Source: InfoPessoal (Notícias), 14/04/2008

SÃO PAULO - NF-e (Electronic Invoice) is a key element for the success of tax reform, which promises to reduce the burden of Brazilian taxes and contributions. It was to this consensus that the participants of the Temporary Subcommittee on Tax Reform arrived, after a debate held last Thursday (10). In the evaluation of those present, the universalization of the system will offer firm information on the collection of each state.

"The reform will only work well if the electronic note is adopted in all the federative units", conditioned Albérico Mascarenhas, ex-secretary of Finance of the state of Bahia. The coupon would be essential for the compensation between the units benefited or harmed by the change in the tax system from source to destination.

Numbers
The mandatory use of electronic invoices for the tobacco and liquid fuel sectors completed ten days last Thursday (10).

The numbers already point to the project's success: from April 2006 to March 31 this year, more than six million electronic invoices were issued.

Only during the first ten days of the obligation, more than 1 million documents were issued across the country, which corresponds to R $ 25 billion in goods handling, according to Eudaldo Almeida de Jesus, Encat coordinator.

Debate
The subcommittee, linked to the Economic Affairs Committee, has been discussing tax reform for a year. Two weeks ago, Senator Francisco Dornelles (PP-RJ) presented a preliminary report with the design of an alternative tax model to the Government's proposal, which is being debated in the Chamber of Deputies.

The Assistant Secretary of Finance of the State of São Paulo, George Tormin, also spoke about the system of the Nota Fiscal Paulista, which offers cash credit to consumers who demand the invoice. The amount corresponds to 30% of the value of the ICMS (Tax on Circulation of Goods and Services) note.

According to Agência Senado, the speakers stated that all electronic banknote systems in operation have converging technologies. Thus, each system can be adjusted to allow the migration of information from one to another.

Official proposal
PEC (proposed amendment to the Constitution) 233, which institutes tax reform according to Executive definitions, was sent to Congress on February 28. Now, the text is pending in the Chamber.

The Ministry of Finance guarantees that the matter has six main objectives: simplification of the federal tax system and the ICMS (Tax on Circulation of Goods and Services), end of the Fiscal War, correction of distortions in indirect taxes, Regional Development Policy and exemption.

The theme that has perhaps gained greater repercussion is the creation of VAT (Value Added Tax), which will unify Cofins (Social Security Financing), PIS (Social Integration Program), Cide-Combustível (Contribution for Intervention in the Domain Economic) and the education salary.

Also noteworthy is the unification of ICMS at 2%, in order to end the fiscal war. There are states that charge up to 37% of the tax.

Important mechanism
Etco (Brazilian Institute of Competition Ethics) believes that the invoice is one of the most important mechanisms in combating tax evasion and a major step towards the modernization of tax administration.

In addition to being an indispensable instrument in the search for consensus on a tax reform capable of meeting the demands and peculiarities of all States, it opens the way for the simplification of the Brazilian tax system.