A message from the Representative Director, Hidetoshi Masuda

I assumed the office of the Representative Director of the Institute of Tax Research and Literature (ITRL) in June 2023.

The ITRL is the largest tax library in Japan. Founded in May 1991 by the late Dr. Takeshi Iizuka, the first chairman of TKC National Federation, it is also an organization for supporting academic study. It houses more than 130,000 publications, including Japanese and foreign publications on tax laws and accounting collected by Dr. Iizuka.

Dr. Iizuka explained that the ITRL was established for the following three main purposes: “(1) To collect materials that concern tax and archive them along with literature obtained by Takeshi Iizuka, and also make them available to the public for their use; (2) To provide dedicated and thorough research assistance in studying tax law theory and/or taxation accounting theory, with particular attention to studies of the comparison between domestic and foreign tax laws, or the relationship between tax law and computer accounting; and (3) To develop and nurture human resources in the field of tax law study, thereby improving our understanding and knowledge of tax and the tax system.”

In order to achieve the purposes of its foundation, the ITRL carries out the following three undertakings.

The first undertaking is to collect and archive tax-related materials and literature and make them available to the public, while enriching our collections by adding items with historical value. We also provide users with reading rooms and study rooms (seminar rooms) as a comfortable environment for research and study.

As the second undertaking, we give the ITRL Award for excellent books and papers on tax laws and accounting study. In particular, for the purpose of fostering young researchers, we focus on excellent master’s theses written by graduate school students. Those papers given the ITRL Award have been cited in studies on tax laws, and their academic rating has been increasing year by year.

As the third undertaking, for the purpose of fostering researchers in tax law studies and accounting studies, we provide subsidies to cover expenses for publishing study results, studying abroad for an extended period, and conducting international research. These subsidies contribute to the achievement of pioneering study results that are conducive to the development of the academic society of tax law studies.

As a tax law researcher, I personally received a great deal of support from these undertakings of the ITRL. In 1992, I was given the first ITRL Award and had the opportunity to dine with Dr. Iizuka at the award ceremony. On this occasion, Dr. Iizuka taught me the importance of collecting literature and what a researcher should be like, and encouraged me. I remember it vividly as if it was yesterday.

After that, I had the honor of receiving subsidies for studying abroad and publishing my study results. I am really grateful that I was able to receive support from the ITRL at each juncture in my research career. Bearing gratitude in mind, I will make efforts to the best of my ability for further enhancement and development of the ITRL.

With the emergence of AI, the world of academic study has come to a great turning point. While maintaining the attitude of searching for the needs of the time toward the ITRL and responding to such needs flexibly, I will be committed to the development of the ITRL with cooperation from its officers and staff.

I appreciate your continued guidance and support.

June 2023