Do corporate governance best practices restrain tax evasion? Evidence from Greece

The aim of the present paper is to examine the association between corporate governance practices and the extent of tax evasion for the Greek listed companies when they operated in an accounting environment characterized by a high level of book-tax conformity. The results suggest that tax evasion is lower when the chairman of the board is also the owner of the company. A strong negative association is also reported between tax evasion and a) the percentage of stock held by the owner and its family members and b) the percentage of stock held by board members. The remuneration of the board members through the distribution of profits has been found to significantly decrease the evasion of taxes whereas tax evasion is higher when board members are also employees of the company. The findings contradict international codes on corporate governance practices and suggest that they may not apply to public firms with concentrated ownership. Key words: Corporate governance, tax evasion, accounting fraud, board composition.