會計師是企業避稅之守門員或助攻員？

Do auditors play either goalkeepers or wings on their clients’tax avoidance？

近年來，國際間反避稅的浪潮持續加溫，在企業避稅的過程中，會計師係扮演守門員或助攻員的角色尤其關鍵。本文探討台灣上市公司支付審計公費與非審計公費的多寡對其避稅行為的影響，文中採用財稅差異作為衡量避稅行為的指標。實證結果發現，當會計師收取較高審計公費時對抑制企業避稅行為並無顯著影響，表示會計師在企業避稅層面並未扮演守門員角色；然而，審計公費與暫時性財稅差異（盈餘管理指標）呈顯著負相關，表示會計師投入較多資源於提高盈餘品質的查核工作，在盈餘管理層面扮演守門員角色。另外，其他條件不變下，當企業購買愈多非審計服務時，會計師會提供較多的稅務諮詢服務，協助企業進行租稅規劃，且多是以遞延繳稅之暫時性差異為之，亦即在企業避稅層面扮演助攻員角色。

The public pay close attention to which role of auditors play either as a goalkeeper or a wing on corporate tax avoidance under the international anti-tax avoidance wave. This study investigates the association between audit fees and non-audit fees paid by listed companies and the degree of tax avoidance. Empirical results show that it has insignificant effect on clients’tax avoidance when auditors charge higher audit fees; however, it is a significantly negative association between audit fees and temporary book-tax differences（a proxy of earnings management）. This means that auditors invest more resources in auditing process to enhance earnings quality and play a goalkeeper role in earnings management. Other things being equal, it presents a significantly positive association between non-audit fees and tax avoidance through the arrange of deferred tax timing. This means that auditors play a wing role in clients’tax avoidance when they charge additional non-audit fees.