DOI: 10.24818/jamis.2025.03001
Vol. 24, No. 3, pp. 391-416, 2025
© 2025. This work is openly licensed via CC BY 4.0.
Author(s): Anissa Dakhli1,a,b and Zouhaira Khelilc,d
a ISFF, University of Sousse, Tunisia
b LIGUE Laboratory, University of Manouba, Tunisia
c FCF Laboratory, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunisia
d Departement of accouting and finance, ISGG, University of Gabes, Tunisia
1 Corresponding author: Anissa Dakhli, Departement of accouting, finance and management, High Institute of Finance and Taxation of Sousse (ISFF), University of Sousse, Tunisia. Email address: anissadakhly@gmail.com
Keywords: CEO financial expertise, CEO duality, CEO compensation, CEO tenure,
CEO ownership, tax avoidance.
JEL codes: M4, M48, C3
Abstract
Research Question: How do CEO characteristics affect corporate tax avoidance level?
Motivation: Few studies have addressed this topic in the French context. In addition, this research investigates the combined effect on tax avoidance of CEO characteristics. Indeed, prior studies analyzed each characteristic effect taken separately; i.e CEO tenure, CEO compensation, CEO duality, CEO ownership. In this respect, our study will shed further light on the question.
Idea: We examine the effect of chief executive officer (CEO) characteristics on corporate tax avoidance level.CEO characteristics as CEO duality, CEO compensation, CEO ownership, CEO financial expertise, and CEO tenure were used as the independent variables.
Data: We use a sample of 34 companies listed on the CAC 40 during the 2013-2021 period. Tools: We use the GMM estimation for panel data. CEO characteristics data were hand-collected from companies’ annual reports, and financial data were obtained from Datastream database.
Findings: The empirical results show that CEO characteristics, namely CEO duality, CEO compensation, CEO ownership, and CEO financial expertise, positively affect tax avoidance. However, no significant relationship was found between CEO tenure and corporate tax avoidance.
Contribution: This paper contributes to the existing literature by extending previous
literature on whether CEO characteristics, considered simultaneously, affect corporate tax avoidance in a specific context, the French context.
Full paper at: http://online-cig.ase.ro/jcig/art/24_3_1.pdf
