Earning management and corporate tax rate change: Evidence from the Finnish 2005 tax reform

Henrik Höglund

Earning management and corporate tax rate change: Evidence from the Finnish 2005 tax reform

Accounting, Vaasa

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution › Scientific › peer-review

Abstract

The Finnish 2005 tax reform included, among other things, a reduction of the corporate tax rate from 29% to 26% and a partial taxation of dividends. The reduction in the corporate tax rate created a strong incentive for the firms to shift earnings from the period prior to the tax reform to the period after the tax reform. There are a number of previous studies where the results are unambiguous in that firms manage their earnings downwards prior to a decrease in the corporate tax rate. The results in this study suggests that firms that do not pay dividends in the year prior to the tax reform engage in income decreasing earnings management prior to the tax reform and that the earnings management reverses the year after the tax reform. For the firms that have paid dividends in the year prior to the tax reform there is only weak evidence of similar earnings management behavior as for the firms that have not paid
dividends.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	Annual Congress of the European Accounting Association
Publication date	2013
Publication status	Published - 2013
MoE publication type	A4 Article in conference proceedings
Event	36th Annual Congress of the European Accounting Association (EAA) - Paris, France Duration: 06.05.2013 → 08.05.2013 Conference number: 36

Keywords

512 Business and Management
Equis Base Room

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Cite this

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title = "Earning management and corporate tax rate change: Evidence from the Finnish 2005 tax reform",

abstract = "The Finnish 2005 tax reform included, among other things, a reduction of the corporate tax rate from 29% to 26% and a partial taxation of dividends. The reduction in the corporate tax rate created a strong incentive for the firms to shift earnings from the period prior to the tax reform to the period after the tax reform. There are a number of previous studies where the results are unambiguous in that firms manage their earnings downwards prior to a decrease in the corporate tax rate. The results in this study suggests that firms that do not pay dividends in the year prior to the tax reform engage in income decreasing earnings management prior to the tax reform and that the earnings management reverses the year after the tax reform. For the firms that have paid dividends in the year prior to the tax reform there is only weak evidence of similar earnings management behavior as for the firms that have not paiddividends.",

keywords = "512 Business and Management, Equis Base Room",

author = "Henrik H{\"o}glund",

note = " Volume: Proceeding volume: ; 36th Annual Congress of the European Accounting Association (EAA), EAA ; Conference date: 06-05-2013 Through 08-05-2013",

year = "2013",

language = "English",

booktitle = "Annual Congress of the European Accounting Association",

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N2 - The Finnish 2005 tax reform included, among other things, a reduction of the corporate tax rate from 29% to 26% and a partial taxation of dividends. The reduction in the corporate tax rate created a strong incentive for the firms to shift earnings from the period prior to the tax reform to the period after the tax reform. There are a number of previous studies where the results are unambiguous in that firms manage their earnings downwards prior to a decrease in the corporate tax rate. The results in this study suggests that firms that do not pay dividends in the year prior to the tax reform engage in income decreasing earnings management prior to the tax reform and that the earnings management reverses the year after the tax reform. For the firms that have paid dividends in the year prior to the tax reform there is only weak evidence of similar earnings management behavior as for the firms that have not paiddividends.

AB - The Finnish 2005 tax reform included, among other things, a reduction of the corporate tax rate from 29% to 26% and a partial taxation of dividends. The reduction in the corporate tax rate created a strong incentive for the firms to shift earnings from the period prior to the tax reform to the period after the tax reform. There are a number of previous studies where the results are unambiguous in that firms manage their earnings downwards prior to a decrease in the corporate tax rate. The results in this study suggests that firms that do not pay dividends in the year prior to the tax reform engage in income decreasing earnings management prior to the tax reform and that the earnings management reverses the year after the tax reform. For the firms that have paid dividends in the year prior to the tax reform there is only weak evidence of similar earnings management behavior as for the firms that have not paiddividends.

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