Influence of Audit Committee Characteristics on Thailand’s MAI Listed Company Tax Planning Efficiency

Abstract

The study intends to investigate the influence of audit committee characteristics on the effectiveness of corporate income tax planning in Thailand's MAI Listed Companies, both during and after the COVID-19 crisis. This research emphasises the significance of the knowledge and expertise possessed by audit committee members in facilitating thorough oversight and the development of tax planning strategies. This research made use of secondary data sourced from financial statements and annual reports covering the period from 2017 to 2021. The dataset was compiled from a total of 106 individual companies that are actively listed on the MAI Securities Exchange. Within the specified sample timeframe, a total of 530 firm-year observations were gathered. The investigation employed logit regression, a specialized form of logistic regression frequently employed by statisticians to model binary outcomes or categorical variables that have two distinct categories. The findings of the study reveal a noteworthy connection between the characteristics of the audit committee and the efficiency of company tax planning. Specifically, the size, diversity, and independence of the audit committee demonstrate a substantial association with the efficiency of company tax planning. These results underscore the vital role played by these factors in evaluating the effectiveness of tax planning strategies within the examined organizations. Additionally, the study identifies that an elevated proportion of female members within the audit committee relative to the total number of committee members had a statistically significant and negative impact on the CuETR (B= -0.013) within the sample group of companies listed on Thailand's MAI exchange. The study's findings suggest that the characteristics of the audit committee have a significant influence on the efficiency of company tax planning among Thai SMEs listed on the MAI exchange. The study is at the forefront of addressing matters concerning Effective Tax Rate, Tax Planning, and Audit Committee Characteristics in companies listed on the MAI exchange in Thailand.