employee from 01.01.2023 until now
St Petersburg, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
UDC 338
Introduction. The globalisation of economic relations has led to a decline in the importance of tax compliance, resulting in multinational companies actively using aggressive tax planning strategies and tax avoidance to minimise their tax burden as an important element of cost reduction. An aggressive tax planning strategy offers significant advantages in terms of financial performance, such as increased cash flow to support growth and a substantial increase in net income after tax. However, companies that evade taxes incur additional transaction costs, the amount of which depends on a number of company characteristics. The purpose of the study is to identify the factors and characteristics of companies that influence the likelihood of choosing tax avoidance strategies, as well as to assess the positive and negative consequences for taxpayers as a result of their choices. Methods. The article used correlation and regression analysis tools, as well as matching algorithms, namely, nearest neighbor matching, radius matching, and core matching. Data from company surveys conducted by the World Bank were used as an empirical basis. The results of the study showed that the characteristics of the firm, rather than those of its management, are important factors influencing the choice of tax avoidance strategy. The level of education and experience of the manager did not have a significant impact on the firm's compliance with the law. The following characteristics were found to be statistically significant factors reducing the likelihood of choosing a tax avoidance strategy: legal structure, year of establishment, innovative potential, number of employees, asset structure, and performance results.
tax evasion, tax planning, company value, financial reporting
1. Anufrieva, Elena. M. 2008. “Ponyatie ukloneniya ot uplaty nalogov v sisteme nalogovyh otnoshenij” [“The concept of tax evasion in the system of tax relations”] (In Russ.). Finansy i kredit [Finance and credit], 332 no. 44:35–41.
2. Molodyh, Vladimir A. and Vladimir I. Trysyachnyj. 2024. “Vliyanie finansovyh prestuplenij na dinamiku ustojchivogo razvitiya ekonomicheskih system” [“The impact of financial crimes on the dynamics of sustainable development of economic systems”] (In Russ.). Finansovyj menedzhment [Financial Management], no. 10: 285–92.
3. Akamah, Herita T., Thomas C. Omer, and Sydney Qing Shu. 2021. “Financial constraints and future tax outcome volatility.” Journal of Business Finance & Accounting. 48, no. 3-4:637–65. https://doi.org/10.1111/jbfa.12495
4. Atwood, T. J., and Christina Lewellen. 2019. “The complementarity between tax avoidance and manager diversion: Evidence from tax haven firms.” Contemporary Accounting Research 36, no. 1:259–94. https://doi.org/10.1111/1911- 3846.12421
5. Dakhli, Anissa. 2022. “The impact of ownership structure on corporate tax avoidance with corporate social responsibility as mediating variable.” Journal of Financial Crime 29, no. 3 (August):836–52. https://doi.org/10.1108/JFC-07- 2021-0152
6. Desai, Mihir A., Alexander Dyck, and Luigi Zingales. 2007. “Theft and taxes.” Journal of financial economics 84, no. 3:591–623. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.629350
7. Dhawan, Anirudh, Liangbo Ma, and Maria H. Kim. 2020. “Effect of corporate tax avoidance activities on firm bankruptcy risk.” Journal of Contemporary Accounting & Economics 16, no. 2:100187. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcae.2020.100187
8. Demerjian, Peter R., and Edward L. Owens. 2016. “Measuring the probability of financial covenant violation in private debt contracts.” Journal of Accounting and Economics 61, no. 2-3:433–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacceco.2015.11.001
9. Demiroglu, Cem, and Christopher M. James. 2010. “The information content of bank loan covenants.” The Review of Financial Studies 23, no. 10:3700–37. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.959393
10. Guenther, David A., Kenneth Njoroge, and Brian M. Williams. 2020. “Allocation of internal cash flow when firms pay less tax.” The Accounting Review 95, no. 5:185–210. https://doi.org/10.2308/accr-52623
11. Hanlon, Michelle, and Shane Heitzman. 2010. “A review of tax research.” Journal of accounting and Economics 50, no 2-3:127–78. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jacceco.2010.09.002
12. Hasan, Mostafa M., and Gerald J. Lobo, Buhui Qiu. 2021. “Organizational capital, corporate tax avoidance, and firm value.” Journal of Corporate Finance 70., no. 1-2 (October):102050. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2021.102050
13. Singh, Mohinder, and Anshu Duhoon. 2023. “Corporate tax avoidance: a systematic literature review and future research directions.” LBS Journal of Management & Research 21, no. 2 (September):197–217.
14. Scholes, Myron S. [et al.]. 2002. Taxes and business strategy : A planning approach. 2nd ed., 556. Upper Saddle River, NJ : Prentice Hall.
15. Law, Kelvin KF, and Lillian F. Mills. 2015. “Taxes and financial constraints: Evidence from linguistic cues.” Journal of Accounting Research 53, no. 4:777–819. https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-679X.12081
16. Wilson, Ryan J. 2009. “An examination of corporate tax shelter participants.” The accounting review 84, no. 3:969–99. https://doi.org/10.2308/accr.2009.84.3.969



