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Income taxes
 9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2025
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income taxes Income taxes
The effective tax rates for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2025 were 18.0% and 14.5%, respectively, compared with 8.7% and 9.5%, respectively, for the corresponding periods in the prior year.
The increase in our effective tax rate for the three months ended September 30, 2025, was primarily due to the change in earnings mix, including lower amortization expense from the fair value step-up of inventory acquired from Horizon. The increase in our effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2025, was primarily due to the change in earnings mix, including the net unrealized gains on equity investments in the first nine months of 2025 compared to those in the prior-year period (see Note 6, Investments) and partially offset by the year-to-date Otezla impairment charges and related tax impacts (see Note 8, Goodwill and other intangible assets). The effective tax rates differ from the federal statutory rate primarily due to the impact of the jurisdictional mix of income and expenses. Substantially all of the benefit to our effective tax rate from foreign earnings results from locations in which the Company has significant manufacturing operations, including Singapore, Ireland and Puerto Rico, a territory of the United States that is treated as a foreign jurisdiction for U.S. tax purposes. Our operations in Puerto Rico are subject to tax incentive grants through 2050 and the Company’s operations in Singapore are subject to a tax incentive grant through 2036. Effective January 1, 2024, selected individual countries, including the United Kingdom and EU member countries, have enacted the global minimum tax agreement. Additional countries, including Singapore, enacted the minimum tax agreement effective January 1, 2025. Singapore’s enactment of the agreement applies irrespective of the Company’s incentive grant. Due to the currently enacted scope of the agreement, the Company and its subsidiaries are now subject to a 15% minimum tax rate on adjusted financial statement income. Our foreign earnings are also subject to U.S. tax at a reduced rate of 10.5%.
On July 4, 2025, OB3 was enacted in the United States. OB3 has various provisions, including the permanent extension of certain expiring provisions of the 2017 Tax Act, and modifications to the international tax framework. The legislation has multiple effective dates, with certain provisions effective in 2026 and beyond. The impact of these changes on our deferred tax assets and liabilities was recorded in the third quarter of 2025 and did not have a material effect on our effective tax rate or on our condensed consolidated financial statements.
One or more of our legal entities file income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction, various U.S. state jurisdictions and certain foreign jurisdictions. Our income tax returns are routinely examined by tax authorities in those jurisdictions. Significant disputes can arise and have arisen with tax authorities involving issues regarding the timing and amount of deductions, the use of tax credits and allocations of income and expenses among various tax jurisdictions because of differing interpretations of tax laws, regulations and relevant facts. Tax authorities, including the IRS, are becoming more aggressive and are particularly focused on such matters.
In 2017, we received an RAR and a modified RAR from the IRS for the years 2010–2012, proposing significant adjustments that primarily relate to the allocation of profits between certain of our entities in the United States and the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico. We disagreed with the proposed adjustments and calculations and pursued resolution with the IRS appeals office, but were unable to reach a resolution. In July 2021, we filed a petition in the U.S. Tax Court to contest two duplicate Statutory Notices of Deficiency (Notices) for the years 2010–2012 that we received in May and July 2021, which seek to increase our U.S. taxable income for the years 2010–2012 by an amount that would result in additional federal tax of approximately $3.6 billion, plus interest. Any additional tax that could be imposed for the years 2010–2012 would be reduced by up to approximately $900 million of repatriation tax previously accrued and paid on our foreign earnings.
In 2020, we received an RAR and a modified RAR from the IRS for the years 2013–2015, also proposing significant adjustments that primarily relate to the allocation of profits between certain of our entities in the United States and the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico similar to those proposed for the years 2010–2012. We disagreed with the proposed adjustments and calculations and pursued resolution with the IRS appeals office, but were unable to reach a resolution. In July 2022, we filed a petition in the U.S. Tax Court to contest a Notice for the years 2013–2015 that we previously reported receiving in April 2022 that seeks to increase our U.S. taxable income for the years 2013–2015 by an amount that would result in additional federal tax of approximately $5.1 billion, plus interest. In addition, the Notice asserts penalties of approximately $2.0 billion. Any additional tax that could be imposed for the years 2013–2015 would be reduced by up to approximately $2.2 billion of repatriation tax previously accrued and paid on our foreign earnings.
We firmly believe that the IRS positions set forth in the 2010–2012 and 2013–2015 Notices are without merit. We are contesting the 2010–2012 and 2013–2015 Notices through the judicial process. The two cases were consolidated in the U.S. Tax Court on December 19, 2022. The trial began on November 4, 2024 and concluded on January 17, 2025. The parties filed opening post-trial briefs on June 13, 2025, and the Court held oral argument on July 16, 2025. The parties filed post-trial reply briefs on October 10, 2025. The Company expects a decision from the U.S. Tax Court no earlier than the second half of 2026.
We are currently under examination by the IRS for the years 2016–2018 with respect to issues similar to those for the 2010 through 2015 period. We expect that the IRS will begin its audit of 2019-2022 in 2025 or early 2026, and we believe that it may seek to continue to audit similar issues related to the allocation of income between the United States and our foreign jurisdictions. In addition, we are under examination by a number of state and foreign tax jurisdictions.
Final resolution of these complex matters is not likely within the next 12 months. We continue to believe our accrual for income tax liabilities is appropriate based on past experience, interpretations of tax law, application of the tax law to our facts and judgments about potential actions by tax authorities; however, due to the complexity of the provision for income taxes and uncertain resolution of these matters, the ultimate outcome of any tax matters may result in payments substantially greater than amounts accrued and could have a material adverse impact on our condensed consolidated financial statements.
During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2025, the gross amounts of our UTBs increased by $45 million and $145 million, respectively, as a result of tax positions taken during the current year. Substantially all of the UTBs as of September 30, 2025, if recognized, would impact our effective tax rate.