Income tax expenses

12 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2025

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

Income tax expenses

7.Income tax expenses

Composition of income tax expenses

	Year ended March 31,
	2023			2024			2025
	RMB			RMB			RMB
	(in millions)
Current income tax expense		17,266			27,792			35,071
Deferred taxation		(1,717	)		(5,263	)		374
		15,549			22,529			35,445

Under the current laws of the Cayman Islands, the Company is not subject to tax on its income or capital gains. In addition, upon payments of dividends by the Company to its shareholders, no Cayman Islands withholding tax is imposed. The Company’s subsidiaries incorporated in Hong Kong were subject to the Hong Kong profits tax rate at 16.5% for the years ended March 31, 2023, 2024 and 2025. The Company’s subsidiaries incorporated in other jurisdictions were subject to income tax charges calculated according to the tax laws enacted or substantially enacted in the countries where they operate and generate income.

Current income tax expense primarily includes the provision for PRC Enterprise Income Tax (“EIT”) for subsidiaries operating in the PRC and withholding tax on earnings that have been declared for distribution by PRC subsidiaries to offshore holding companies. Substantially all of the Company’s income before income tax and share of results of equity method investees are generated by these PRC subsidiaries. These subsidiaries are subject to EIT on their taxable income as reported in their respective statutory financial statements adjusted in accordance with the relevant tax laws, rules and regulations in the PRC.

Under the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law (the “EIT Law”), the standard enterprise income tax rate for domestic enterprises and foreign invested enterprises is 25%. In addition, the EIT Law provides for, among others, a preferential tax rate of 15% for enterprises qualified as High and New Technology Enterprises. Further, certain subsidiaries were recognized as Software Enterprises and thereby entitled to full exemption from EIT for two years beginning from their first profitable calendar year and a 50% reduction for the subsequent three calendar years. In addition, a duly recognized Key Software Enterprise (“KSE”) within China’s national plan can enjoy a preferential EIT rate of 10%. The KSE status is subject to review by the relevant authorities every year and the timing of the annual review and notification by the relevant authorities may vary from year to year. The related reduction in tax expense as a result of official notification confirming the KSE status is accounted for upon the receipt of such notification.

The tax status of the subsidiaries of the Company with major taxable profits is described below:

•Alibaba (China) Technology Co., Ltd. (“Alibaba China”), Taobao (China) Software Co., Ltd. (“Taobao China”) and Zhejiang Tmall Technology Co., Ltd. (“Tmall China”), entities primarily engaged in the operations of the Company’s wholesale marketplaces, Taobao and Tmall, respectively, and Alibaba (Beijing) Software Services Co., Ltd. (“Alibaba Beijing”) and Alibaba (China) Co., Ltd. (“China Co.”), entities primarily engaged in the operations of technology, software research and development and relevant services, were qualified as High and New Technology Enterprises. For the taxation years of 2022, 2023 and 2024, Alibaba China, Taobao China, Tmall China, Alibaba Beijing and China Co. applied an EIT rate of 15% as High and New Technology Enterprises.

Most of the remaining PRC entities of the Company are subject to EIT at 25% for the years ended March 31, 2023, 2024 and 2025.

7.Income tax expenses (Continued)

Composition of income tax expenses (Continued)

Pursuant to the EIT Law, a 10% withholding tax is levied on dividends declared by PRC companies to their foreign investors. A lower withholding tax rate of 5% is applicable if direct foreign investors with at least 25% equity interest in the PRC company are incorporated in Hong Kong and meet the relevant requirements pursuant to the tax arrangement between Chinese mainland and Hong Kong S.A.R. Since the equity holders of the major PRC subsidiaries of the Company are Hong Kong incorporated companies and meet the relevant requirements pursuant to the tax arrangement between Chinese mainland and Hong Kong S.A.R., the Company has used 5% to provide for deferred tax liabilities on retained earnings which are anticipated to be distributed. As of March 31, 2025, the Company has accrued the withholding tax on substantially all of the distributable earnings of the PRC subsidiaries, except for those undistributed earnings that the Company intends to invest indefinitely in the PRC which amounted to RMB362.6 billion.

