Tax Competitiveness of EU Member States in the Context of Corporate Taxation

Abstract

Tax Competitiveness of EU Member States in the Context of Corporate Taxation Despite the tax coordination and harmonisation, as the tax burden convergence processes, the corporate taxation systems differ among EU Member States, which can affect the development of economies to various degrees. The main objective of the paper is to assess whether the EU-27 countries are competitive in the field of corporate taxation and to verify whether "new Member States" are considered more competitive than the "old Member States". Empirical research from 2004 to 2014 used traditional quantitative indicators and specific quantitative methods in the form of tax rate relations, cluster analysis and constant market shares method, the application of which in the tax field is one of the main benefits of the research. Empirical results have highlighted the significant and positive impact of tax competitiveness on growth of corporate earnings growth. It has also shown that tax competition among countries is not clearly associated with a decrease in tax rates and will persist unless harmonization efforts are successful.