The tax is being created to have the same revenue as the old IPI

05/03/2024

---

Bernard Appy — Foto: Cristiano Mariz/Agência O Globo

The revenue from the Selective Tax (IS), which will be created with the consumption tax reform, will not exceed R$50 billion per year, according to estimates made by the Ministry of Finance. The tax is being designed to have the same collection as the current Tax on Industrialized Products (IPI), Bernard Appy, Brazil’s special secretary for tax reform, told Valor.

According to the secretary, the federal government collected around R$60 billion last year from the Tax on Industrialized Products. Under the new tax regime, the aim is to maintain the same revenue at most. He explained that around R$10 billion will be collected from the tax that will be levied on products that compete with those produced in the Manaus Free Trade Zone, a tax that was maintained by the reform to keep the region’s competitive edge. The rest (up to R$50 billion) will be collected from the Selective Tax.

Mr. Appy stressed that the Selective Tax will not be used by the federal government to collect more tax, which is a concern that has been raised by experts. “It’s not in [the federal government’s] interest to collect more with the Selective Tax than it does with the IPI. The Selective Tax has no tax collection objective. It is regulatory and will be used for regulatory purposes,” said the secretary. “The way it is today, it will raise less than R$50 billion,” he added.

He said that if the federal government wanted to collect more from the Selective Tax, it would have to share the revenue with states and municipalities, which would be a self-inflicted setback. “For us, it’s not in our interest for it [the Selective System] to raise more than R$50 billion because if it raises more than R$50 billion, we’d have to reduce the CBS [federal VAT] rate proportionally, and we’d have to send 60% of the revenue to the states and municipalities. In other words, for every real we collect from the Selective Tax over R$50 billion, we lose R$0.60 in net revenue for the federal government, so we’re not going to do that. We don’t usually shoot ourselves in the foot,” he explained.

The secretary also said that the decision to leave the definition of Selective Tax rates to ordinary law was so that his department would have more time to look into issues that are changing, such as taxation on alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, and polluting vehicles. The Selective Tax will apply to these three items, as well as to boats and aircraft, soft drinks, and mineral goods (iron, oil, and natural gas).

Mr. Appy thinks it is unlikely that the bill with the rates will be sent to Congress this year because it is not the priority now, and there is time to discuss it later since the tax will start to be levied as of 2027. “It is not something that requires a mega system to be implemented, so there would be time to do it.”

However, Mr. Appy said that if there is a political decision by the government or a desire by Congress, there would be no impediment to sending the bill this year.

The Selective Tax will be created to replace the Tax on Industrialized Products and will tax goods and services that are harmful to health or the environment. According to the supplementary bill, the tax will be levied only once, and credits may not be used for it.

*Por Jéssica Sant’Ana, Lu Aiko Otta — Brasília

Source: Valor International