Quora Answer: What is the Difference between Tax Evasion & Money Laundering?

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “What is the difference between tax evasion and money laundering?” 

Tax evasion is merely the illegal evasion of taxes by legal persons, whether natural persons, or a corporation or trust.  This is done my misrepresenting the financial affairs of the entity or person to the authorities, or even hiding income. 

Money laundering, on the other hand, is the process of making the proceeds of illegal activities, which may include tax evasion, seem legal, by creating documentation and running the funds through various vehicles, to make it seem as if the funds were from a legitimate source.