Composition of deferred tax assets and liabilities

	As of March 31,
	2024			2025
	RMB			RMB
	(in millions)
Deferred tax assets
Licensed copyrights		5,527			6,351
Tax losses carried forward and others (i)		52,410			66,120
		57,937			72,471
Valuation allowance (ii)		(46,576	)		(59,310	)
Total deferred tax assets		11,361			13,161
Deferred tax liabilities
Identifiable intangible assets		(14,176	)		(5,122	)
Withholding tax on undistributed earnings (iii)		(8,170	)		(8,559	)
Equity method investees and others (iv)		(30,666	)		(34,773	)
Total deferred tax liabilities		(53,012	)		(48,454	)
Net deferred tax liabilities		(41,651	)		(35,293	)

(i)Others generally represent deferred tax assets for property and equipment, investments in equity method investees, equity securities and other investments, as well as accrued expenses which are not deductible until paid under PRC tax laws.

(ii)Change in valuation allowances generally represents valuation allowances provided on the deferred tax assets related to the tax losses carried forward, property and equipment, as well as investments in equity securities and other investments due to the uncertainty surrounding their realization. If events occur in the future that improve the certainty of realization, an adjustment to the valuation allowances will be made and consequently income tax expenses will be reduced.

(iii)The related deferred tax liabilities as of March 31, 2024 and 2025 were provided on the assumption that substantially all of the distributable earnings of PRC subsidiaries will be distributed as dividends, except for those undistributed earnings that the Company intends to invest indefinitely in the PRC which amounted to RMB304.7 billion and RMB362.6 billion, respectively.

(iv)Deferred tax liabilities for investments in equity method investees mainly includes the deferred tax effect on the gain in relation to the receipt of the 33% equity interest in Ant Group of RMB19.7 billion. Others primarily represents deferred tax liabilities for investments in equity securities and other investments.

7.Income tax expenses (Continued)

Composition of deferred tax assets and liabilities (Continued)

As of March 31, 2025, the accumulated tax losses of subsidiaries incorporated in Singapore, Türkiye and Hong Kong S.A.R., subject to the agreement of the relevant tax authorities, of RMB41,583 million, RMB7,078 million and RMB6,012 million, respectively, are allowed to be carried forward to offset against future taxable profits. The carry forward of tax losses in Singapore and Hong Kong S.A.R. generally has no time limit, while the tax losses in Türkiye will expire, if unused, in the years ending March 31, 2026 through 2030. The accumulated tax losses of subsidiaries incorporated in the PRC, subject to the agreement of the PRC tax authorities, of RMB147,839 million as of March 31, 2025 will expire, if unused, in the years ending March 31, 2026 through 2035.

Reconciliation of the differences between the statutory EIT rate applicable to profits of the consolidated entities and the income tax expenses of the Company:

	Year ended March 31,
	2023			2024			2025
	RMB			RMB			RMB
	(in millions, except per share data)
Income before income tax and share of result of equity method   investees		89,185			101,596			155,455
Income tax computed at statutory EIT rate (25%)		22,296			25,399			38,864
Effect of different tax rates available to different jurisdictions		(153	)		(1,095	)		(1,089	)
Effect of tax holiday and preferential tax benefit on assessable   profits of subsidiaries incorporated in the PRC		(13,679	)		(14,135	)		(20,258	)
Non-deductible expenses and non-taxable income, net (i)		16,870			11,006			10,673
Additional deductions of certain research and development expenses   incurred by subsidiaries in the PRC (ii)		(8,282	)		(9,415	)		(9,320	)
Withholding tax on the earnings distributed and anticipated to be   remitted		5,312			6,127			5,938
Change in valuation allowance and others (iii)		(6,815	)		4,642			10,637
Income tax expenses		15,549			22,529			35,445
Effect of tax holidays inside the PRC on basic earnings per share		0.65			0.70			1.08
Effect of tax holidays inside the PRC on basic earnings per ADS		5.22			5.60			8.62

(i)Expenses not deductible for tax purposes and non-taxable income generally represent impairment of goodwill, investment income or loss and share-based compensation expense.

(ii)This amount represents tax incentives relating to the research and development expenses of certain major operating subsidiaries in the PRC.

(iii)Change in valuation allowance generally represents valuation allowance for temporary differences associated with tax losses, property and equipment and investments in equity securities and other investments. Besides, others primarily represents other tax benefits which were not previously recognized as well as deferred tax effect for temporary differences in relation to certain investments in equity method investees.