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Mexican IVA taxes receivable
3 Months Ended
Jan. 31, 2022
Mexican IVA taxes receivable  
Mexican IVA taxes receivable

11.

Mexican IVA taxes receivable

Included in other assets are tax receivables due from the Mexican government for value-added taxes (IVA) paid in advance. CDM is charged IVA by vendors on certain expenditures in Mexico, which, insofar as they relate to the exportation of goods, translate into IVA amounts recoverable from the Mexican government.

As of January 31, 2022, and October 31, 2021, CDM IVA receivables totaled $38.2 million (792.6 million Mexican pesos) and $37.5 million (762.1 million Mexican pesos). Historically, CDM received IVA refund payments from the Mexican tax authorities on a timely basis. Beginning in fiscal 2014 and continuing into fiscal 2022, the tax authorities began carrying out more detailed reviews of our refund requests and our supporting documentation. Additionally, they are also questioning the refunds requested attributable to IVA paid to certain suppliers that allegedly did not fulfill their own tax obligations. We believe these factors and others have contributed to delays in the processing of IVA claims by the Mexican tax authorities. Currently, we are in the process of collecting such balances primarily through regular administrative processes, but these amounts may ultimately need to be recovered through Administrative Appeals and/or legal means.

During the first quarter of fiscal 2017, the tax authorities informed us that their internal opinion, based on the information provided by the local SAT office, considers that CDM is not properly documented relative to its declared tax structure and therefore CDM cannot claim the refundable IVA balance. CDM has strong arguments and supporting documentation to sustain its declared tax structure for IVA and income tax purposes. CDM started an Administrative Appeal for the IVA related to the request of the months of July, August and September of 2015 (the “2015 Appeal”) in order to assert its argument that CDM is properly documented and to therefore change the SAT’s internal assessment. In August 2018, we received a favorable ruling from the SAT’s Legal Administration in Michoacan on the 2015 Appeal indicating that they believe CDM’s legal interpretation of its declared tax structure is indeed accurate. While favorable on this central matter of CDM’s declared tax structure, the ruling, however, still does not recognize the taxpayers right to a full refund for the IVA related to the months of July, August and September 2015. Therefore, in October 2018, CDM filed a substance-over-form Annulment Suit in the Federal Tax Court to recover its full refund for IVA over the subject period, which is currently pending resolution.

In spite of the favorable ruling from the SAT’s Legal Administration in Michoacan, as discussed above, the local SAT office continues to believe that CDM is not properly documented relative to its declared tax structure. As a result, they believe CDM cannot claim certain refundable IVA balances, specifically regarding our IVA refunds related to 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016, and January and February of 2017. CDM has strong arguments and supporting documentation to sustain its declared tax structure for IVA and income tax purposes. With assistance from our internationally recognized tax advisory firm, as of January 31, 2022, CDM has filed Administrative Appeals for months for which IVA refunds have been denied by the SAT, and will continue filing such appeals for any months for which refunds are denied in the future. A response to these Administrative Appeals is currently pending resolution.

In light of the foregoing, the Company is currently considering its options for resolution of the VAT receivables. In the unlikely event of an unfavorable resolution of the Administrative Appeals, we plan to file Annulment Suits with the Mexican Federal Tax Court. If these suits result in an unfavorable ruling, there is an option to appeal to the Collegiate Circuit Court. The estimated time for the resolution of these suits could be 23 years.

We believe that our operations in Mexico are properly documented, and our internationally recognized tax advisors believe that there are legal grounds to prevail in collecting the corresponding IVA amounts. Therefore, we believe that it is probable that the Mexican tax authorities will ultimately authorize the refund of the corresponding IVA amounts.