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Income Taxes
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2016
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Tax Disclosure [Text Block]
4.
Income Taxes
 
The Company had unrecognized tax benefits of approximately $1.3 million as of March 31, 2016 and approximately $1.2 million as of December 31, 2015. The portion of unrecognized tax benefits relating to interest and penalties was approximately $0.5 million at March 31, 2016 and December 31, 2015. The unrecognized tax benefits as of March 31, 2016 and December 31, 2015, if recognized, would have an impact on the Company’s effective tax rate.
 
The following presents a roll-forward of the Company’s unrecognized tax benefits and associated interest for the three months ended March 31, 2016 (amounts in thousands):
 
 
 
Unrecognized tax
benefits
 
Balance - January 1, 2016
 
$
1,207
 
Increase for tax provision
 
 
40
 
Interest accrual
 
 
14
 
Foreign currency revaluation
 
 
2
 
Balance - March 31, 2016
 
$
1,263
 
 
The Company is subject to Federal income tax, as well as income tax in various states and foreign jurisdictions. The Company is no longer subject to examination by Federal tax authorities for years prior to 2006 and by New Jersey tax authorities for years prior to 2012. Various foreign subsidiaries currently have open tax years from 2003 through 2014.
 
Pursuant to an income tax audit by the Indian Bureau of Taxation in 2009, the Company’s Indian subsidiaries received a tax assessment approximating $304,000 including interest, through March 31, 2016 for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2006. Management disagrees with the basis of these tax assessments, has filed an appeal against the assessments and is contesting them vigorously. In January 2012, the Indian subsidiary received a final tax assessment of approximately $1.0 million, including interest, for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2008, from the Indian Bureau of Taxation. Management disagrees with the basis of this tax assessment, and has filed an appeal against it. Due to this assessment, the Company recorded a tax provision amounting to $484,000 including interest through March 31, 2016. In April 2015, the Company received a favorable judgment whereby the Appeal Officer reduced the tax assessment to $0.3 million. Under the Indian Income Tax Act, however, the income tax assessing officer has the right to appeal against the judgment passed by the Appeal Officer. In the third quarter of 2015, the income tax assessing officer exercised this right and filed an appeal. Based on recent experience, management believes that the tax provision of $484,000 including interest is adequate. As the Company is continually subject to tax audits by the Indian Bureau of Taxation, the Company continuously assesses the likelihood of an unfavorable assessment for all fiscal years for which the Company has not been audited and, as of March 31, 2016, the Company recorded a tax provision amounting to $155,000 including interest for such year.
 
In 2015 the Company’s Indian subsidiary was subject to an inquiry by the Service Tax Bureau in India regarding the classification of services provided by this subsidiary, asserting that the services provided by this subsidiary fall under the category of online information and database access or retrieval services (OID Services), and not under the category of business support services (BS Services) that are exempt from service tax as historically indicated in the subsidiary’s service tax filings. In the event the Service Tax Bureau is successful in proving that the services fall under the category of OID Services the revenues earned by the Company’s Indian subsidiary would be subject to a service tax of approximately 14.5% of revenues and this would increase the operating costs of the Company by an equivalent amount. The revenues of the Company’s Indian subsidiary for the three months ended March 31, 2016 were $4.2 million. The Company disagrees with the Service Tax Bureau’s position and is contesting these assertions vigorously.
 
In 2016 the Company’s Indian subsidiary received notices of appeal from the Commissioner, Service Tax, seeking to reverse service tax refunds previously granted to our Indian subsidiary for certain quarters in 2014 and 2015, asserting that the services provided by this subsidiary fall under the category of OID Services and not BS Services. The Company disagrees with the basis of these appeals and is contesting them vigorously. The Company expects delays in receiving service tax refunds until such time as the appeals are adjudicated with finality.
 
From time to time the Company is also subject to various other tax proceedings and claims for its India and Philippines subsidiaries. The Company has recorded a tax provision amounting to $320,000 including interest through March 31, 2016, for several other ongoing tax proceedings in India and the Philippines. Although the ultimate outcome cannot be determined at this time, the Company continues to contest these claims vigorously.
 
The Company projects that during the period from 2016 through 2018 the U.S. entity may not have sufficient cash to pay in full amounts that will be payable by it to the Company’s Asian operating subsidiaries and that the cash deficit will amount to approximately $3.0 million. The resulting deferral in payments would result in a deemed dividend that would be taxable income to the U.S. entity and would be set off against its net operating loss carryforwards. The Company adjusted its deferred tax assets and the corresponding valuation allowance as of December 31, 2015 to reflect the projected deferral. In the first quarter of 2016 the U.S. entity deferred $2.0 million in payments due to its Asian operating subsidiaries.