Income Taxes Income Tax Disclosure, Provisional Amounts, Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (Tables) |
12 Months Ended |
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Dec. 31, 2017 | |
| Income Tax Disclosure, Provisional Amounts, Tax Cuts and Jobs Act [Abstract] | |
| Income Taxes, Provisional Items [Table Text Block] |
On December 22, 2017, the U.S. government enacted comprehensive tax legislation commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, or the Tax Act. Changes include, but are not limited to, a corporate tax rate decrease from 35% to 21% effective for tax years beginning in 2018, the transition of U.S international taxation from a worldwide tax system to a territorial system, which includes a new federal tax on global intangible low-taxed income (Global Minimum Tax or GMT), and a one-time transition tax on the mandatory deemed repatriation of cumulative foreign earnings as of December 31, 2017. The Company has calculated its best estimate of the impact of the Tax Act in its 2017 income tax benefit in accordance with its understanding of the Tax Act and guidance available as of the date of this filing.
In addition, the SEC Staff issued SAB 118, which provides guidance on accounting for the tax effects of the Tax Act. SAB 118 provides a measurement period that should not extend beyond one year from the Tax Act enactment date for companies to complete the accounting under ASC 740. In accordance with SAB 118, a company must reflect the income tax effects of those aspects of the Act for which the accounting under ASC 740 is complete. To the extent that a company’s accounting for certain income tax effects of the Tax Act is incomplete but it is able to determine a reasonable estimate, it must record a provisional estimate in the financial statements. If a company cannot determine a provisional estimate to be included in the financial statements, it should continue to apply ASC 740 on the basis of the provisions of the tax laws that were in effect immediately before the enactment of the Tax Act.
The Company's accounting for the following elements of the Tax Act is incomplete. However, the Company was able to make reasonable estimates of certain effects and, therefore, recorded provisional adjustments. The provisional amounts described below are subject to revisions as the Company completes its analysis of the Tax Act, collects and prepares necessary data, and interprets any additional guidance issued by the U.S. Treasury Department, Internal Revenue Service, or IRS, FASB, and other standard-setting and regulatory bodies. Adjustments to the provisional amounts may materially impact the Company's consolidated income tax provision (benefit) and effective tax rates in the period(s) in which such adjustments are made. The Company's accounting for the tax effects of the Tax Act will be completed during the one-year measurement period.
Reduction of US federal corporate tax rate: For certain of its deferred tax assets and liabilities, the Company has recorded a provisional decrease of $15.7 million, with a corresponding net adjustment to deferred income tax expense of $15.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2017. This is net of a related provisional reduction in valuation allowance of $8.7 million. This provisional estimate may be affected by other analyses related to the Tax Act, including, but not limited to, the Company's calculation of deemed repatriation of deferred foreign income and the state tax effect of adjustments made to federal temporary differences, the deductibility of amounts related to covered officers and adjustments to temporary differences, as well as changes to the Company's valuation allowance and effects related to the finalization of purchase accounting for Exar.
Deemed Repatriation Transition Tax: The Company recorded approximately $0.8 million for the transition tax, which may generally be paid over eight years. However, the Company is continuing to gather additional information, awaiting additional guidance from the relevant authorities, and performing additional analyses to more precisely determine past earnings and foreign tax amounts and will update this provisional estimate when such work is completed within the one-year measurement period.
Valuation allowances: The Company must assess whether its valuation allowance analyses are affected by various aspects of the Tax Act (e.g., deemed repatriation of deferred foreign income, GMT inclusions, new categories of FTCs). Since, as discussed herein, the Company has recorded provisional amounts related to certain portions of the Tax Act, any corresponding determination of the need for or change in a valuation allowance is also provisional.
Beginning in 2018, the Tax Act generally provides a 100% federal deduction for dividends received from foreign subsidiaries. Nevertheless, companies must still apply the guidance of ASC Topic 740 to account for the tax consequences of outside basis differences and other tax impacts of their investments in non-U.S. subsidiaries, including potential foreign withholding taxes on distributions. While the Company has recorded a provisional amount for the federal transition tax on the deemed repatriated earnings that were previously indefinitely reinvested, the Company was unable to determine a reasonable estimate of the remaining tax liability, if any, under the Tax Act for its remaining outside basis differences or to evaluate how the Tax Act will affect the Company's existing accounting position to indefinitely reinvest unremitted foreign earnings. Therefore, the Company has not included a provisional amount for this item in its consolidated financial statements for fiscal 2017. The Company will record amounts, as necessary, for this item beginning in the first reporting period during the measurement period in which the Company obtains necessary information and is able to analyze and prepare a reasonable estimate.
Under U.S. GAAP, the Company is allowed to make an accounting policy choice with respect to the GMT of either (1) treating taxes due on future U.S. inclusions in taxable income related to GMT as a current-period expense when incurred or (2) as a component of deferred income taxes. The Company will make its accounting policy election for this item when its analysis is complete, during the measurement period.
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