Empirical evidence of tax disclosure within sustainability reporting

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Type and Duration

FFF-Förderprojekt, July 2014 until September 2016 (finished)

Coordinator

Chair for Tax Management and the Laws of Liechtenstein and International Taxation

Main Research

Wealth Management

Field of Research

Company Taxation

Description

Tax payments by multinational enterprises are increasingly discussed within the corporate social responsibility (CSR) debate. At the beginning, mainly media, non-governmental organizations, and politicians have addressed this issue. Recently, academics have also started to shed light on the link between tax payments and CSR. The increasing relevance of taxes within the CSR debate is a result of two developments: a high number of publicly disclosed multinational enterprises that are accused of avoiding taxes and the rising national debt in the OECD countries which limits public services, such as social services, healthcare, education, and infrastructure. As a consequence, multinational enterprises are urged to pay their fair share of taxes. In doing so, media and non-governmental organizations follow a strategy of naming and shaming, i.e., they publish the names of actual or supposed tax-aggressive companies. This public pressure might influence the level of tax disclosure within sustainability reports.

Against this background, the present research project aims at analyzing the development of tax disclosure within CSR reporting.

Reference to Liechtenstein

Das Fürstentum Liechtenstein hat sich zu internationalen Standards im Hinblick auf steuerliche Transparenz bekannt. Analyse der Leitsätze der Global Reporting Initiative, der OECD?Leitsätze für multinationale Unternehmen und des Total Tax Contribution Framework, um die konkret massgeblichen Strategien und Rahmenbedingungen aus liechtensteinischer Sicht zu ermitteln.

Keywords

Corporate Social Responsibility, sustainability reporting, tax disclosure

Project Manager

Prof. Dr. Inga Hardeck

Project Collaborator

Prof. Dr. Martin Wenz

Publications

  • Hardeck, I., & Kirn, T. (2016). Taboo or Technical Issue? An Empirical Assessment of Taxation in Sustainability Reports. Journal of Cleaner Production, 133, 1337-1351. (ABDC_2022: A; ABS_2021: 2; VHB_3: B)

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  • Hardeck, I., & Kirn, T. (2014). Assessing the Role of Taxes in Sustainability Reporting – Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Evidence from Germany, the US and the UK. Paper presented at the 4th Workshop in Accounting and Taxation, Universität Münster.

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  • Hardeck, I., & Kirn, T. (2014). Assessing the Role of Taxes in Sustainability Reporting – Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Evidence from Germany, the US and the UK. Presented at the Workshop "Empirische Steuerforschung", ZEW Mannheim.

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