Independent Commissioners' Role in CEO Tenure, Capital Intensity and Firm Size Tax Avoidance

Purpose: This research aims to understand the influence of CEO tenure, capital intensity, and company size on tax avoidance, with a focus on how these relationships are moderated by the proportion of independent commissioners in manufacturing companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) from 2017 to 2022. Methodology/approach: The study employs a purposive sampling strategy, selecting a total of 198 companies that meet the predefined criteria. The analysis relies on secondary data collected from the IDX website and utilizes panel data regression analysis on eViews 13.0 as the analytical technique. Findings: The data reveals that company size significantly affects tax avoidance, with larger firms tending to avoid tax less. Conversely, CEO tenure and capital intensity do not appear to impact tax avoidance significantly. The proportion of independent commissioners has a moderating effect on the relationship between firm size and tax avoidance, but not on the relationships between CEO tenure, capital intensity, and tax avoidance. Practical implications: These findings imply that corporate governance, represented by the proportion of independent commissioners, plays a crucial role in moderating the impact of company size on tax avoidance. However, its influence does not extend to the effect of CEO tenure and capital intensity on tax avoidance. This suggests that enhancing corporate governance practices could be a potent strategy for managing tax avoidance in large firms. Originality/value: This research contributes valuable insights into the factors influencing tax avoidance. It is unique in its use of independent commissioners as a proxy for corporate governance, testing its role in moderating the relationship between independent variables and tax avoidance. This is a departure from previous studies, which typically treat independent commissioners as independent variables.