Europe’s hidden economy: how governments can bring undeclared work out of the shadows

The so called ‘shadow economy’ refers to work and financial transactions that take place outside of the view of public authorities. Colin C Williams writes on the scale of this problem in Europe, noting that while the estimated size of the undeclared economy in the EU is around 18.4 per cent of GDP, it is far larger in some eastern European and southern European countries. He argues that a mix of deterrence measures, incentives, and indirect controls offers the best route for governments to bring undeclared work into the declared economy.