IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/finlet/v92y2026ics1544612326000711.html

How digital capabilities affect tax planning: The internal information environment

Author

Listed:
  • Xu, Liping
  • Zhang, Lirong

Abstract

The rapid development of the digital economy has profoundly reshaped firms’ operational decisions and financial behaviors, yet how corporate digital transformation affects tax planning remains insufficiently explored. Using a sample of Chinese A-share nonfinancial listed firms from 2009 to 2023, this study analyses digital transformation’s effect on corporate tax planning efficiency, focusing on the mediating role of the internal information environment. The results show that digital transformation significantly enhances tax planning efficiency, and this conclusion remains robust across robustness and endogeneity tests. Mechanism analyses indicate that digital transformation improves the internal information environment by increasing earnings forecast accuracy and accelerating financial information disclosure, strengthening firms’ tax planning capabilities. Heterogeneity analyses further reveal that this effect is greater in firms with stronger internal governance, greater external monitoring and more advanced regional digital economic development and industrial agglomeration. Furthermore, digital transformation promotes firms’ total factor productivity by improving tax planning efficiency. This study provides new empirical evidence on the financial governance effects of digital transformation with essential policy and managerial implications.

Suggested Citation

  • Xu, Liping & Zhang, Lirong, 2026. "How digital capabilities affect tax planning: The internal information environment," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finlet:v:92:y:2026:i:c:s1544612326000711
    DOI: 10.1016/j.frl.2026.109540
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1544612326000711
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.frl.2026.109540?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Goldmann, Paul & Schäfer, Björn & Altendorfer, Christina, 2025. "Development and validation of the digital mindset scale," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 199(C).
    2. Andrew M. Bauer, 2016. "Tax Avoidance and the Implications of Weak Internal Controls," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 33(2), pages 449-486, June.
    3. Gallemore, John & Labro, Eva, 2015. "The importance of the internal information environment for tax avoidance," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(1), pages 149-167.
    4. Zhou, Shuya & Zhou, Peiyan & Ji, Hannah, 2022. "Can digital transformation alleviate corporate tax stickiness: The mediation effect of tax avoidance," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    5. Luo, Kang & Liu, Yaobin & Chen, Pei-Fen & Zeng, Mingli, 2022. "Assessing the impact of digital economy on green development efficiency in the Yangtze River Economic Belt," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    6. Wu, Keping & Fu, Yumei & Kong, Dongmin, 2022. "Does the digital transformation of enterprises affect stock price crash risk?," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 48(C).
    7. Gebauer, Heiko & Fleisch, Elgar & Lamprecht, Claudio & Wortmann, Felix, 2020. "Growth paths for overcoming the digitalization paradox," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 63(3), pages 313-323.
    8. Verhoef, Peter C. & Broekhuizen, Thijs & Bart, Yakov & Bhattacharya, Abhi & Qi Dong, John & Fabian, Nicolai & Haenlein, Michael, 2021. "Digital transformation: A multidisciplinary reflection and research agenda," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 889-901.
    9. Qiang Cheng & Beng Wee Goh & Jae B. Kim, 2018. "Internal Control and Operational Efficiency," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 35(2), pages 1102-1139, June.
    10. Ma, Chunguang & Feng, Shunfei & Huang, Wenhui & Chen, Aoyun, 2025. "Political corruption and corporate tax avoidance: A quasi-natural experiment," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    11. Tang, Mengxuan & Hu, Yang & Hou, Yang (Greg) & Oxley, Les & Goodell, John W., 2025. "Fintech development, corporate tax avoidance and firm value," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    12. Guangyong Lei & Wanwan Wang & Junli Yu & Kam C. Chan, 2022. "Cultural Diversity and Corporate Tax Avoidance: Evidence from Chinese Private Enterprises," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 176(2), pages 357-379, March.
    13. Wen, Huwei & Zhong, Qiming & Lee, Chien-Chiang, 2022. "Digitalization, competition strategy and corporate innovation: Evidence from Chinese manufacturing listed companies," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    14. Wanyi Chen & Liguang Zhang & Pinyan Jiang & Fanli Meng & Qianyi Sun, 2022. "Can digital transformation improve the information environment of the capital market? Evidence from the analysts' prediction behaviour," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 62(2), pages 2543-2578, June.
    15. Uyar, Ali & Nimer, Khalil & Kuzey, Cemil & Shahbaz, Muhammad & Schneider, Friedrich, 2021. "Can e-government initiatives alleviate tax evasion? The moderation effect of ICT," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    16. Minnick, Kristina & Noga, Tracy, 2010. "Do corporate governance characteristics influence tax management?," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 16(5), pages 703-718, December.
    17. Cho, Seunghyun & Pae, Jinhan & Yoo, Choong-Yuel, 2025. "CEO war trauma and corporate tax avoidance," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 104(PA).
    18. Wen, Wen & Cui, Huijie & Ke, Yun, 2020. "Directors with foreign experience and corporate tax avoidance," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    19. Rangaswamy, Arvind & Moch, Nicole & Felten, Claudio & van Bruggen, Gerrit & Wieringa, Jaap E. & Wirtz, Jochen, 2020. "The Role of Marketing in Digital Business Platforms," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 72-90.
