What is an Effective Tax Rate?

For Individual

For Corporation

Since EBT is effectively net income plus total tax expense and as such, the above formula can be modified as,

Effective Tax rate Corporation = Total tax expense / (Net income + Total tax expense)

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Effective Tax Rate Calculation (Step by Step)

The formula for a corporation can be derived by using the following steps:

  • Firstly, determine the total expense of the individual from the income tax filing submitted. Next, determine the taxable income of the individual. It can be computed by subtracting total exemptions and total deductions from the individual’s total gross income. i.e., Taxable income = Gross total income – Total exemptions – Total deductions Finally, calculate the individual’s effective tax rate by dividing the total tax expense by the taxable income, as shown above.

  • Step 1: Firstly, determine the total expense of the corporation, which will be easily available as a line item just above the net income in its income statement.Step 2: Next, determine the net income of the corporation, which will also be available as a line item in the income statement. The EBT can be calculated by adding the total tax expense to the net income. i.e EBT = Net income + Total tax expenseStep 3: Finally, the corporation’s effective tax rate is calculated by dividing the total tax expense by its EBT, as shown above.

Tax rate Corporation = Total tax expense / (Net income + Total tax expense)

Examples

Example #1

Let us determine the tax rate for an individual with a taxable income of $600,000 under the following hypothetical progressive tax regime.

As per above table,

  • Total tax expense = $100,000 * 10% + $200,000 * 15% + $200,000 * 25% + $100,000 * 35%= $125,000

Therefore, the calculation of this formula will be as follows

  • Effective Tax Rate = Total tax expense / Taxable income= $125,000 / $600,000

  • Tax Rate = 20.83%

Example #2

Let us take the example of John to understand the calculation for the effective tax rate. John joined a bank recently where he earns a gross salary of $200,000 annually. While filing for his income tax returns, his accountant informed him that he is eligible for tax exemption worth $20,000 and deductions worth $25,000. Calculate the tax rate if his total income tax payable as per IT filing is $45,000.

Use the following data for the calculation –

Taxable income

  • Taxable income = Gross salary – Deductions – Tax exempTax ExempTax-exempt refers to excluding an individual’s or corporation’s income, property or transaction from the tax liability imposed by the federal, local or state government. These exemptions either allow total relief from the taxes or provide reduced rates or charge tax on some items only.read more= $200,000 – $25,000 – $20,000= $155,000

Therefore, the calculation of the tax rate is as follows,

  • Tax Rate = $45,000 / $155,000

The Tax Rate will be –

  • Tax Rate = 29.03%

Therefore, the tax rate for John is 29.03%.

Example #3

Let us take the real-life example of Apple Inc.’s annual reportAnnual ReportAn annual report is a document that a corporation publishes for its internal and external stakeholders to describe the company’s performance, financial information, and disclosures related to its operations. Over time, these reports have become legal and regulatory requirements.read more on September 24, 2016, September 30, 2017, and September 29, 2018. The following information is available.

For the calculation, we will first calculate the EBT as follows –

EBT for Sep 24, 2016

  • EBT = Net income + Total tax expense=$45,687 + $15,685=$61,372

Similarly, we will calculate the EBT for 2017 and 2018.

After calculating EBT, we will do the calculation as follows –

The calculation for September 24, 2016, will be as follows –

The tax rate for September 24, 2016, will be –

  • = $15,685 Mn / $61,372 Mn= 25.56%

Similarly, we will calculate the Tax Rate for 2017 and 2018.

Effective Tax Rate Calculator

You can use the following calculator.

Relevance and Use

It is very important to understand the concept of an effective tax rate because it is one metric that investors can use as a profitability indicator of a company. However, the rate may fluctuate dramatically yearly due to the taxable income falling into different tax slabs in a progressive tax regime. Otherwise, it is difficult to assess straightaway the reason behind a sudden jump or drop in the tax rate. For example, the change in the tax rate may be due to asset accountingAsset AccountingAssets in accounting refer to the organization’s resources that hold specific economic value and facilitate business operations, meet expenses, and generate cash flow. They create the company’s worth and are recorded in the balance sheet.read more manipulation by the company intended to reduce the tax burden. Nevertheless, the tax rate is a good indicator of the tax burden imposed by the government.

This has been a guide to Effective Tax Rate Formula. Here we discuss how to calculate Effective Tax rates for Individuals and corporations along with practical examples, a calculator, and a downloadable excel sheet. You can learn more about accounting from the following articles –

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