Income Taxes

9 Months Ended

Aug. 31, 2019

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

Income Taxes

Income Taxes

Our income tax provision for the third quarter of fiscal years 2019 and 2018 reflects our estimate of the effective tax rates expected to be applicable for the full fiscal years, adjusted for any discrete events which are recorded in the period in which they occur. The estimates are reevaluated each quarter based on our estimated tax expense for the full fiscal year.

Certain international provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act became effective for us in fiscal year 2019. The global intangible low-taxed income (“GILTI”) provisions require us to include in our U.S. income tax base foreign subsidiary earnings in excess of an allowable return of the foreign subsidiary’s tangible assets. We expect to be subject to incremental U.S. tax resulting from GILTI inclusions in fiscal year 2019, but we do not expect the impact to be material.

Our effective income tax rate was (11)% in the third quarter of fiscal year 2019 compared to 16% in the third quarter of fiscal year 2018, and 18% in the first nine months of fiscal year 2019 compared to 21% in the same period last year. The primary reason for the decrease in the effective rate as compared to the prior period is that during the preparation of our financial statements for the three months ended August 31, 2019, we identified an error in our income tax provisions for the first and second quarters of fiscal year 2019 related to the tax treatment of an intercompany sale of intellectual property that occurred in fiscal year 2018. As a result of the error, income tax expense was overstated by $1.1 million and $2.5 million during the first and second quarters of fiscal year 2019, respectively. We determined that the error was not material to the first and second quarters of fiscal year 2019 and corrected the error by recording an out of period $3.6 million tax benefit in our financial statements for the period ended August 31, 2019.

Our Federal income tax returns have been examined or are closed by statute for all years prior to fiscal year 2015. Our state income tax returns have been examined or are closed by statute for all years prior to fiscal year 2013.

Tax authorities for certain non-U.S. jurisdictions are also examining returns. With some exceptions, we are generally not subject to tax examinations in non-U.S. jurisdictions for years prior to fiscal year 2013.