The determinants of transfer pricing: Evidence from Tunisian listed firms

Authors

  • Abdelkader Kasraoui Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Tunis
  • Kamel Naoui Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Tunis

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54957/educoretax.v4i7.865

Keywords:

Tax Avoidance, Transfer pricing, Tunisia

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to detect the determinants of transfer pricing in the Tunisian economic context. This study uses secondary data from financial statments of listed firms on the Tunis Stock Exchange (BVMT), as well as the notes published in the official bulletins and annual reports provided by the Tunisian Financial Market Council (CMF).The study period covered 10 years, from 2010 to 2019 with 310 observations. We use random effect model to verify financial and economic hypotheses in the Tunisian context. Robustness tests are also used to investigate the transfer pricing determinants’. We find that firm size, sector of activity, reinvestment of profits and tax loss’ imputation have a significant positive impact on the practice of transfer pricing. The originality of this study lies in the importance of the transfer pricing at the level of local companies with the presence of several tax rates in the same tax system, a range of tax incentives granted by the government and the imputation of perpetual loss over several years.These findings may serve the Tunisian government in its fight against transfer pricing.

References

Auerbach, A. J., & Hassett, K. (1992). Tax policy and business fixed investment in the United States. Journal of Public Economics, 47(2), 141–170.

Auerbach, A. J., & Poterba, J. M. (1987). Why have corporate tax revenues declined? Tax Policy and the Economy, 1, 1–28.

Boadway, R. W., & Wildasin, D. E. (1984). Public sector economics. Little, Brown.

Conover, T. L., & Nichols, N. B. (2000). A Further Examination of Income Shifting Through Transfer Pricing Considering Firm Size and/or Distress. The International Journal of Accounting, 35(2), 189–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0020-7063(00)00045-5

Elitzur, R., & Mintz, J. (1996). Transfer pricing rules and corporate tax competition. Journal of Public Economics, 60(3), 401–422. https://doi.org/10.1016/0047-2727(95)01558-2

Hanlon, M., & Heitzman, S. (2010). A review of tax research. Journal of Accounting and Economics, 50(2–3), 127–178. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacceco.2010.09.002

Hanlon, M., Krishnan, G. V., & Mills, L. F. (2012). Audit fees and book-tax differences. Journal of the American Taxation Association, 34(1), 55–86.

Hargiasto, H., Mardiana, K. S., Prasetyaningrum, O. R., & Firmansyah, A. (2024). Determinants Of Profit Shifting Decision: Analysis Of Multinational Companies In Indonesia. Educoretax, 4(5), Article 5. https://doi.org/10.54957/educoretax.v4i5.771

Hines, J., & Rice, E. M. (1994). Fiscal Paradise: Foreign Tax Havens and American Business. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 109(1), 149–182.

Hirshleifer, J. (1956). On the economics of transfer pricing. The Journal of Business, 29(3), 172–184.

Huang, D.-F., & Chang, M.-L. (2016). Do auditor-provided tax services improve the relation between tax-related internal control and book-tax differences? Asia-Pacific Journal of Accounting & Economics, 23(2), 177–199.

Huizinga, H., & Laeven, L. (2008). International profit shifting within multinationals: A multi-country perspective. Journal of Public Economics, 92(5–6), 1164–1182.

Jacob, J. (1996). Taxes and Transfer Pricing: Income Shifting and the Volume of Intrafirm Transfers. Journal of Accounting Research, 34(2), 301. https://doi.org/10.2307/2491504

Manzon Jr, G. B., & Plesko, G. A. (2001). The relation between financial and tax reporting measures of income. Tax L. Rev., 55, 175.

Mills, L. F. (1998). Book-tax differences and Internal Revenue Service adjustments. Journal of Accounting Research, 36(2), 343–356.

Mills, L. F., Newberry, K. J., & Trautman, W. B. (2002). Trends in book-tax income and balance sheet differences. Available at SSRN 313040.

OECD. (2022). Principes de l’OCDE applicables en matière de prix de transfert à l’intention des entreprises multinationales et des administrations fiscales 2022. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/taxation/principes-de-l-ocde-applicables-en-matiere-de-prix-de-transfert-a-l-intention-des-entreprises-multinationales-et-des-administrations-fiscales-2022_5357f003-fr

Pellefigue, J. (2012). Théorie économique de la réglementation des prix de transfert [These de doctorat, Paris 2]. http://www.theses.fr/2012PA020047

Raedy, J., Seidman, J., & Shackelford, D. (2010). Book-tax differences: Which ones matter to equity investors. University of North Carolina Working Paper.

Raffournier, B. (1990). La théorie’positive’de la comptabilité: Une revue de la littérature. Economies et Sociétés (Paris), 16.

Richardson, G., & Lanis, R. (2007). Determinants of the variability in corporate effective tax rates and tax reform: Evidence from Australia. Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, 26(6), 689–704. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaccpubpol.2007.10.003

Richardson, G., Taylor, G., & Lanis, R. (2013). Determinants of transfer pricing aggressiveness: Empirical evidence from Australian firms. Journal of Contemporary Accounting & Economics, 9(2), 136–150. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcae.2013.06.002

Shunko, M., Debo, L., & Gavirneni, S. (2014). Transfer Pricing and Sourcing Strategies for Multinational Firms. Production and Operations Management, 23(12), 2043–2057. https://doi.org/10.1111/poms.12175

Tang, T., & Firth, M. (2011). Can book-tax differences capture earnings management and tax Management? Empirical evidence from China. The International Journal of Accounting, 46(2), 175–204.

Tang, T. Y. (2015). Does book-tax conformity deter opportunistic book and tax reporting? An international analysis. European Accounting Review, 24(3), 441–469.

Watts, R. L., & Zimmerman, J. L. (1990). Positive accounting theory: A ten year perspective. Accounting Review, 131–156.

Yoo, J. S. (2022). The effects of transfer pricing regulations on multinational income shifting. Asia-Pacific Journal of Accounting & Economics, 29(3), 692–714. https://doi.org/10.1080/16081625.2020.1741277

Downloads

Published

2024-07-01

How to Cite

Kasraoui, A., & Naoui, K. (2024). The determinants of transfer pricing: Evidence from Tunisian listed firms. Educoretax, 4(7), 814–824. https://doi.org/10.54957/educoretax.v4i7.865

Issue

Section

Articles