This paper deals with the designing of a tax amnesty for developed and developing countries. Since tax cultures vary in countries, tax amnesties must reflect the differences in these cultures. The success of a tax amnesty hinges on its design that should be calibrated to the requirements of each jurisdiction. This paper analyses the purpose and outcome of tax amnesties as well as reasons for the inadequate performance thereof in developed and developing countries. It then provides the basis of a distinct set of features for the tax amnesty design for those distinct jurisdictions. Finally, the paper sets out a number of proposals in relation to the design of a tax amnesty.