The number of agreements reached by companies and individuals with the federal government for payment of tax debts reached 1.1 million in April — totaling R$263 billion in negotiated amounts. Taxpayers have been taking advantage of the so-called “tax transaction,” which allows the Attorney General’s Office of the National Treasury (PGFN) to grant discounts and installment plans.

This modality has existed for a little over two years. It was instituted in February 2020, through Law 13,988. Since then, the tax authorities are allowed to meet and negotiate — including very high debts.

The Candido Mendes University, for example, closed a deal a few days ago to settle a R$1.25 billion liability. It was the highest amount negotiated by the PGFN in the region that covers the states of Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo.

In São Paulo, multi-billion cases have been filed since last year. The Grupo Ruas, which operates in urban transportation, closed an agreement to pay R$3.12 billion in July. Inepar, which operates in the infrastructure industry, formalized the renegotiation of R$2.6 billion in tax debts in December.

It works differently from what was seen in the installment programs for tax debts Refis, which provided a single model for discounts and installment plans. In other words, a single calculation for all taxpayers in the country who wanted to join the program.

In the tax transactions, the agreements are customized for a specific group of taxpayers or individually. The discount and the value of the down payment and installments, in these cases, vary according to cash flow and payment capacity.

“The transaction considers the taxpayer’s actual economic situation. It is the only public policy capable of allowing regularization while respecting the principles of equality, justice, and free competition,” says attorney João Grognet, general coordinator of PGFN’s credit recovery strategies.

There are more than 10 modalities. In one, named individual transaction, the tax authorities and the taxpayer sit down to negotiate. It is designed for those who have debts of more than R$15 million. This was the model used by Candido Mendes, Grupo Ruas and Inepar.

The discounts, as a general rule, are up to 50% and the debt can be paid in installments over a maximum period of 84 months. Companies under judicial reorganization – the case of Inepar and Candido Mendes – have more advantages. Discounts can reach 70% and the payment term goes up to 120 months.

Individuals, micro and small companies, non-profit institutions, and educational institutions are even more favored. They fit into the highest percentage, 70%, and can pay their debts in up to 145 months.

The Candido Mendes University, besides being under protection from creditors, meets the requirements to take advantage of the best payment conditions. The original debt, of R$ 1.25 billion, was reduced to about R$400 million. The debt will be paid in 145 months.

The other modalities of transaction available to taxpayers have conditions established beforehand in a public notice or ordinance. In this case, the taxpayer decides to join. This week, for example, the PGFN opened discussions on goodwill amortization in the administrative or judicial sphere.

This litigation, according to the Secretariat of Federal Revenue, involves around R$150 billion. Whoever opts for the agreement must give up the lawsuit. There are discounts of up to 50% and the joining period ends on July 29.

Before that, on June 30th, there are other transactions that are expected to close. Among them, two pioneering ones were instituted during the pandemic. The one called extraordinary allows the payment of the debt with a down payment in three installments and the remainder in 81 installments, for companies — or 142 in case of individuals.

The other, called exceptional, allows the debt to be paid in 84 installments, or 145 for individuals, with a reduced down payment spread over 12 months and discounts of up to 70% on fines and interests.

The individual transaction — aimed at taxpayers who have large debts — has no deadline for agreements to be proposed. And they work in a more customized way.

“We are able to adjust them according to the economic condition of each debtor,” said Tiago Voss dos Reis, chief prosecutor of the region that covers Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo. He and attorney Andréa Borges Araújo were in charge of the negotiations with Candido Mendes.

The university will pay smaller monthly installments in the first two years, for example. It was agreed this way to reconcile the payments to the federal government with the commitments made in the judicial reorganization.

In the third year of the agreement, with a less uncomfortable cash flow, the value of the installments will increase — in a customized format: there will be 11 ordinary installments, representing 0.5% of the debt, and an extraordinary one, corresponding to 7%. This high value installment is called the “balloon installment” – it serves to strengthen the payment.

These high-value installments are related to the sale of the university’s real estate. Candido Mendes has an ongoing divestment plan, and the sales are expected to take place before the agreed maturity dates. If it doesn’t, however, it will have to pay the amount anyway.

The university has offered other properties and assets as a guarantee for payment. And, in addition, two managers are listed as guarantors of the debt. If Candido Mendes does not comply with the agreement, they will have to respond with their personal assets.

There were tax and social security debts accumulated since the 1980s. “It had been monitored for a long time by the attorney general’s office. With the settlement, besides the prospect of payment, we reduced litigation,” attorney Andréa Borges Araújo said.

Celso Viana, legal prorector at Cândido Mendes, sees the transaction as a great achievement. The university is in the process of corporate restructuring, to become a company — today it responds as a non-profit company — and the tax agreements, he says, solidifies this process. “It brings total security for potential investor partners,” he says.

Candido Mendes’ recovery process is led by retired judge Luiz Roberto Ayoub, one of the leading lawyers in bankruptcy. He is currently a partner at the law firm Galdino & Coelho.

For him, the negotiation of tax liabilities consolidates the viability of the recovery process and “proves the full capacity of the institution to pay all its debts.” The negotiations with PGFN were headed by tax attorney Gustavo Brigagão.

Only debts related to the Workers’ Severance Fund (FGTS) were left out of the agreement. This issue is being discussed in court. Candido Mendes closed a payment agreement with the workers in the judicial reorganization process. The PGFN, however, filed an appeal because the agreed discounts were above the limit allowed by the resolution of the Board of Trustees of the FGTS. Today, the decision of the court-ordered reorganization judge in favor of Candido Mendes is valid.

Source: Valor International

https://valorinternational.globo.com