Income Taxes	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2018
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Income Tax Disclosure [Text Block]	Income Taxes On December 22, 2017, Public Law 115-97 “An Act to Provide for Reconciliation Pursuant to Titles II and V of the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2018” was enacted. This law is commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA). In accordance with Staff Accounting Bulletin 118 (SAB 118) issued on December 22, 2017, the U.S. income tax amounts recorded attributable to the TCJA’s deemed repatriation provision, the revaluation of U.S. deferred taxes and the tax consequences relating to states with current conformity to the Internal Revenue Code are provisional amounts. Due to the enactment date and tax complexities of the TCJA, the Company has not completed its accounting related to these items. Prior to enactment of the TCJA, with few exceptions, U.S. income taxes had not been provided on undistributed earnings of UTC's international subsidiaries as the Company had intended to reinvest such earnings permanently outside the U.S. or to repatriate such earnings only when it was tax effective to do so. The Company continues to evaluate the impact of the TCJA on its existing accounting position related to the undistributed earnings. Due to the inherent complexities in determining any incremental U.S. Federal and State taxes and the non-U.S. taxes that may be due if all of these earnings were remitted to the U.S. and as provided for by SAB 118 this evaluation has not yet been completed and no provisional amount has been recorded in regard to the undistributed amounts. After completing its evaluation, the Company will accrue any additional taxes due on previously undistributed earnings to be distributed in the future. The Company will continue to accumulate and refine the relevant data and computational elements needed to finalize its accounting for the effects of the TCJA by December 22, 2018. We conduct business globally and, as a result, UTC or one or more of our subsidiaries files income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction and various state and foreign jurisdictions. In the normal course of business we are subject to examination by taxing authorities throughout the world, including such major jurisdictions as Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. With few exceptions, we are no longer subject to U.S. federal, state and local, or non-U.S. income tax examinations for years before 2006. In the ordinary course of business, there is inherent uncertainty in quantifying our income tax positions. We assess our income tax positions and record tax benefits for all years subject to examination based upon management’s evaluation of the facts, circumstances, and information available at the reporting date. It is reasonably possible that a net reduction within the range of $40 million to $610 million of unrecognized tax benefits may occur within the next 12 months as a result of additional worldwide uncertain tax positions, the closure of tax statutes, or the revaluation of current uncertain tax positions arising from the issuance of legislation, regulatory or other guidance or developments in examinations, in appeals, or in the courts. The range of potential change includes provisional amounts related to the TCJA based on currently available information. See Note 15, Contingent Liabilities, for discussion regarding uncertain tax positions, included in the above range, related to pending litigation with respect to certain deductions claimed in Germany. The Examination Division of the Internal Revenue Service is currently auditing UTC tax years 2014, 2015 and 2016, and the audit is expected to conclude within the next 12 months.

Income Taxes

On December 22, 2017, Public Law 115-97 “An Act to Provide for Reconciliation Pursuant to Titles II and V of the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2018” was enacted. This law is commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA). In accordance with Staff Accounting Bulletin 118 (SAB 118) issued on December 22, 2017, the U.S. income tax amounts recorded attributable to the TCJA’s deemed repatriation provision, the revaluation of U.S. deferred taxes and the tax consequences relating to states with current conformity to the Internal Revenue Code are provisional amounts. Due to the enactment date and tax complexities of the TCJA, the Company has not completed its accounting related to these items.

Prior to enactment of the TCJA, with few exceptions, U.S. income taxes had not been provided on undistributed earnings of UTC's international subsidiaries as the Company had intended to reinvest such earnings permanently outside the U.S. or to repatriate such earnings only when it was tax effective to do so. The Company continues to evaluate the impact of the TCJA on its existing accounting position related to the undistributed earnings. Due to the inherent complexities in determining any incremental U.S. Federal and State taxes and the non-U.S. taxes that may be due if all of these earnings were remitted to the U.S. and as provided for by SAB 118 this evaluation has not yet been completed and no provisional amount has been recorded in regard to the undistributed amounts. After completing its evaluation, the Company will accrue any additional taxes due on previously undistributed earnings to be distributed in the future.

The Company will continue to accumulate and refine the relevant data and computational elements needed to finalize its accounting for the effects of the TCJA by December 22, 2018.

We conduct business globally and, as a result, UTC or one or more of our subsidiaries files income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction and various state and foreign jurisdictions. In the normal course of business we are subject to examination by taxing authorities throughout the world, including such major jurisdictions as Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. With few exceptions, we are no longer subject to U.S. federal, state and local, or non-U.S. income tax examinations for years before 2006.

In the ordinary course of business, there is inherent uncertainty in quantifying our income tax positions. We assess our income tax positions and record tax benefits for all years subject to examination based upon management’s evaluation of the facts, circumstances, and information available at the reporting date. It is reasonably possible that a net reduction within the range of $40 million to $610 million of unrecognized tax benefits may occur within the next 12 months as a result of additional worldwide uncertain tax positions, the closure of tax statutes, or the revaluation of current uncertain tax positions arising from the issuance of legislation, regulatory or other guidance or developments in examinations, in appeals, or in the courts. The range of potential change includes provisional amounts related to the TCJA based on currently available information. See Note 15, Contingent Liabilities, for discussion regarding uncertain tax positions, included in the above range, related to pending litigation with respect to certain deductions claimed in Germany.

The Examination Division of the Internal Revenue Service is currently auditing UTC tax years 2014, 2015 and 2016, and the audit is expected to conclude within the next 12 months.