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Income Taxes
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2022
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Taxes Income Taxes
Significant components of the Income tax (expense) benefit on earnings from continuing operations were as follows:
For the years ended December 31,202220212020
Current:
United States$(33,097)$(48,523)$6,391 
Foreign(152,931)(148,437)(72,660)
State(273)— — 
Total current(186,301)(196,960)(66,269)
Deferred:
United States4,663 87,310 124,718 
Foreign(3,794)(10,347)25,612 
State41 (25,576)46,008 
Total deferred910 51,387 196,338 
Total income tax (expense) benefit$(185,391)$(145,573)$130,069 

For the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, foreign income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes was $319,515, $80,864, and $(250,910), respectively. For the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, domestic loss from continuing operations before income taxes was $(73,665), $(218,371), and $(199,928), respectively.

Significant components of deferred tax assets and liabilities arising from continuing operations were as follows:
December 31,20222021
Deferred tax assets:
Net operating loss and tax credits carryforwards$256,047 $246,405 
Operating leases132,648 135,365 
Depreciation50,444 45,702 
Interest26,711 25,029 
Deferred compensation13,767 23,219 
Deferred revenue9,942 11,432 
Nondeductible reserves7,342 9,470 
Allowance for doubtful accounts6,781 8,437 
Total deferred tax assets503,682 505,059 
Deferred tax liabilities:
Operating leases123,430 122,728 
Investment in subsidiaries77,055 74,310 
Amortization of intangible assets45,635 41,776 
Deferred gain on Walden452 14,652 
Unrealized gain3,212 2,559 
Total deferred tax liabilities249,784 256,025 
Net deferred tax assets253,898 249,034 
Valuation allowance for deferred tax assets(291,722)(283,945)
Net deferred tax liabilities$(37,824)$(34,911)

Laureate does not provide deferred taxes on the portion of its unremitted earnings attributable to international companies that have been considered to be reinvested indefinitely. As of December 31, 2022, undistributed earnings from foreign subsidiaries totaled $595,486.
If the Company were to remove its assertion and distribute the remaining unremitted earnings, we would record approximately $16,375 in additional deferred tax liabilities. The amount of additional deferred tax liabilities recognized could increase if our expectations change based on future developments.

The Company has $69,700 of deferred tax asset for US state net operating loss carryforwards that expire from 2023 to 2042 and $2,900 of deferred tax asset for US state net operating loss carryforwards that do not expire. The Company has $162,800 of foreign net operating loss carryforwards that expire from 2023 to 2031. The Company has $166,000 of tax credit carryforwards that do not expire and $75,100 of interest carryforwards that do not expire.

The Company assesses the realizability of deferred tax assets by examining all available evidence, both positive and negative. Accounting guidance restricts the amount of reliance the Company can place on projected taxable income to support the recovery of the deferred tax assets when a company is in a three-year cumulative loss position. A valuation allowance is recorded when the company is not able to identify a source of income to support realization of the deferred tax asset on a more-likely-than-not basis.

The reconciliations of the beginning and ending balances of the valuation allowance on deferred tax assets were as follows:
For the years ended December 31,202220212020
Balance at beginning of period$283,945 $320,858 $324,119 
Additions (deductions) from tax expense from continuing operations7,972 9,115 (19,879)
Charges to other accounts
Additions— — 16,618 
Deductions(195)(46,028)— 
Balance at end of period$291,722 $283,945 $320,858 

The reconciliations of the reported Income tax (expense) benefit to the amount that would result by applying the United States federal statutory tax rate of 21% to income from continuing operations before income taxes were as follows:
For the years ended December 31,202220212020
Tax (expense) benefit at the United States statutory rate$(51,628)$28,877 $94,676 
Permanent differences(38,228)(8,217)(24,184)
Global intangible low taxed income— (30,616)70,965 
Netherlands intellectual property restructuring— (53,643)(32,425)
State income tax benefit (expense), net of federal tax effect669 (36,782)36,343 
Tax effect of foreign income taxed at higher rate(40,579)(16,665)(5,534)
Change in valuation allowance(11,241)17,642 3,241 
Effect of tax contingencies(37,151)(12,573)2,706 
Tax credits9,211 10,458 (2,302)
Withholding taxes(16,275)(43,578)(13,254)
Other(169)(476)(163)
Total income tax (expense) benefit$(185,391)$(145,573)$130,069 

Included within permanent differences in the 2022 rate reconciliation was approximately $7,700 of tax expense from stock option shortfalls, $13,700 of non-deductible scholarship expenses, and $4,200 of taxable income related to intercompany dividends, as well as $11,200 of expense for a change in estimate related to unrealized foreign currency exchange that is fully offset by a corresponding increase in the valuation allowance.
The reconciliations of the beginning and ending amount of unrecognized tax benefits were as follows:
For the years ended December 31,202220212020
Beginning of the period$257,587 $385,283 $56,395 
Additions for tax positions related to prior years38,029 80,885 3,582 
Decreases for tax positions related to prior years(8,856)(227,051)— 
Additions for tax positions related to current year498 21,993 327,142 
Decreases for unrecognized tax benefits as a result of a lapse in the statute of limitations(2,329)(3,523)(1,836)
End of the period$284,929 $257,587 $385,283 

Laureate records interest and penalties related to uncertain tax positions as a component of Income tax expense. During the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, Laureate recognized net interest and penalties related to income taxes of $6,828, $(6,479), and $(3,056), respectively. Laureate had $21,355 and $14,527 of accrued interest and penalties at December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company recognized approximately $32,500 of income tax reserves related to the application of the high-tax exception to global intangible low-taxed income. Approximately $143,665 of unrecognized tax benefits, if recognized, will affect the effective income tax rate. It is reasonably possible that Laureate’s unrecognized tax benefits may decrease within the next 12 months by up to approximately $4,448 as a result of the lapse of statutes of limitations and as a result of the final settlement and resolution of outstanding tax matters in various jurisdictions.

Laureate and various subsidiaries file income tax returns in the United States federal jurisdiction, and in various states and foreign jurisdictions. With few exceptions, Laureate is no longer subject to United States federal, state and local, or foreign income tax examinations by tax authorities for years before 2010. United States federal and state statutes are generally open back to 2018; however, the Internal Revenue Service (the IRS) has the ability to challenge 2005 through 2017 net operating loss carryforwards. Statutes of other major jurisdictions are open back to 2011 for Mexico, 2009 for Peru and 2016 for the Netherlands..

Other Matters

Inflation Reduction Act of 2022

On August 16, 2022, the U.S. enacted the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which implemented a 15% minimum tax on book income of certain large corporations, a 1% excise tax on stock repurchases and tax incentives to promote clean energy, among other provisions. The Company does not believe that this legislation will have a material impact on the financial statements and will continue to monitor regulatory developments to assess potential impacts to the Company.

OECD Proposals

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has proposed changes to numerous long-standing tax principles. These proposals, if finalized and adopted by the associated countries, will likely increase tax uncertainty, and may adversely affect our provision for income taxes. The Company will continue to monitor regulatory developments to assess potential impacts to the Company.