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How Low Business Tax Rates Attract Multinational Headquarters: Municipality-Level Evidence from Germany

Author

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  • Becker, Sascha
  • Egger, Peter H
  • Merlo, Valeria
Abstract
Most existing empirical evidence on the impact of profit taxation on multinational firm activity is based on cross-country data. One major drawback of such data is that countries differ not only with regard to taxes but along other dimensions which might be hard to capture by means of observable characteristics. We compile a database of more than 11,000 municipalities in Germany to analyze the sensitivity of the location decisions of foreign MNEs with respect to business tax rates which are levied directly by the municipalities. Using count data models suited for cross-sectional and panel data, we find that higher business tax rates have a negative effect on the number of foreign MNE headquarters, after controlling for other determinants of firm location decisions. On average, a one-percent reduction of the municipal business tax rate (equivalent to a decline by about 0.14 percentage points) leads to an increase in the number of headquarters of foreign MNEs by about 0.05. Hence, the average municipality needs to reduce its business tax rate by 20% to attract one foreign MNE.

Suggested Citation

  • Becker, Sascha & Egger, Peter H & Merlo, Valeria, 2008. "How Low Business Tax Rates Attract Multinational Headquarters: Municipality-Level Evidence from Germany," Stirling Economics Discussion Papers 2008-30, University of Stirling, Division of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:stl:stledp:2008-30
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/1893/641
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    Cited by:

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    2. Egger, Peter & Fahn, Matthias & Merlo, Valeria & Wamser, Georg, 2014. "On the genesis of multinational foreign affiliate networks," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 136-163.
    3. Janeba, Eckhard & Osterloh, Steffen, 2012. "Tax and the city: A theory of local tax competition and evidence for Germany," ZEW Discussion Papers 12-005, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    4. Julien Martin & Florian Mayneris, 2022. "Revue de littérature sur l’incidence fiscale des taxes sur les entreprises," CIRANO Project Reports 2022rp-06, CIRANO.
    5. Hansjörg Blöchliger & José Maria Pinero Campos, 2011. "Tax Competition Between Sub-Central Governments," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 872, OECD Publishing.
    6. Hyun-Ju Koh & Nadine Riedel, 2010. "Do governments tax agglomeration rents?," Working Papers 2010/21, Institut d'Economia de Barcelona (IEB).
    7. Alvaro Cuervo-Cazurra & C. Annique Un, 2023. "Beauty in the Eyes of the Beholders: How Government- and Consumer-Based Country-of-Origin Advantages and Disadvantages Drive Host Country Investment Dynamics," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 63(2), pages 285-312, April.
    8. Egger, Peter H. & Merlo, Valeria & Wamser, Georg, 2014. "Unobserved tax avoidance and the tax elasticity of FDI," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 1-18.
    9. Michael Overesch & Georg Wamser, 2010. "The effects of company taxation in EU accession countries on German FDI1," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 18(3), pages 429-457, July.
    10. Miyazawa, Kazutoshi & Ogawa, Hikaru & Tamai, Toshiki, 2019. "Capital market integration and fiscal sustainability," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    11. Kimberly A. Clausing, . "Does tax drive the headquarters locations of the world’s biggest companies?," UNCTAD Transnational Corporations Journal, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
    12. Gauselmann, Andrea & Marek, Philipp & Angenendt, Jan Philipp, 2011. "MNE’s Regional Location Choice - A Comparative Perspective on East Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland," IWH Discussion Papers 8/2011, Halle Institute for Economic Research (IWH).
    13. Koh, Hyun-Ju & Riedel, Nadine & Böhm, Tobias, 2013. "Do governments tax agglomeration rents?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 92-106.
    14. Koh, Hyun-Ju & Riedel, Nadine & Böhm, Tobias, 2013. "Do governments tax agglomeration rents?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 92-106.
    15. Fahn, Matthias, 2011. "Three Essays on Commitment and Information Problems," Munich Dissertations in Economics 13750, University of Munich, Department of Economics.
    16. Ye, Zhiqiang & Zhang, Fangfang & Zhang, Shunming, 2021. "Export effect and influence mechanism of foreign ownership," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 258-276.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Multinational firms; Profit taxation; Regional public finance; Count d ata;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F23 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Multinational Firms; International Business
    • H25 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Business Taxes and Subsidies
    • H32 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - Firm
    • R10 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - General

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