Milestone Pharmaceuticals Inc. Income Taxes Disclosure
13. Income taxes
Upon adoption of ASU No. 2023-09, for the year ended December 31, 2025, the provision for income taxes differs from the expense that would be obtained by applying the Canadian federal statutory income tax rate as a result of the following:
2025 | ||||||
Amount | Percent | |||||
Loss before income taxes | $ | (63,058) | ||||
Canadian federal statutory tax rate(1) |
| (9,459) |
| 15.0 | % | |
Provincial and local taxes(2) |
| (2,344) |
| 3.7 | % | |
Foreign tax effects | ||||||
United States | ||||||
Statutory tax rate difference | (2,560) | 4.1 | % | |||
Non-taxable item: share based compensation | 260 | (0.4) | % | |||
Other | 20 | (0.0) | % | |||
Changes in Valuation Allowances | 25 | (0.0) | % | |||
Changes in unrecognized tax benefits | 12,093 | (19.2) | % | |||
Non-taxable or non-deductible items | ||||||
Share-based compensation | 1,977 | (3.1) | % | |||
Other | (12) | 0.0 | % | |||
Effective Tax Rate | $ | — | - | % | ||
(1) We apply the federal tax rate of 15% which is the federal statutory rate of Canada of 38%, net of the general rate reduction of 10% and tax abatement of 13%.
(2) We apply the provincial tax rate in Quebec of 11.5% to the net loss before income taxes attributable to the Canadian entity. Our provincial tax is Quebec only.
For the year ended December 31, 2025, loss before income taxes was $20.4 million and $42.7 million for the Canadian and United States entities, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2024, loss before income taxes was $20.8 million and $20.7 million for the Canadian and United States entities, respectively.
Prior to the adoption of ASU No. 2023-09, for the year ended December 31, 2024, the provision for income taxes differs from the expense that would be obtained by apply the Canadian statutory income tax rate as result of the following:
| 2024 | |||||
Amount | Percent | |||||
Loss before income taxes | $ | (41,519) | ||||
Canadian statutory rate(1) |
| 26.50 | % | |||
Computed income tax recovery |
| (11,003) |
|
| ||
Effect on income tax rate resulting from |
|
|
| |||
Non‑deductible share‑based compensation | 1,637 | (3.9) | % | |||
Other permanent differences | 21 | (0.1) | % | |||
Tax benefits of current period losses and other tax assets, subject to full valuation allowance | 8,074 | (19.4) | % | |||
Valuation allowance for prior year adjustment | 136 | (0.3) | % | |||
Foreign income tax rate difference | 1,114 | (2.7) | % | |||
Other | 21 | (0.1) | % | |||
Income tax expense (recovery) reported in the consolidated statements of loss | $ | — | - | % | ||
(1) Our Canadian corporate tax rate is comprised of a basic Part I federal tax rate of 38%, net 15% after federal tax abatement and general tax reduction, plus the additional provincial tax of 11.5%.
The Company has incurred Canadian federal and provincial net operating losses, or “NOLs,” from inception. As of December 31, 2025, the Company has NOL carry-forwards of approximately $230.7 million and $226.6 million, respectively, for Canadian federal and Québec purposes, available to reduce future taxable income, which expire beginning in 2026 through 2045. The Company also has scientific research and experimental development expenditures of approximately $32.7 million and $38.8 million, respectively, for Canadian federal and Québec income tax purposes, which have not been deducted. These expenditures are available to reduce future taxable income and have an unlimited carry-forward period. Research and development tax credits and expenditures are subject to verification by the tax authorities, and, accordingly, these amounts may vary.
The Company has incurred NOLs for U.S. tax purposes. As of December 31, 2025, the Company has carry-forwards of approximately $103.2 million related to U.S. NOLs that may be carried forward indefinitely and are available to reduce future taxable income.
Deferred income taxes reflect the net tax effects of temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities for financial reporting purposes and the amounts used for income tax purposes. The net deferred tax assets have not been recognized in these financial statements because the criteria for recognition of these assets were not met.
The Company’s net deferred tax assets consist of the following for the years ended December 31:
| 2025 | 2024 | ||
Net operating loss carry‑forwards | $ | 83,305 | $ | 72,775 |
Tax basis of property and equipment in excess of carrying values |
| 13 | 78 | |
Tax basis of right of use assets | (255) | (298) | ||
Tax basis of lease liability | 267 | 311 | ||
Tax basis of reserves | 10 | 5 | ||
Federal SR&ED investment tax credits |
| 4,663 | 4,170 | |
Taxation of federal SR&ED investment tax credits |
| (1,236) | (1,105) | |
Research and development expenditures |
| 10,292 | 8,472 | |
Financing costs |
| 1,034 | 447 | |
Stock based compensation | 4,600 | 3,752 | ||
Others |
| 114 | 745 | |
Total Net deferred tax assets |
| 102,807 | 89,353 | |
Less Valuation allowance | (102,807) | (89,353) | ||
Net deferred tax assets | $ | — | $ | — |
The Company files income tax returns in Canada and in the United States. The Company is subject to Canada Revenue Agency and Revenu Québec examination for fiscal years 2020 to 2025 due to unexpired statute of limitation periods and is subject to US Federal and state income tax examination for fiscal years 2022 to 2025.
On July 4, 2025, the President of the United States signed H.R. 1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” into law. The legislation includes several changes to federal tax law that generally allow for more favorable deductibility of certain business expenses beginning in 2025, including the restoration of immediate expensing of domestic R&D expenditures, reinstatement of 100% bonus depreciation, and more favorable rules for determining the limitation on business interest expense. These changes were reflected in the income tax provision for the period ended December 31, 2025, as enactment occurred after the balance sheet date. The Company has elected to continue capitalizing domestic R&D expenditures and will continue to amortize prior year R&D expenditures that were capitalized.
Historical Timeline
| Fiscal Year | Filed | |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Mar 20, 2026 | Showing above |
| 2024 | Mar 13, 2025 | |
| 2023 | Mar 21, 2024 | |
| 2022 | Mar 29, 2023 | |
| 2021 | Mar 24, 2022 | |
| 2020 | Mar 29, 2021 | |
| 2019 | Mar 6, 2020 | |
About Income Taxes Disclosures
The income tax disclosure reveals how much a company actually pays in taxes versus what the statutory rate would predict. Analysts focus on the effective tax rate (ETR) reconciliation, which breaks down every item driving the gap between the 21% federal rate and the company's reported ETR — including R&D credits, foreign rate differentials, and state taxes. Deferred tax assets (DTAs) and their valuation allowances signal management's confidence in future profitability: a rising allowance suggests the company doubts it can use accumulated tax benefits. Uncertain tax benefit (UTB) reserves quantify exposure to IRS challenges on aggressive positions.
Key signals to watch: sudden ETR drops without clear operational reasons, large increases in valuation allowances, growing UTB balances, and significant unremitted foreign earnings. Post-TCJA, pay attention to GILTI and BEAT provisions that affect multinational tax structures. Compare the cash taxes paid (from the cash flow statement) against the income tax provision to gauge earnings quality.