INCOME TAXES |
9 Months Ended |
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Dec. 29, 2018 | |
| Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract] | |
| INCOME TAXES |
INCOME TAXES
On December 22, 2017, the U.S. government enacted the Tax Act, which included a broad range of complex provisions impacting the taxation of multi-national companies. Generally, accounting for the impacts of newly enacted tax legislation is required to be completed in the period of enactment; however, in response to the complexities and ambiguity surrounding the Tax Act, the SEC released SAB 118 to provide companies with relief around the initial accounting for the Tax Act. Pursuant to SAB 118, the SEC provided a one-year measurement period for companies to analyze and finalize accounting for the Tax Act. During the one-year measurement period, SAB 118 allows companies to recognize provisional amounts when reasonable estimates can be made for the impacts resulting from the Tax Act.
During the fourth quarter of 2017, VF recognized a provisional charge of approximately $465.5 million to reflect the impacts resulting from the Tax Act, primarily comprised of approximately $512.4 million related to the transition tax and approximately $89.5 million of tax benefits related to revaluing U.S. deferred tax assets and liabilities using the new U.S. corporate tax rate of 21%. Other provisional charges of $42.6 million were primarily related to U.S. federal and state tax on foreign income and dividends, and establishing a deferred tax liability for foreign withholding taxes as the Company is not asserting indefinite reinvestment on short-term liquid assets of certain foreign subsidiaries. All other foreign earnings, including basis differences of certain foreign subsidiaries, continue to be considered indefinitely reinvested.
During the three months ended December 2018, VF finalized its accounting for the impact of the Tax Act, which resulted in additional net charges of $10.4 million. During the one-year measurement period provided for under SAB 118, VF recognized additional net charges of $18.2 million, primarily comprised of $14.3 million of charges related to the transition tax, additional tax benefits of $0.3 million related to revaluing U.S. deferred tax assets and liabilities using the new U.S. corporate tax rate of 21%, and other charges of $4.2 million related to establishing a deferred tax liability for foreign withholding taxes, resulting in a cumulative net charge of $483.7 million. The measurement period adjustments include $5.1 million of net tax benefit recognized in the three months ended March 2018 and $23.3 million of net tax expense recognized during Fiscal 2019.
The Tax Act has significant complexity and guidance continues to be issued by the U.S. Treasury Department, the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") and state and local tax authorities. After quarter-end, final regulations under Section 965 related to the transition tax were made available on the IRS website. The Company is currently evaluating these regulations and any tax effect will be accounted for during VF's fourth quarter of Fiscal 2019, which is the period in which these final regulations were issued.
Under GAAP, companies are allowed to make an accounting policy election to either treat taxes resulting from GILTI as a current-period expense when they are incurred or factor such amounts into the measurement of deferred taxes. The Company has completed its analysis related to this accounting policy election and has determined it will treat the taxes resulting from GILTI as a current-period expense, which is consistent with the treatment prior to the accounting policy election. See Note 2 for additional discussion on the GILTI policy election.
The effective income tax rate for the nine months ended December 2018 was 16.4% compared to 55.7% in the 2017 period. The nine months ended December 2018 included a net discrete tax expense of $12.9 million, which included $23.3 million of net tax expense related to adjustments to provisional amounts recorded in 2017 under the Tax Act, $20.2 million of tax benefit related to stock compensation, $10.2 million of net tax expense related to unrecognized tax benefits and interest, $1.9 million of tax benefit related to adjustments of previously recorded amounts based on proposed regulations and $1.6 million of tax expense related to adjustments to previously recognized state income tax credits. The $12.9 million net discrete tax expense in the nine months ended December 2018, increased the effective income tax rate by 1.0%. The 2017 period included a net discrete tax expense of $440.0 million, which included $465.5 million of net tax expense related to the Tax Act, $22.2 million of tax benefit related to stock compensation, $5.6 million of net tax benefits related to the realization of previously unrecognized tax benefits and interest, and $1.9 million of discrete tax expense related to the effects of tax rate changes. The $440.0 million net discrete tax expense in the 2017 period increased the effective income tax rate by 38.3%. Without discrete items, the effective income tax rate for the nine months ended December 2018 decreased by 2.0% compared with the 2017 period primarily due to a lower U.S. corporate income tax rate that was effective beginning January 1, 2018.
VF files a consolidated U.S. federal income tax return, as well as separate and combined income tax returns in numerous state and international jurisdictions. In the U.S., the IRS examinations for tax
years through 2014 have been effectively settled. The examination of Timberland’s 2011 tax return is ongoing. The IRS has proposed material adjustments to Timberland’s 2011 tax return that would significantly impact tax expense and assessment of interest charges. The Company has formally disagreed with the proposed adjustments. During 2015, VF filed a petition to the U.S. Tax Court to begin the process of resolving this matter, but it has not yet reached a resolution.
In addition, VF is currently subject to examination by various state and international tax authorities. Management regularly assesses the potential outcomes of both ongoing and future examinations for the current and prior years, and has concluded that VF’s provision for income taxes is adequate. The outcome of any one examination is not expected to have a material impact on VF’s consolidated financial statements. Management believes that some of these audits and negotiations will conclude during the next 12 months.
VF was granted a ruling which lowered the effective income tax rate on taxable earnings for years 2010 through 2014 under Belgium’s excess profit tax regime. In February 2015, the European Union Commission (“EU”) opened a state aid investigation into Belgium’s rulings. On January 11, 2016, the EU announced its decision that these rulings were illegal and ordered that tax benefits granted under these rulings should be collected from the affected companies, including VF. On March 22, 2016, the Belgium government filed an appeal seeking annulment of the EU decision. Additionally, on June 21, 2016, VF Europe BVBA filed its own application for annulment of the EU decision. Both of the listed requests for annulment remain open and unresolved.
On December 22, 2016, Belgium adopted a law which entitled the Belgium tax authorities to issue tax assessments, and demand timely payments from companies which benefited from the excess profits regime. On January 10, 2017, VF Europe BVBA received an assessment for €31.9 million tax and interest related to excess profits benefits received in prior years. VF Europe BVBA remitted €31.9 million ($33.9 million) on January 13, 2017, which was recorded as an income tax receivable based on the expected success of the aforementioned requests for annulment. An additional assessment of €3.1 million ($3.8 million) was received and paid in January 2018. If this matter is adversely resolved, these amounts will not be collected by VF.
During the nine months ended December 2018, the amount of net unrecognized tax benefits and associated interest increased by $9.9 million to $178.9 million. Management believes that it is reasonably possible that the amount of unrecognized income tax benefits and interest may decrease during the next 12 months by approximately $7.9 million related to the completion of examinations and other settlements with tax authorities and the expiration of statutes of limitations, of which $5.5 million would reduce income tax expense.
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