    20. Desai, Mihir A. & Dharmapala, Dhammika, 2006. "Corporate tax avoidance and high-powered incentives," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(1), pages 145-179, January.
    21. Armstrong, Christopher S. & Blouin, Jennifer L. & Jagolinzer, Alan D. & Larcker, David F., 2015. "Corporate Governance, Incentives, and Tax Avoidance," Research Papers 2134, Stanford University, Graduate School of Business.
    22. Xia, Changyuan & Cao, Chunfang & Chan, Kam C., 2017. "Social trust environment and firm tax avoidance: Evidence from China," The North American Journal of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 374-392.
    23. Cai, Cheng & Zhou, Lianjie & Liu, Dongshuang, 2025. "Dynamic relationship between tax reputation, digital transformation, and corporate tax compliance in financial markets," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 104(PA).
    24. Armstrong, Christopher S. & Blouin, Jennifer L. & Jagolinzer, Alan D. & Larcker, David F., 2015. "Corporate governance, incentives, and tax avoidance," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(1), pages 1-17.
    25. Christian Laux & Gyöngyi Lóránth & Alan D. Morrison, 2018. "The Adverse Effect of Information on Governance and Leverage," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 64(4), pages 1510-1527, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Angelo Leogrande & Fabio Anobile & Alberto Costantiello & Carlo Drago & Massimo Arnone, 2026. "Who Finances the Carbon Transition? Financial Structure, Institutional Quality, and Emissions in OECD Economies," Working Papers hal-05526715, HAL.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Tang, Mengxuan & Hu, Yang & Hou, Yang (Greg) & Oxley, Les & Goodell, John W., 2025. "Fintech development, corporate tax avoidance and firm value," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    2. Christofer Adrian & Mukesh Garg & Anh Viet Pham & Soon-Yeow Phang & Cameron Truong, 2023. "Do Natural Disasters Affect Corporate Tax Avoidance? The Case of Drought," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 186(1), pages 105-135, August.
    3. Kovermann, Jost & Velte, Patrick, 2019. "The impact of corporate governance on corporate tax avoidance—A literature review," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 1-1.
    4. Yang (Eric) Zhou & Jingjun (David) Xu & Zhiying Liu, 2024. "The impact of digital transformation on corporate innovation: Roles of analyst coverage and internal control," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 45(1), pages 373-393, January.
    5. Shen, Huayu & Hou, Fei & Peng, Miaowei & Xiong, Hao & Zuo, Haohao, 2021. "Economic policy uncertainty and corporate tax avoidance: Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    6. Benkraiem, Ramzi & Gaaya, Safa & Lakhal, Faten & Kilic, Merve, 2025. "Access to finance and corporate tax avoidance: International evidence," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 58(C).
    7. Wei Cen & Naqiong Tong & Yushi Sun, 2017. "Tax avoidance and cost of debt: evidence from a natural experiment in China," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 57(5), pages 1517-1556, December.
    8. Alharbi, Samar & Atawnah, Nader & Al Mamun, Md & Ali, Muhammad Jahangir, 2022. "Local culture and tax avoidance: Evidence from gambling preference behavior," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 52(C).
    9. Bilicka, Katarzyna & Clancey-Shang, Danjue & Qi, Yaxuan, 2022. "Tax avoidance regulations and stock market responses," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    10. Blaufus, Kay & Möhlmann, Axel & Schwäbe, Alexander N., 2019. "Stock price reactions to news about corporate tax avoidance and evasion," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 278-292.
    11. Mansoor Afzali & Timmy Thor, 2025. "Corporate culture and tax planning," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 64(2), pages 861-898, February.
    12. Fang, Ming & Wu, Qiang & Xu, Xin (Emma) & Zhou, Zejiang, 2025. "CFO social networks and corporation taxation," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    13. Jamel Eddine Mkadmi & Arem Say & Sana Saida, 2022. "The Impact of Internal Governance Mechanisms on Tax Risk in Developing Countries: An Empirical Analysis," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 12(5), pages 86-94, September.
    14. Yang, Hefan & Liu, Xilu & Meng, Yao & Feng, Baoyi & Chen, Zhijun, 2024. "Digital transformation and the allocation of decision-making rights within business groups – Empirical evidence from China," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 179(C).
    15. Zhou, Shuya & Zhou, Peiyan & Ji, Hannah, 2022. "Can digital transformation alleviate corporate tax stickiness: The mediation effect of tax avoidance," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    16. Ma, Chunguang & Feng, Shunfei & Huang, Wenhui & Chen, Aoyun, 2025. "Political corruption and corporate tax avoidance: A quasi-natural experiment," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    17. Lei, Guangyong & Qiu, Baoyin & Yu, Junli & Zuo, Jingjing, 2023. ""Hitting the jackpot" in corporate tax strategy: A perspective on gambling preferences," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    18. Jiménez-Angueira, Carlos E., 2018. "The effect of the interplay between corporate governance and external monitoring regimes on firms' tax avoidance," Advances in accounting, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 7-24.
    19. Huijie Cui & Shiqiang Chen & Dongmin Kong & Yonggen Luo, 2025. "Collectivist Culture and Corporate Tax Avoidance: Evidence from China," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 200(2), pages 417-443, August.
    20. Feng, Chen & Wang, Xiaoyang & Wang, Chao & Zhu, Xingshu & Xu, Xiaofang, 2026. "Network attention, administrative intervention and firm tax aggressiveness," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:finlet:v:92:y:2026:i:c:s1544612326000711. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/frl .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.