Handbook on the compilation of statistics on illegal economic activities in national accounts and balance of payments - Products Manuals and Guidelines

The present Handbook represents the first comprehensive overview of conceptual and practical issues related the compilation of statistics on illegal economic activities (IEAs) in national accounts (NA) and balance of payments (BOP).

Estimating the extent or the value of IEAs is clearly problematic because a direct observation is often out of question. However, statistical institutions and data users have increasingly recognised the need for comprehensive, reliable and internationally available information on IEAs in NA and BOP. Therefore, the purpose of this Handbook is to provide a common definition of IEAs and guidance for collecting and compiling IEA statistics, in a consistent and coordinated way. The aim is also to contribute to improved collection and compilation and to a greater understanding of IEA transactions.

This Handbook is the result of the joint work of the members of the Task Force on the Recording of IEAs in NA and BOP, consisting of experts from the European Commission, European national statistical institutes and central banks, as well as UNODC, ECB, OECD and European Parliament - European Parliamentary Research Service.