Offshore jurisdictions have become popular among corporations around the globe. They provide opportunities to reduce taxes by registering companies there. The Russian large firms have joined the trend, but exploit offshore schemes in different ways. They incorporate offshore companies with their subsidiaries operating in Russia. The main purpose is to protect assets from hostile capture by other businesses or even the government. Thus, businessmen stay hidden as end beneficiaries behind the offshore companies’ chain. The offshorization in the country has its enormous scale. Up to 90% of the largest companies are involved in offshore patterns. The government makes some efforts to force companies to come back to the country, but they are not effective. To succeed, corporations should experience the improved business climate and have an opportunity to defend themselves in fair courts. It is the government’s responsibility to make such appealing conditions. As a result, nowadays, Russia suffers not only from less tax collection, but also from losing control over strategically important enterprises and even industries. Thus, the phenomenon threatens to the country's national security.

隨著2016年巴拿馬文件(Panama Paper)的曝光，社會對避稅天堂的關注度在此時達到高峰。由於使用避稅天堂是一種法律及道德上處於灰色地帶的商業手段，因此本研究欲探討是否具有不端行為的企業會較容易使用避稅天堂。過去研究指出，一間具有不端行為而導致形象轉為負面的企業，會因此失去商譽、銷售下跌或失去合作夥伴等。而為了挽救上述影響所帶來的損失，有過不端行為的企業有較高機會再次利用具有爭議性的方法來彌補虧損。由於避稅天堂通常具有低稅率或完全免稅的特徵，也具有極高的資訊隱蔽性，因此面臨經營困難的企業可以容易利用避稅天堂來降低交易成本，如匯集資金、避稅，甚至用來隱藏賄賂等不法行為。 本研究採用台灣上市公司做為樣本，進行量化實證分析，結果顯示，企業不端行為件數、勞資關係不端行為件數及企業犯罪件數皆與企業到避稅天堂設立的子公司數呈現正向關係。曾具有勞資關係不端行為的企業，設立在避稅天堂的子公司數愈多，尤其是經主管機關處以罰鍰的企業，與避稅天堂的關聯性也愈高。 / The public’s concern about tax havens has peaked as the leak of “Panama Papers.” Since setting up subsidiaries in tax havens is an ethically dubious and controversial business practice, this study would like to examine whether there is a relationship between corporate wrongdoing and the usage of tax havens. Prior studies have shown that corporate wrongdoing would lead to impairment in goodwill, reduction in sales or losing partnership. In order to recover from the losses occur from the effects mentioned above, companies would have a higher incentive to involve in controversial behaviors. Tax haven, with its unique characteristic such as extremely low tax rate or tax free, and a high degree of concealment regarding sharing information with other governments, enables companies to avoid some market transaction costs and gives them an opportunity to easily pool money, evade tax, and even hide illegal conducts such as bribery. This study uses a quantitative method to investigate on listed companies in Taiwan. The result shows that the amount of corporate wrongdoing, labor related misbehavior and illegal corporate behavior all have a positive relationship with the possibility that corporates use tax haven. Also, corporates, which have past records in labor related dispute, tend to set up more subsidiaries in tax havens; especially those fined by the authorities.

2016年巴拿馬文件曝光後，社會對於企業使用避稅天堂的關注度達到高峰。到避稅天堂設立子公司為企業國際化的手段之一，但究竟是具有什麼樣國際化特質的企業比較會用避稅天堂是本研究想要探討的議題。 以往關於避稅天堂的文獻多在研究避稅天堂特性，較少針對使用避稅天堂的企業特性進行研究。因此本研究以企業在避稅天堂外的海外子公司數、海外子公司的投資損益、中國的子公司數，探討與企業在避稅天堂設立子公司數之關聯。 企業在海外的子公司數越多、海外子公司的投資損益金額越大，代表企業國際化程度越高，越有動機使用避稅天堂。本研究的第一個假設為企業在避稅天堂以外的國家所設立的海外子公司數與在避稅天堂的子公司數呈正相關；第二個假設為企業在海外子公司的投資損益金額與在避稅天堂的子公司數呈正相關。另外，到中國直接投資經常被台灣企業當成國際化手段。企業在中國的子公司數越多，其國際化程度也越高。但兩岸的特殊關係與台灣過去實施管制，增加了企業經營的風險與成本，企業因此有動機到避稅天堂等第三地設立子公司。本研究的第三個假設為企業在中國的子公司數與在避稅天堂的子公司數呈正相關。本研究對象為台灣上市企業，研究期間為民國100年至民國104年。研究結果顯示，企業在避稅天堂外的海外子公司數越多、在海外子公司的投資損益金額越大、在中國的子公司數越多，在避稅天堂的子公司數目也會越多。社會普遍詬病企業利用避稅天堂避稅，但企業也會基於其他國際化因素使用避稅天堂。對此，企業及政府應該採取作為，消除大眾對企業使用避稅天堂的疑慮，增加企業國際化時的彈性。 / Since the leaked Panama Papers, the public’s attention to “who are using tax havens” has peaked. As setting up subsidiaries in tax havens is a usual practice businesses adopt when going global, this study identifies three “corporate traits” of such businesses and explores their link to the number of subsidiaries such businesses have in tax havens. The greater the extent of a business’s internationalization, the greater its motivation to use tax havens. This study assumes that both the number of overseas subsidiaries (excluding those in tax havens) and the net income of overseas investment positively correlate with the number of subsidiaries a business has in tax havens. Also, when a Taiwanese company has more subsidiaries in China (thus more internationalized), its motivation to register in tax havens tends to be even stronger facing the peculiar cross-Strait relations and regulations imposed by the governments. This study further assumes the number of subsidiaries set up in China positively correlates with the number of subsidiaries a business has in tax havens. In closing, this study shows that the number of subsidiaries a business has in tax havens positively correlates with (1) the number of its offshore subsidiaries (excluding those tax havens); (2) the net income of its overseas investment; and (3) the number of its subsidiaries in China. Having a presence in tax havens is sometimes an expedient in the internationalization process of a business. We suggest that both the government and the business recognize the upside of using tax havens rather than just play up its downside.