Cash remains the ultimate refuge of tax evasion. No matter how much the AADE digitizes audits, interconnects POS terminals with cash registers, and deploys artificial intelligence, when a transaction takes place hand to hand, the digital state remains a mere spectator. Concurrently, the compliant professional pays the bill for a competitor who sells cheaper because they do not issue a receipt.
The solution does not lie in yet another application that the citizen will download and forget on their mobile phone. It lies in the incentive. If the state wants the consumer as an ally in the fight against tax evasion, it must enable them to gain when requesting a receipt, rather than simply calling on them to exhibit tax conscience. From the immediate return of a portion of VAT to a tax lottery distributing winnings in real time, market proposals share a common denominator: the legal transaction must benefit the customer as well.
Because, as long as issuing a receipt remains an obligation without immediate tangible return for the consumer, the slogan "cheaper without a receipt" will continue to find willing customers. And as long as the state pursues tax evasion after the fact, certain individuals will continue collecting undeclared cash upfront. The goal is not for cash to disappear tomorrow, but to cease allowing tax non-compliance to function as a competitive advantage.
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