Fannie Mae asked the Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday for more time to file its Q4 2012 and year-end 2012 earnings statements, as its rising profits have affected its tax liabilities.

"[W]e expect to report significant net income for the three months and the year ended December 31, 2012, compared with a net loss of $2.4 billion for the three months ended December 31, 2011 and a net loss of $16.9 billion for the year ended December 31, 2011," Fannie wrote in the filing.

In 2008, when Fannie started registering heavy losses, it began tabulating a "valuation allowance on deferred tax assets," an accounting device which allows a money-losing business to spread out the tax benefits it accumulates by registering a loss. Fannie, which would have normally filed its year-end earnings report March 18, said it needed an extension in order to figure out if its 2012  profits were so substantial general accounting principles would compel it to drawn down on the valuation allowance in order to lower its tax bill. 

Earlier this month, fellow mortgage giant Freddie Mac state it had earned $16 billion in 2012 compared to an $11 billion loss in 2011.

In the filing, Fannie said it would release its revised earnings before April 15