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Income Taxes
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2020
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Taxes Income Taxes
For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020, the Company's effective tax rate was 30% and 24%, respectively, with the Company reporting tax expense on pretax income. The Company’s foreign entities recognized earnings of $23.4 million and $19.7 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020, respectively. The effective tax rate for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020, was negatively impacted by a change in tax rates in certain countries.

For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019, the Company's effective tax rate was 14% and 163%, respectively. The Company reported a tax charge on pretax income for the three months ended September 30, 2019, and a tax benefit on pretax loss for the nine months ended September 30, 2019. The Company’s foreign entities recognized earnings of $16.6 million and $21.5 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019, respectively. The effective tax rate for the three months ended September 30, 2019, was positively impacted by the release of an uncertain tax position due to the statute of limitations expiration. The effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2019, was positively impacted by state income tax benefits on a domestic loss. In addition, the Company released a majority of its valuation allowance established against its U.S. foreign tax credit deferred tax asset, resulting in a non-cash benefit to income tax expense of approximately $18.5 million. The Company released the valuation allowance following the acquisition of Speedpay, determining it would more likely than not be able to utilize the foreign tax credits in future years due to additional income provided by Speedpay.

The Company’s effective tax rate could fluctuate on a quarterly basis due to the occurrence of significant and unusual or infrequent items, such as vesting of stock-based compensation or foreign currency gains and losses. The Company’s effective tax rate could also fluctuate due to changes in the valuation of its deferred tax assets or liabilities, or by changes in tax laws, regulations, accounting principles, or interpretations thereof. In addition, the Company is occasionally subject to examination of its income tax returns by tax authorities in the jurisdictions it operates. The Company regularly assesses the likelihood of adverse outcomes resulting from these examinations to determine the adequacy of its provision for income taxes.

As of September 30, 2020, and December 31, 2019, the amount of unrecognized tax benefits for uncertain tax positions was $30.1 million and $29.0 million, respectively, excluding related liabilities for interest and penalties of $1.2 million as of September 30, 2020, and December 31, 2019.

The Company believes it is reasonably possible that the total amount of unrecognized tax benefits will decrease within the next 12 months by approximately $11.7 million, due to the settlement of various audits and the expiration of statutes of limitation.