SPED-Sistema Público de Escrituração Digital : um novo paradigma em termos de conformidade tributária

Abstract

The literature on tax avoidance deals with a large number of variables that explain the choice of individuals and companies to comply or not with their tax obligations. The economic analysis of tax compliance is based on the assumption that the taxpayer's behavior stems from a rational calculation about the costs and benefits of evasion. The theory and empirical evidence suggests that tax evasion can be mitigated through the imposition of tax policies based on the probability of detection and penalties. By deploying the Public Digital Bookkeeping System - SPED, tax administration seeks to increase the effectiveness of their enforcement mechanisms and reduce the tax gap. The objective of this research is to develop an empirical investigation of the relationship between the Accounting - SPED and the economic and financial results declared by companies (gross revenue and net profit ). The null hypothesis of the research - the lack of relationship between these variables - was tested through the regression model with panel data. The sample was selected from the 500 largest companies listed in the database Best and Biggest, by EXAME magazine. The data collected comprise financial statements of these companies on the calendar years 2004 to 2009. Regression models were estimated using pooled data, random effects and fixed effects, with balanced and unbalanced panels. The adequacy of each model was tested by specification procedures (Hausman and Lagrange Test). The Accounting - SPED showed significance in all regression models of gross revenue, allowing the rejection of the null hypothesis of no relationship between these variables. The estimated models for net profit returned inconsistent results, which do not allow to infer a relationship between this variable and the Accounting - SPED.