> in a lot of countries you just use the state-sanctioned software

Make that free, web-based & state-hosted online solutions.

What is this tax-software thing you are taking about?

For Switzerland there's a java based software that allows you to print a PDF in the end you can send by snail-mail.

See this page if you're interested: https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=y&pr...

They also have a web based solution, but I personally prefer not to use it, because I don't trust it.

I switched to the online version, and I can't really tell the difference vs. the java software.

Out of curiousity what do you not trust?

(The difference is that the java software runs localy and spits out a PDF for snailmail, and the online version is a webapp that directly transmits our stuff to the server.)

I don't trust to store this stuff in a remotely secure manner for the online version. I have no idea how their setup looks like, but I expect they'll throw it in some kind of database and are done with it. That would be the worst case.

If anyone manages to compromise the application server, they can see all the data.

I don't trust them to have a sane architecture where the application server has basically write only access to the database. I don't trust them to encrypt the data with a public key to process them later on on a box that doesn't serve random requests from the internet.

I have more faith in them beeing able to physically guard a piece of paper, even if they'll scan it and then process it digitally later on (which they do), you can not access it by exploiting an SQL injection on the public internet (hopefully).

Edit: I just checked their website again and it seems to confirm my suspicion about their architecture. Seems you could even get access to all data from previous years:

> If the online solution [was] used in the previous year, the previous data will be available automatically.

Sure, they could encrypt each dataset with they key the provide to each user, but i doubt it.

Finland: the tax administration knows almost everything about your money already, income tax is withheld by employers in advance through a pay-as-you-earn system (and this has been on for decades).

Tax authorities would like to get direct access to see bank accounts, that's not on yet.

Filing a tax return is very easy. Usually you need to do nothing, but if you have some specific tax deductions - not much is eligible - then you can do it with a fairly simple Web interface, or leave an equally simple paper form.

Your first paragraph is largely true for the US (people running quite small businesses don't necessarily have to keep up with pay as you earn, but the limits are a few thousand dollars and then the correct thing is to make regular payments during the year).

The difference is that US agencies don't actually use this information, likely because of privacy regulations and stop forth. The right hand rarely knows what the left is doing, unless law enforcement or homeland security get involved.

You can see this even more starkly in the difference between the two in regards to medical records. Or even just basic personal details. My Kela card mostly tells doctors all they need to know, and even my address changes seem to get around without my having to do anything about it.

It was a bit unsettling at first for an American, but the systems here are largely pretty efficient except where unemployment is concerned...

True. In India, we have a state-hosted tax filing portal[1] that's very easy to use.

[1]https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/e-Filing/UserLogin/Logi...

I think we have a web based application for simple tax returns now in Australia. I still download the free application from the tax office to do mine though because I have to put my business income in and share income and stuff. It's a bit crappy, but at least they finally have a Mac version as of about two years ago and it only takes about 45 minutes because it pulls most of your info in (bank interest, share income, salary, etc.) when you put in your tax file number (a bit like a social security number I think) and then you just add in anything missing and do the deductions.

I use an accountant and claim it as a tax deduction the next year.

In Spain we have an state developed program to fill and send the taxes.

That's so un-American.