Income Taxes

9 Months Ended

Apr. 30, 2021

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

Income Taxes

9. Income Taxes

Effective Tax Rate

We compute our provision for or benefit from income taxes by applying the estimated annual effective tax rate to income or loss from recurring operations and adding the effects of any discrete income tax items specific to the period.

For the three and nine months ended April 30, 2021, we recognized excess tax benefits on share-based compensation of $13 million and $77 million, respectively, in our provision for income taxes. For the three and nine months ended April 30, 2020, we recognized excess tax benefits on share-based compensation of $7 million and $59 million, respectively, in our provision for income taxes.

Our effective tax rates for the three and nine months ended April 30, 2021 were approximately 24% and 22%, respectively. Excluding discrete tax items primarily related to share-based compensation tax benefits mentioned above, our effective tax rate for both periods was approximately 25%. The difference from the federal statutory rate of 21% was primarily due to state income taxes, non-deductible share-based compensation and non-deductible transaction costs related to the Credit Karma acquisition, which were partially offset by the tax benefit we received from the federal research and experimentation credit.

Our effective tax rates for the three and nine months ended April 30, 2020 were approximately 23% and 19%, respectively. Excluding discrete tax items primarily related to share-based compensation tax benefits mentioned above, our effective tax rate for both periods was 24%. The difference from the federal statutory rate of 21% was primarily due to state income taxes and non-deductible share-based compensation, which were partially offset by the tax benefit we received from the federal research and experimentation credit.

In the current global tax policy environment, the U.S. and other domestic and foreign governments continue to consider, and in some cases enact, changes in corporate tax laws. As changes occur, we account for finalized legislation in the period of enactment.

Unrecognized Tax Benefits and Other Considerations

The total amount of our unrecognized tax benefits at January 31, 2021 was $168 million. If we were to recognize these net benefits, our income tax expense would reflect a favorable net impact of $101 million. The increase in the unrecognized tax benefits during the six months ended January 31, 2021 was primarily related to the acquisition of Credit Karma. There were no material changes to these amounts during the three months ended April 30, 2021. We do not believe that it is reasonably possible that there will be a significant increase or decrease in our unrecognized tax benefits over the next 12 months.

We have offset an $80 million long-term liability for uncertain tax positions against our long-term income tax receivable at April 30, 2021. The long-term income tax receivable is primarily related to the government’s approval of a method of accounting change request for fiscal 2018 and a refund claim related to Credit Karma's alternative minimum tax credit that was recorded as part of the acquisition.