systemic and multidimensional phenomenon that depends on the interaction of cognitive, institutional, technological, legal, economic, and governance factors. Strengthening participation therefore requires an integrated policy approach that moves beyond enforcement-based models toward inclusive, transparent, and adaptive tax governance.