Investigating the Moderating Role of Real Earnings Management on the relationship between Customer Concentration and Tax Avoidance- Evidence from Tehran Stock Exchange

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of customer concentration on tax avoidance considering the moderating role of real earnings management. To measure tax avoidance, the difference between the legal and actual tax rates of the company has been used. The sample of this study consists of 79 firms listed in Tehran Stock Exchange for the period from 2006 to 2015. To test the hypotheses, multivariate linear regression model was used. The results indicated that customer concentration had a significant positive impact on the activities of tax avoidance. In addition, the findings showed that a positive relationship between customer concentration and tax avoidance is more pronounced when a firm engages less in real earnings management. In the other words, firms with major customers that engage in real earnings management are likely to engage in less tax avoidance, and are consistent with a substitution effect between real earnings management and tax avoidance.

Keywords

• customer concentration
• real earnings management
• tax avoidance