Income Taxes

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2019

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

Income taxes

11. Income taxes:

Income tax (expense) recovery for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018 arose from the operations of Xenon Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., the Company’s wholly-owned subsidiary in the United States. Deferred income tax assets recorded on the consolidated balance sheets as of September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018 result from the temporary differences between the amounts of assets and liabilities recognized for financial statement and income tax purposes related to the operations of Xenon Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. The realization of deferred income tax assets is dependent upon the generation of sufficient taxable income during future periods in which the temporary differences are expected to reverse.