Income Taxes (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2016

Components of Company's Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities

The significant components of the Company’s deferred tax assets and liabilities are as follows:



	December 31, 2016 $		December 31, 2015 $
Deferred tax assets:
Vessels and equipment	40,928		43,289
Tax losses carried forward⁽¹⁾	276,291		321,648
Other	17,075		22,141
Total deferred tax assets	334,294		387,078
Deferred tax liabilities:
Vessels and equipment	5,974		10,577
Long-term debt	1,691		3,218
Other	11,626		15,090
Total deferred tax liabilities	19,291		28,885
Net deferred tax assets	315,003		358,193
Valuation allowance	(290,015	)	(322,491	)
Net deferred tax assets	24,988		35,702

Net deferred tax assets are presented in other non-current assets and other long term liabilities in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets. Certain of the balances in the comparative columns above have been adjusted with no impact on the amount of the net deferred tax assets.

(1)

Substantially all of the Company’s net operating loss carryforwards of $1.26 billion relate primarily to its Norwegian, U.K., Spanish, and Luxembourg subsidiaries and, to a lesser extent, to its Australian ship-owning subsidiaries. These net operating loss carryforwards are available to offset future taxable income in the respective jurisdictions, and can be carried forward indefinitely. The Company also has $36.4 million in disallowed finance costs that relate to its Spanish subsidiaries and are available to offset future taxable income in Spain and can also be carried forward indefinitely.

Components of Provision for Income Taxes

The components of the provision for income taxes are as follows:



	Year Ended December 31, 2016 $		Year Ended December 31, 2015 $		Year Ended December 31, 2014 $
Current	(14,424	)	(10,440	)	(6,460	)
Deferred	(10,044	)	27,207		(3,713	)
Income tax (expense) recovery	(24,468	)	16,767		(10,173	)

Reconciliations of Income Tax Rates and Actual Tax Charge

Reconciliations of the tax charge related to the relevant year at the applicable statutory income tax rates and the actual tax charge related to the relevant year are as follows:



	Year Ended December 31, 2016 $	Year Ended December 31, 2015 $		Year Ended December 31, 2014 $
Net income before taxes	111,132	388,693		134,175
Net income (loss) not subject to taxes	57,862	252,604		(80,454	)
Net income subject to taxes	53,270	136,089		214,629
At applicable statutory tax rates	5,996	32,750		39,382
Permanent and currency differences, adjustments to valuation allowances and uncertain tax positions	18,198	(49,789	)	(28,027	)
Other	274	272		(1,182	)
Tax expense (recovery) related to the current year	24,468	(16,767	)	10,173

Unrecognized Tax Benefits, Recorded in Other Long-Term Liabilities

The following is a roll-forward of the Company’s unrecognized tax benefits, recorded in other long-term liabilities, from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2016:



	Year Ended December 31, 2016 $		Year Ended December 31, 2015 $		Year Ended December 31, 2014 $
Balance of unrecognized tax benefits as at January 1	18,390		20,335		20,304
Increases for positions related to the current year	6,422		4,578		3,643
Changes for positions taken in prior years	(3,729	)	(2,965	)	1,015
Decreases related to statute of limitations	(1,591	)	(3,558	)	(4,627	)
Balance of unrecognized tax benefits as at December 31	19,492		18,390		20,335