Morocco’s Informal Economy Surges, Hampering National Growth, Study Finds

In a study entitled "The informal sector in Morocco: main characteristics and trends", the HCP indicates that the total volume of jobs created amounted to 28.7%, and its contribution to GDP reached 11%. This study was based on data from the last three surveys conducted by the HCP (1999, 2007 and 2013). One of the causes that favor this phenomenon is the complexity of the regulatory institutional framework, the same study continues.

According to the HCP, the creation of informal production units (UPI) has invested the service sectors, particularly transport, communication and catering. The main vector of the informal economy remains commerce with a share of 50.6% of the workforce employed in 2013, the authors recall. In this study, the HCP also noted that VAT remains the main tax component that influences the informal sector. It accused "the heads of UPI who source upstream from suppliers who themselves under-declare or work in the informal sector. "This allows them to buy without a regulated invoice and thus escape VAT invoicing," deplores the same study.

Adjustments to the minimum wage also favor the weight of the informal sector. The same study argues that an increase in the SMIG means for companies (VSEs and SMEs) that are struggling to bear the wage burden heavily weighing on their net income, a reduction in staff or non-declarations.