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Income Taxes
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2013
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Taxes
Income Taxes
Consolidated income before taxes and noncontrolling interests for domestic and foreign operations is as follows (in thousands):
 
 
Year Ended December 31,
 
2013
 
2012
 
2011
Foreign
$
3,109,982

 
$
2,089,243

 
$
2,149,538

Domestic
33,530

 
(26,667
)
 
(54,715
)
Total income before income taxes
$
3,143,512

 
$
2,062,576

 
$
2,094,823


The components of the income tax expense are as follows (in thousands):
 
 
Year Ended December 31,
 
2013
 
2012
 
2011
Foreign:
 
 
 
 
 
Current
$
195,154

 
$
163,199

 
$
120,502

Deferred
(6,318
)
 
17,848

 
91,706

Federal:
 
 
 
 
 
Current
(2,073
)
 
12,379

 
232

Deferred
2,073

 
(12,660
)
 
(779
)
State:
 
 
 
 
 
Current

 
(3
)
 
43

Deferred

 

 

Total income tax expense
$
188,836

 
$
180,763

 
$
211,704


The reconciliation of the statutory federal income tax rate and the Company’s effective tax rate is as follows:
 
 
Year Ended December 31,
 
2013
 
2012
 
2011
Statutory federal income tax rate
35.0
 %
 
35.0
 %
 
35.0
 %
Increase (decrease) in tax rate resulting from:
 
 
 
 
 
Foreign and U.S. tax rate differential
(21.1
)%
 
(20.8
)%
 
(21.0
)%
U.S. foreign tax credits
(19.0
)%
 
(162.1
)%
 
(4.0
)%
Repatriation of foreign earnings
14.6
 %
 
110.5
 %
 
2.4
 %
Tax exempt income of foreign subsidiary (Macao)
(9.6
)%
 
(10.0
)%
 
(7.6
)%
Change in valuation allowance
6.0
 %
 
54.3
 %
 
2.7
 %
Change in uncertain tax positions
 %
 
0.7
 %
 
0.1
 %
Other, net
0.1
 %
 
1.2
 %
 
2.5
 %
Effective tax rate
6.0
 %
 
8.8
 %
 
10.1
 %

The Company received a 5-year income tax exemption in Macao that exempts the Company from paying corporate income tax on profits generated by gaming operations. The Company will continue to benefit from this tax exemption through the end of 2018. Had the Company not received the income tax exemption in Macao, consolidated net income attributable to Las Vegas Sands Corp. would have been reduced by $207.7 million, $139.8 million and $108.6 million, and diluted earnings per share would have been reduced by $0.25, $0.17 and $0.13 per share for the years ended December 31, 2013, 2012 and 2011, respectively. In February 2011, the Company entered into an agreement with the Macao government, effective through the end of 2013 that provides for an annual payment of 14.4 million patacas (approximately $1.8 million at exchange rates in effect on December 31, 2013) that is a substitution for a 12% tax otherwise due from VML shareholders on dividend distributions paid from VML gaming profits. The Company has requested an additional agreement with the Macao government through 2018 to correspond to the income tax exemption for gaming operations; however, there is no assurance that the Company will receive the agreement. In September 2013, the Company and the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") entered into a Pre-Filing Agreement providing that the Macao special gaming tax (35% of gross gaming revenue) qualifies as a tax paid in lieu of an income tax and could be claimed as a U.S. foreign tax credit.
The primary tax affected components of the Company’s net deferred tax liabilities are as follows (in thousands):
 
 
December 31,
 
2013
 
2012
Deferred tax assets:
 
 
 
U.S. foreign tax credit carryforwards
$
1,280,121

 
$
1,199,794

Net operating loss carryforwards
245,652

 
193,638

Stock-based compensation
46,952

 
47,197

Pre-opening expenses
39,409

 
49,103

Accrued expenses
36,746

 
24,868

Deferred gain on the sale of The Grand Canal Shoppes and The Shoppes at The Palazzo
33,008

 
34,534

Allowance for doubtful accounts
26,392

 
25,156

State deferred items
14,109

 
13,976

Other tax credit carryforwards
181

 
4,313

Other
6,362

 
5,456

 
1,728,932

 
1,598,035

Less — valuation allowances
(1,519,268
)
 
(1,390,900
)
Total deferred tax assets
209,664

 
207,135

Deferred tax liabilities:
 
 
 
Property and equipment
(338,284
)
 
(323,674
)
Prepaid expenses
(8,966
)
 
(556
)
Other
(35,113
)
 
(23,271
)
Total deferred tax liabilities
(382,363
)
 
(347,501
)
Deferred tax liabilities, net
$
(172,699
)
 
$
(140,366
)

