Do corporate governance best practices restrain tax evasion? Evidence from Greece

Abstract

The aim of the present paper is to examine the association between corporate governance practices and the extent of tax evasion for the Greek listed companies when they operated in an accounting environment characterized by a high level of book-tax conformity. The results suggest that tax evasion is lower when the chairman of the board is also the owner of the company. A strong negative association is also reported between tax evasion and a) the percentage of stock held by the owner and its family members and b) the percentage of stock held by board members. The remuneration of the board members through the distribution of profits has been found to significantly decrease the evasion of taxes whereas tax evasion is higher when board members are also employees of the company. The findings contradict international codes on corporate governance practices and suggest that they may not apply to public firms with concentrated ownership.

Company Secretarial and Administrative Services in Modern Irish Corporations: A Review of the Strategies and Best Practices Adopted in Company Secretarial and Administrative Services

“…Corporate governance practices are instrumental in determining the extent of tax evasion, especially in settings marked by pronounced book-tax conformity. A study centered on Greek listed companies unveiled that tax evasion is notably lower when the chairman of the board doubles as the owner of the company (Kourdoumpalou, 2016). Additionally, a pronounced negative correlation was identified between tax evasion and the proportion of stock held by the owner and their family members.…”

Corporate Governance, Likuiditas, Tax Avoidance: Ukuran Perusahaan Sebagai Variabel Moderasi

“…Legal karena tidak bertentangan dengan undang-undang, tetapi mengeksploitasi peraturan perundang-undangan perpajakan (Mangoting et al, 2020). Khan et al, (2017); Stavroula (2016) Kovermann & Velte (2019) menyatakan tax avoidance dapat menimbulkan resiko bagi perusahaan diantaranya sanksi, denda dan buruknya reputasi perusahaan dimata publik. Tax avoidance berdampak pada tergerusnya basis pajak, dan berakibat pada berkurangnya penerimaan pajak Negara (Sunarsih et al, 2019).…”