Happy Taxpayer

The Finnish Tax Administration’s happytaxpayer.com website shows how tax revenues are used in Finland.

Young people are used to getting their films, series, books and music via subscription services. We wanted to utilise the idea of a monthly subscription service as a metaphor for public services; we pay taxes and tax-related fees each month in exchange for a selection of various services. The Tax Administration has created a website where each tax-funded service is represented by a film or a series with its own poster, name and plot description. By clicking on an image, the user can learn more about the service that the image represents.

The idea for the website was sparked by the results of a survey that was commissioned by the Tax Administration. The survey showed that the 18 to 29 year olds who felt that they were adequately informed of the use of tax revenues and who felt that they benefited from taxes had a more positive attitude towards paying taxes.

The website was created as part of the Tax Administration’s three-year project relating to the Government’s action programme to combat the shadow economy. The Tax Administration is in charge of the project in cooperation with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment and the Finnish Centre for Pensions.

The aim of the project is to cultivate a positive attitude towards paying taxes and to reduce the shadow economy. The idea is to emphasise the building blocks of a fair and sustainable society: we are all working together to make this a good place to work and live in, for everyone. We can reach this goal by increasing the target group’s awareness of how tax revenues are used. After the project is completed, the survey will be conducted again to see how well the goal was met.