Economic crime report 2004 - Ekobrottsmyndigheten

Graph 46 Declared income for certain types of small businesses (SEK thousand)
%
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
–50–0 0–50 50–100 100–150 150–200 200–250 250–
Bakeries Kiosks Shoemakers Hotdog stands Hairdressers
Opportunity Structure
Some of the opportunity for crime in cash sectors derives from the ease
of starting and registering companies with the tax authorities for VAT,
business tax certificates and employer status. Founders of spurious shelf
companies are complicit by furnishing people with joint stock companies
for SEK 4,000-5,000 without having to deposit the SEK 100,000 share
capital minimum.
Owing partially to changes in the job market during the 1990s, cash sectors
have undergone a rapid transformation over the past ten years.
The number of small businesses, particularly in the retail and service segments,
has grown very quickly. Another element of crime opportunity
is the high taxes and fees that make it profitable to perform undeclared
labour.
Monitoring and Supervision
Since cash dealings do not leave a bookkeeping, invoice or receipt trail,
they are intrinsically difficult to monitor. The tax authorities do not
presently have suitable tools to supervise cash sectors. While a very large
number of these businesses need to be checked, audits consume too many
resources to be used more extensively.
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