Arbeitspapier

Profit taxation, R&D spending, and innovation

We study how profit taxation affects plants' R&D spending and innovation activities. Relying on geocoded survey panel data which approximately covers the universe of R&D-active plants in Germany, we exploit around 7,300 changes in the municipal business tax rate over the period 1987-2013 for identification. Applying event study models, we find a negative and statistically significant effect of an increase in profit taxation on plants' R&D spending with an implied long-run elasticity of 􀀀1.25. Reductions in R&D are particularly strong among more credit-constrained plants. In contrast, homogeneity of effects across the plant size distribution questions policy makers common practice to link targeted R&D tax incentives to plant size. We further find lagged negative effects on the (citation-weighted) number of filed patents.

Language
Englisch

Bibliographic citation
Series: ZEW Discussion Papers ; No. 21-080

Classification
Wirtschaft
Business Taxes and Subsidies including sales and value-added (VAT)
Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents: Firm
Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
Management of Technological Innovation and R&D
Subject
corporate taxation
firms
R&D
innovation
patents

Event
Geistige Schöpfung
(who)
Lichter, Andreas
Löffler, Max
Isphording, Ingo Eduard
Nguyen, Thu-Van
Poege, Felix
Siegloch, Sebastian
Event
Veröffentlichung
(who)
ZEW - Leibniz-Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung
(where)
Mannheim
(when)
2021

Handle
Last update
10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET

Data provider

This object is provided by:
ZBW - Deutsche Zentralbibliothek für Wirtschaftswissenschaften - Leibniz-Informationszentrum Wirtschaft. If you have any questions about the object, please contact the data provider.

Object type

  • Arbeitspapier

Associated

  • Lichter, Andreas
  • Löffler, Max
  • Isphording, Ingo Eduard
  • Nguyen, Thu-Van
  • Poege, Felix
  • Siegloch, Sebastian
  • ZEW - Leibniz-Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung

Time of origin

  • 2021

Other Objects (12)