Characteristics of tax are:
(i) A tax is payable regularly and periodically as determined by the taxing authority.
(ii) A tax is levied to meet public spending incurred by the government in the general interest of the nation. It is a payment for an indirect service to be made by the government to the community as a whole.
(iii) A tax is a compulsory payment to be paid by the citizens who are liable to pay it. Hence, refusal to pay a tax is a punishable offence.
(iv) Tax is a contribution implies the notion of a sacrifice involved on the part of the contributor.
(v) The amount of tax is not fixed with reference to the exact benefit which a taxpayer receives from public service. In other words there is no element of quidpro-quo in the payment of tax.