Coercive, normative, and mimetic isomorphisms as drivers of corporate tax disclosure

Abstract

Purpose International Accounting Standard (IAS) 12 requires the disclosure of a tax reconciliation (TR). The purpose of the TR is to explain the differences between the corporate effective tax expense and the corporate theoretical tax expense. In this paper, the authors investigate which institutional pressures influence the level of disclosure of the TR. Design/methodology/approach The study draws on an empirical archival approach in which the level of disclosure is first measured and then associated with institutional pressures. The sample comprises 120 companies listed on the Paris stock exchange, i.e. a highly institutionalized setting. Findings The findings show a wide variation in the level of disclosure of the TR across the sample and that all three types of isomorphism (coercive, normative and mimetic) are associated with disclosure. Research limitations/implications The paper deals exclusively with TR given its importance to a wide range of users. Additional tax information available in annual reports, most of the time at an expert level, may be the subject of further research. Practical implications The results have important implications for standard setters, regulators, and practitioners as the research outlines the institutional pressures at work in corporate reporting policies and pushes forward the debate on fiscal transparency. Originality/value This paper documents the influence of institutional pressures on the level of the TR disclosure at a country level. It contributes to the literature on corporate tax disclosure which mainly focuses on differences across countries. An innovative ad hoc index is used to measure information completeness.

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