Abstract: Based on the panel data of Chinese A-share manufacturing listed companies from 2007 to 2016, this paper attempts to reveal the intrinsic motivation of corporate tax pain from the dynamic relationship between corporate tax burden and operating performance. The results show that under three factors of tax structure, tax transfer dilemma and stable operation, the tax burden of enterprises is sticky relative to performance, that is, the increase of tax burden relative to performance is greater than the decrease of tax burden caused by performance decline. The stickiness of tax burden is the intrinsic motivation of corporate tax burden “pain”, which provides theoretical support for explaining the pain of enterprise tax burden. Further research finds that many factors such as market status, property rights, tax avoidance behavior and corporate growth will affect the degree of tax stickiness, specifically enterprises with higher market position, state-owned enterprises, enterprises with lower tax avoidance degree, growth-oriented enterprises have stronger tax stickiness, which will bear greater tax pain when performance declines. The conclusion of the study is helpful for enterprises to treat the current tax burden rationally, and also provides a reference for tax system reform.

Key words: stickiness of tax burden, tax burden “pain”, tax structure, stable operation