Government maintains tax exemption for international online purchases up to US$ 50

The Ministry of Finance made official this Friday (30), in the Official Gazette of the Union, the new rules for taxation of international purchases made over the internet, and maintained the exemption from Import Tax for amounts up to US$ 50 or the equivalent in another currency destined for to natural persons (see in full).

The decision comes two months after the government announced the withdrawal of taxes on online purchases by individuals, a measure announced by Finance Minister Fernando Haddad, which did not resonate well with Brazilians. The expectation was to reinforce tax collection by R$ 8 billion per year.

The exemption, however, is valid only for e-commerce companies that adhere to the new Federal Revenue Remittance Program, which also had the participation rules published (see in full). The measure will mainly affect retailers such as Shein, Shopee and AliExpress.

According to the government, the compliance program was created to “provide greater agility and predictability to the flow of foreign trade and promote compliance with tax and customs legislation”.

The new rules come into effect from August 1st and companies will have to pay the Tax on the Circulation of Goods and Services (ICMS) on imports – the rate was recently set at 17% by the state finance secretaries.

The government also ordered the Federal Revenue Service to prepare bimonthly program evaluation reports to monitor companies’ adherence, point out results and “propose a change in the differentiated rate” of exemption depending on the order.

Companies that voluntarily adhere to the Consignment Shipping Program will have to meet a series of requirements, including providing information for the Shipping Import Declaration (DIR) in advance of arrival in the country; collection of taxes; commit to tax and customs compliance, combating embezzlement and smuggling; and monitoring of registered sellers.