Abstract:

The purpose of this paper is to determine the impact of board of directors and ownership concentration on corporate tax avoidance. Based on a sample consist of 48 French companies and 60 Japanese companies during the 2012–2018 period. This study is motivated by structural equations system models, that specify both a direct link and an indirect link between corporate governance and tax avoidance The results show that the board size, independent directors and ownership concentration reduce the likelihood of tax avoidance. The result also suggest that the effect of a country's legal system is significant when it develops the relationship between tax evasion and corporate governance. In addition, the role of corporate governance is more pronounced for firms operating in the civil law countries than those in the code law countries.