PRUDENTIAL FINANCIAL INC

14. INCOME TAXES

The Company uses a full-year projected effective tax rate approach to calculate year-to-date taxes. The projected effective tax rate is the ratio of projected “Total income tax expense” divided by projected “Income before income taxes and equity in earnings of joint ventures and other operating entities.” In addition, certain items impacting total income tax expense are recorded in the periods in which they occur. In determining the year-to-date income tax provision, the Company considers the realizability of deferred tax assets, including those associated with unrealized investment losses, and has determined based upon the weight of available evidence that no valuation allowance is necessary related to unrealized investment losses. Taxes attributable to joint ventures and other operating entities are recorded within “Equity in earnings of joint ventures and other operating entities, net of taxes.” The interim period tax expense (or benefit) is the difference between the year-to-date income tax provision and the amounts reported for the previous interim periods of the fiscal year.

The Company’s income tax provision, on a consolidated basis, amounted to an income tax expense of $693 million, or 20.6% of income (loss) before income taxes and equity in earnings of joint ventures and other operating entities, in the first nine months of 2024, compared to an income tax expense of $254 million, or 18.0%, in the first nine months of 2023. The Company’s current and prior effective tax rates differ from the U.S. statutory rate of 21% primarily due to non-taxable investment income, tax credits, foreign earnings taxed at higher rates than the U.S. statutory rate, and the items discussed below.

Foreign Tax Credit Regulations. The Treasury Department and the IRS published Final Regulations in the Federal Register (Treasury Decision 9959) on January 4, 2022, which affect the creditability of certain foreign taxes for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The Final Regulations created uncertainty as to whether a U.S. foreign tax credit could be claimed for taxes paid to Brazil. The ability to claim a foreign tax credit for taxes paid to Brazil impacted the benefit of the election made pursuant to Internal Revenue Code Section 952 to subject earnings from the Company’s insurance operations in Brazil to tax in the U.S. in the tax year earned, net of related foreign tax credits.

On August 7, 2023, the IRS issued Notice 2023-55 which provided temporary relief to taxpayers in determining whether a foreign tax is eligible for a U.S. foreign tax credit for tax years 2022 and 2023. Subsequently, on December 11, 2023 the IRS issued Notice 2023-80 which extended that relief to taxable years ending before the date that a notice or other guidance withdrawing or modifying the temporary relief is issued and abolished certain changes that the Final Regulations had made to the credibility of a tax paid in lieu of a generally imposed foreign income tax. As a result of this guidance, the Company claimed a U.S. foreign tax credit for taxes paid to Brazil for its 2023 tax year and will be able to claim a U.S. foreign tax credit for taxes paid to Brazil in 2024.

GILTI High Tax Exclusion. The GILTI provision applies a minimum U.S. tax to earnings of consolidated foreign subsidiaries in excess of a 10% deemed return on tangible assets of foreign subsidiaries by imposing the U.S. tax rate to 50% of earnings of such foreign affiliates and provides for a partial foreign tax credit for foreign income taxes. In years that the PFI consolidated federal income tax return reports a net operating loss or has a loss attributable to U.S. sources of operations, including as a result of loss carrybacks, the GILTI provision would limit the amount of deductions or credits permissible against GILTI.

On July 20, 2020, the U.S. Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service issued Final Regulations (Treasury Decision 9902) pursuant to Internal Revenue Code Section 951A which allows an annual election to exclude from the U.S. tax return certain Global Intangible Low-Taxed Income (“GILTI”) amounts when the taxes paid by a foreign affiliate exceed 18.9% (90% of U.S. statutory rate of 21%) of the GILTI amount for that foreign affiliate (the “high-tax exception”). These regulations are effective for the 2021 taxable year with an election to apply to any taxable year beginning after 2017. In many of the countries in which the Company operates, including Japan and Brazil, there are differences between local tax rules used to determine the tax base and the U.S. tax principles used to determine GILTI. Also, the Company’s Japan affiliates have a different tax year than the U.S. calendar tax year used to determine GILTI; therefore, while many of the countries, including Japan, have a statutory tax rate above the 18.9% threshold, separate affiliates may not meet the 18.9% threshold each year and, as such, may not qualify for this annual exclusion. The Company made the high-tax exception election for the 2023 tax year and anticipates making the high-tax exception election for the 2024 tax year for its foreign affiliates that meet the 18.9% threshold. The Company reflected the impact of the election in its full year projected effective tax rate used to calculate year-to-date taxes for the first nine months of 2023 and 2024, respectively.

Inflation Reduction Act. On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed into law the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (the “Inflation Reduction Act”), (House of Representatives, 5376). One of the most significant provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act is a 15% corporate alternative minimum tax (“CAMT”) based on the Company’s GAAP income, with certain adjustments. This provision, which is applicable only to companies with average applicable financial statement income in excess of $1 billion for any three-year period ending in 2022 or later, is effective in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2022. The impact of the book-income alternative minimum tax, if any, will vary from year to year based on the relationship of the Company’s GAAP income to the Company’s taxable income. Any tax paid pursuant to this provision is available as a tax credit in future years when the Company’s tax rate exceeds the 15% minimum tax threshold. The Company became subject to CAMT beginning in 2023 which may or may not result in a CAMT cash tax liability and will have no impact to the full year effective tax rate.

Tax Audit and Unrecognized Tax Benefits. It is possible the Company will make a payment within the next 12 months of approximately $86 million related to unrecognized tax benefits for prior audit cycles, including an amount attributable to the Section 952 election for tax years 2017 through 2022, as the Company pursues resolution of the Section 952 matter. The payment will have no impact on the effective tax rate. The Company cannot predict with reasonable accuracy whether there will be any significant changes within the next twelve months to its total unrecognized tax benefits related to tax years for which the statute of limitations has not expired.