The Company recognizes tax benefits associated with stock-based compensation directly to stockholders’ equity only when realized. Accordingly, deferred tax assets are not recognized for net operating loss carryforwards or credit carryforwards resulting from windfall tax benefits. A windfall tax benefit occurs when the actual tax benefit realized upon an employee’s disposition of a share-based award exceeds the cumulative book compensation charge associated with the award. As of December 31, 2013 and 2012, the Company has windfall tax benefits of $273.1 million and $171.5 million, respectively, which are not reflected in deferred tax assets. The Company uses a with-and-without approach to determine if the excess tax deductions associated with compensation costs have reduced income taxes payable.
During the year ended December 31, 2013, certain wholly owned foreign subsidiaries paid dividends resulting in incremental U.S. taxable income. The receipt of the dividends did not result in a cash tax liability for the Company as the incremental U.S. taxable income was fully offset by the utilization of the U.S. foreign tax credits generated as a result of the dividends. In addition, the dividends generated excess U.S. foreign tax credits that will be available to be carried forward to tax years beyond 2013. The Company’s U.S. foreign tax credits were $1.42 billion and $1.20 billion as of December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively, which will begin to expire in 2021. The Company’s state net operating loss carryforwards were $242.1 million and $220.7 million as of December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively, which will begin to expire in 2024. The Company’s U.S. general business credits were $0.2 million and $4.3 million as of December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively, which will begin to expire in 2024. There was a valuation allowance of $1.30 billion and $1.18 billion as of December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively, provided on the net U.S. deferred tax assets, as the Company believes these assets do not meet the “more-likely-than-not” criteria for recognition. Net operating loss carryforwards for the Company’s foreign subsidiaries were $1.99 billion and $1.56 billion as of December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively, which begin to expire in 2014. There are valuation allowances of $217.8 million and $209.4 million, as of December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively, provided on the net deferred tax assets of certain foreign jurisdictions, as the Company believes these assets do not meet the “more-likely-than-not” criteria for recognition.
Undistributed earnings of subsidiaries are accounted for as a temporary difference, except that deferred tax liabilities are not recorded for undistributed earnings of foreign subsidiaries that are deemed to be indefinitely reinvested in foreign jurisdictions. The Company has a plan for reinvestment of the undistributed earnings of its foreign subsidiaries attributable to periods before January 1, 2013, which demonstrates such earnings will be indefinitely reinvested in the applicable jurisdictions. The Company does not consider current year's tax earnings and profits of certain of its foreign subsidiaries to be permanently reinvested. The Company has not provided deferred taxes for these foreign earnings as the Company expects there will be sufficient creditable foreign taxes to offset the U.S. income tax that would result from the repatriation of foreign earnings. As of December 31, 2013 and 2012, the amount of earnings and profits of foreign subsidiaries that the Company does not intend to repatriate was $5.94 billion and $4.27 billion, respectively. Should these earnings be distributed in the form of dividends or otherwise, the Company expects there will be sufficient creditable foreign taxes to offset the U.S. income taxes and other foreign taxes that would result from a distribution. The Company's cumulative temporary difference is less than its earnings and profits.
A reconciliation of the beginning and ending amounts of unrecognized tax benefits is as follows (in thousands):
 
 
December 31,
 
2013
 
2012
 
2011
Balance at the beginning of the year
$
59,338

 
$
43,411

 
$
35,769

Additions to tax positions related to prior years
4,431

 
8,959

 
4,450

Reductions to tax positions related to prior years
(12,063
)
 

 
(35
)
Additions to tax positions related to current year
5,706

 
6,968

 
3,736

Settlements
(753
)
 

 
(417
)
Lapse in statutes of limitations

 

 
(92
)
Balance at the end of the year
$
56,659

 
$
59,338

 
$
43,411


As of December 31, 2013, unrecognized tax benefits of $43.4 million were recorded as reductions to the U.S. foreign tax credit deferred tax asset. No such amounts were recorded as of December 31, 2012. As of December 31, 2011, unrecognized tax benefits of $8.9 million were recorded as reductions to the U.S. net operating loss deferred tax asset. As of December 31, 2013, 2012 and 2011, unrecognized tax benefits of $13.3 million, $59.3 million and $34.5 million, respectively, were recorded in other long-term liabilities.
Included in the balance as of December 31, 2013, 2012 and 2011, are $47.3 million, $47.8 million and $33.9 million, respectively, of uncertain tax benefits that would affect the effective income tax rate if recognized.
The Company’s major tax jurisdictions are the U.S., Macao, and Singapore. In January 2013, the IRS completed through the appeals process its examination of tax years 2005 through 2009. The Company decreased its unrecognized tax benefits by $9.3 million due to the conclusion of the IRS audit. The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore is performing a compliance review of the Marina Bay Sands tax return for tax years 2010 and 2011. The Company is subject to examination for tax years after 2008 in Macao and Singapore and for tax years after 2009 in the U.S. The Company believes it has adequately reserved for its uncertain tax positions; however, there is no assurance that the taxing authorities will not propose adjustments that are different from the Company’s expected outcome and that will impact the provision for income taxes.
The Company recognizes interest and penalties, if any, related to unrecognized tax positions in the provision for income taxes in the accompanying consolidated statement of operations. No interest or penalties were accrued as of December 31, 2013 and 2012.