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Income Taxes
9 Months Ended
Sep. 28, 2013
Income Tax Expense (Benefit) [Abstract]  
Income Taxes
Income Taxes
At September 28, 2013 and December 31, 2012, the Company had valuation allowances of $274 million and $308 million, respectively, including $249 million and $272 million, respectively, relating to deferred tax assets for non-U.S. subsidiaries. The decrease of $34 million in valuation allowances is primarily due to the expiration of net operating loss carryforwards and foreign exchange rate fluctuations. The Company believes the remaining deferred tax assets are more-likely-than-not to be realizable based on estimates of future taxable income and the implementation of tax planning strategies.
The Company evaluates its permanent reinvestment assertions with respect to foreign earnings at each reporting period
and, except for certain earnings the Company intends to reinvest indefinitely, accrues for the U.S. federal and foreign income tax applicable to the earnings. During the first quarter of 2013, the Company reassessed its unremitted earnings position and concluded that certain of its non-U.S. subsidiaries' earnings were permanently invested overseas. The Company intends to utilize the offshore earnings to fund foreign investments, such as potential acquisitions and capital expenditures. In the first quarter of 2013, the Company recorded a net tax benefit of $25 million related to reversals of deferred tax liabilities for undistributed foreign earnings, primarily due to the change in permanent reinvestment assertion. Undistributed earnings that the Company intends to reinvest indefinitely, and for which no income taxes have been accrued, aggregate to $1.3 billion and $1.0 billion at September 28, 2013 and December 31, 2012, respectively.
At September 28, 2013, the Company has approximately $1.0 billion of earnings in foreign subsidiaries that are not permanently reinvested and may be repatriated without an additional income tax charge, given the U.S. federal and foreign tax accrued on undistributed earnings and the utilization of available foreign tax credits.
During 2012, the Company began to reorganize certain of its non-U.S. subsidiaries under a holding company structure in
order to facilitate the efficient movement of non-U.S. cash and provide a platform to fund foreign investments, such as potential
acquisitions and capital expenditures. In the three and nine months ended September 28, 2013, the recently implemented foreign holding company structure provided the ability to realize excess foreign tax credits associated with undistributed foreign earnings, which favorably impacted the effective tax rate by $96 million and $224 million, respectively, and will continue to favorably impact the effective tax rate for the remainder of 2013. In the third quarter of 2013, the Company made an $87 million withholding tax payment associated with an intercompany foreign dividend, for which it expects to realize a foreign tax credit.
The Company had unrecognized tax benefits of $152 million and $161 million at September 28, 2013 and December 31, 2012, respectively, of which $132 million and $138 million, respectively, if recognized, would affect the effective tax rate, net of resulting changes to valuation allowances. During the nine months ended September 28, 2013, the Company recorded a net increase in unrecognized tax benefits related to prior year tax positions of $61 million, of which $63 million related to previously accrued non-U.S. income taxes. The Company recorded a net reduction in unrecognized tax benefits of $81 million for settlements with tax authorities, of which $63 million resulted in a cash tax payment and the remainder of which resulted in a reduction to tax carryforwards and prepaid tax assets.
Based on the potential outcome of the Company’s global tax examinations or the expiration of the statute of limitations for specific jurisdictions, it is reasonably possible that the unrecognized tax benefits will change within the next 12 months. The associated net tax impact on the effective tax rate, exclusive of valuation allowance changes, is estimated to be in the range of a $50 million tax charge to a $75 million tax benefit, with cash payments not to exceed $25 million.
The Company has audits pending in several tax jurisdictions. Although the final resolution of the Company's global tax disputes is uncertain, based on current information, in the opinion of the Company's management, the ultimate disposition of these matters is not expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company's consolidated financial position, liquidity or results of operations. However, an unfavorable resolution of the Company's global tax disputes could have a material adverse effect on the Company's consolidated financial position, liquidity or results of operations in the periods in which the matters are ultimately resolved.