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Tax Haven Activities and the Tax Liabilities of Multinational Groups

Author

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  • Giorgia Maffini

    (University of Oxford Centre for Business Taxation and University of Warwick.)

Abstract

This paper investigates the effect of tax haven operations on the tax liabilities of corporate groups headquartered in 15 OECD countries. Using consolidated accounting data from ORBIS (2003-2007), this work finds that, at the mean, an additional tax haven subsidiary reduces tax liabilities over total assets by 7.4 per cent in the long run. At the mean, the marginal effective tax rate (ETR) of a corporate group with tax haven subsidiaries is one percentage point lower than it is for groups without low-tax offshore operations. The results also show that the marginal ETR of companies headquartered in countries with a territorial system is lower than that of companies headquartered in jurisdictions with a worldwide system of taxation on corporate profits. More specifically, corporate groups headquartered in the United States have the highest marginal ETR.

Suggested Citation

  • Giorgia Maffini, 2009. "Tax Haven Activities and the Tax Liabilities of Multinational Groups," Working Papers 0925, Oxford University Centre for Business Taxation.
    • Handle: RePEc:btx:wpaper:0925
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    File URL: http://www.sbs.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/Business_Taxation/Docs/Publications/Working_Papers/Series_09/WP0925.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    4. Scott D. Dyreng & Bradley P. Lindsey, 2009. "Using Financial Accounting Data to Examine the Effect of Foreign Operations Located in Tax Havens and Other Countries on U.S. Multinational Firms' Tax Rates," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(5), pages 1283-1316, December.
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    6. Kevin S. Markle & Douglas Shackelford, 2009. "Do Multinationals or Domestic Firms Face Higher Effective Tax Rates?," NBER Working Papers 15091, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    Cited by:

    1. Hebous, Shafik & Lipatov, Vilen, 2014. "A journey from a corruption port to a tax haven," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(3), pages 739-754.
    2. Shafik Hebous, 2014. "Money at the Docks of Tax Havens: A Guide," FinanzArchiv: Public Finance Analysis, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 70(3), pages 458-485, September.
    3. Vít Jedlička, 2017. "International Tax Planning: Current State of Knowledge," European Financial and Accounting Journal, Prague University of Economics and Business, vol. 2017(4), pages 31-46.
    4. Ylönen, Matti & Laine, Matias, 2015. "For logistical reasons only? A case study of tax planning and corporate social responsibility reporting," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 5-23.
    5. Schulte Sasse, Katharina & Watrin, Christoph & Weiß, Falko, 2020. "The alignment between reported profits and real activity in times of the BEPS Action Plan," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 40(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Corporate Income Tax; Multinationals; Profit shifting; Tax Havens;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F23 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Multinational Firms; International Business
    • H25 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Business Taxes and Subsidies
    • H32 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - Firm

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