Author: Renata Moura

Source: Tribuna do Norte - RN - ECONOMY - 04/10/2009

Tax evasion reaches 10% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and has caused a leak of over R $ 2,05 billion in the public coffers of Rio Grande do Norte. The numbers are estimated by the president of the Brazilian Institute of Tax Planning (IBPT), Gilberto Luiz do Amaral, take into account municipal, state and federal taxes and became the target of a task force set up in RN to discover and dismantle gangs interested in circumventing the payment of taxes. "We are closing in on the tax evaders," says the Taxation Secretary, João Batista Soares.

Following a line of work that includes investigations and still confidential information, the secretariat, in partnership with the Public Ministry, has been working to dismantle schemes, such as that involving ghost companies, which would be declaring revenues of around R $ 100 thousand, per year , while information obtained by the tax authorities indicates that, per month, they would be selling R $ 3 million or more in goods. The cases are being investigated, but, according to Soares, it is still not possible to say how long the fraudster or fraudsters have been operating or the amount withheld so far. “But we are watching and working to catch who is behind the scheme. We don't want to just get to orange ”, he comments.

The objective of the work is to reduce the size of the damage to public coffers, which, in state taxes alone, reaches, on average, R $ 600 million per year. To get an idea of ​​the size of this gap, the volume represents 92,30% of what would be needed to invest to complete the first stage of the São Gonçalo do Amarante Airport. It also means less money available to the state government to invest in areas such as health, safety, education and infrastructure.

Reduction of

 “Tax evasion rates are of concern not only in Rio Grande do Norte, but in the country. However, they have been reduced over the years, ”said Gilberto Luiz do Amaral, from IBPT, in an interview with Tribuna do Norte. A study prepared by the Institute and released in March this year shows that the evasion of Brazilian companies has not only been decreasing, but in five years it will reach the lowest index in Latin America. The expectation, according to the survey, is that in a decade the progress will be even greater and the country will reach levels of tax evasion compared to that of developed countries. “And the Northeast is also able to follow this rhythm”, estimates the president of the Institute and one of the study's coordinators.

The path against tax evasion must, however, be longer for the Northeastern tax authorities. While nationally, tax evasion corresponds to 25% of companies' revenues, in the region and in the state this number jumps to 30% or slightly more.

The mechanisms to control this type of crime would still be less advanced in northeastern territory. Another component that leaves the region at a disadvantage in combating tax evasion would be the lower average income of the population, which increases the difficulty of more accurate control of the tax authorities, further argues Amaral. "But the Federal Government has been investing heavily in combating tax evasion and this will also improve state and federal controls," he says.

The fact that states and municipalities have the opportunity to exchange information and have access to lines of credit that allow the equipment of inspection machines to be built should also, in his view, contribute to making the fight to avoid fraud in the tax system regionally less difficult. .

Covenants help combat

The State Tax Secretariat (SET) discovered the scheme involving the operation of micro ghost companies in Rio Grande do Norte through the “Compra Legal” program, which obliges companies that supply goods and services to public agencies to request authorization online from the Secretariat to issue invoice. The program performs a kind of "electronic audit". "These companies have to confirm that the note covering the transaction is legal," says Soares, adding that the system was made in partnership with the State Audit Court.

Another agreement, this time in partnership with the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP), is helping state taxation to close the barrier against tax evasion at gas stations. The agreement expands the competencies of SET, which instead of concentrating only on the tax field, can now check the quality of fuels so that the activities of the post that is caught selling non-standard products can even be suspended. The objective of the work is to investigate the performance of 578 active posts in RN. Equipped with measuring equipment, SET auditors and ANP employees are able to assess the quality of the fuel sold. The fuel sector, according to information from the Secretariat, is the largest tax evader in the state. “As it stands, tax evaders seem to be very comfortable not only in this one, but in various sectors of the economy. But I reinforce that the secretariat is hand in hand with several agencies to dismantle these gangs and even put them behind bars, ”says João Batista Soares. He comments that, as the work involves investigation, the effects it will bring to public coffers will not be seen in the short term. "But for sure, we will continue to recover the resources".

Impacts go beyond public coffers

Tax evasion is "the conscious and voluntary action of the individual tending, by unlawful means, to eliminate, reduce or delay the payment of tax effectively due". Crime shakes public finances by reducing the amount collected, but the consequences do not stop there. “From the market's perspective, tax evasion is also very bad because it establishes unfair competition among taxpayers. It makes those who pay the tax on time pay more because governments need to increase revenue. Then the tax burden is distributed disproportionately and goes up there. GDP is also affected. It gets smaller ”, points out Gilberto Luiz do Amaral, from IBPT.

The study on tax evasion of Brazilian companies, developed by the institute, points out that evidence of tax evasion is present in 65% of small companies, in 49% of medium-sized companies and in 27% of large companies. In value, tax evasion is greater in the industrial sector, followed by commercial companies and service providers. As it is not a state with an industrial profile, Rio Grande do Norte faces problems mainly in trade, according to the Taxation Secretary, João Batista Soares. By segment, he says that the fuel sector is a leader in the ranking of tax evaders and that the problem mainly involves the alcohol segment. Medicines, computer materials and products like CDs and DVDs also top the list of frauds found. The crime of tax evasion is provided for in Law 4.729 / 65, art. 1st.

Taxation Department recovers R $ 50 million per year

New fiscal control systems have been the main weapons of tax authorities to combat tax evasion in Brazil and Rio Grande do Norte have also had positive effects. In the set of actions are, for example, crossing information, withholding taxes and more effective inspection, mechanisms that would be enabling the state to recover an average of R $ 50 million per year and that will help boost the collection estimated for 2009, estimated in R $ 2,4 billion, R $ 164 million more than in 2008. “There would be no other reason for us to get this extra revenue, considering that the economy is falling”, observes João Batista Soares.

In the specific case of RN, the agreement signed about eight months ago with the Public Ministry to deepen the search for tax evaders has been added to other partnerships that intend to intensify the fight against crime. In September, a technical cooperation agreement was signed between the State Attorney General's Office (PGE), the Court of Justice and the Public Prosecutor's Office, with the aim of promoting integrated action also between these bodies. The task force, which in this case is being coordinated by PGE, will work to speed up the collection of the state's active debt, which, considering fines, interest and other corrections, reaches R $ 4,5 billion. The value is practically double that recorded two years ago. “We are going to improve the migration of information between the agencies to speed up the processes, in addition to hiring law trainees to give specific support to judicial collection actions”, explains the attorney general, Francisco de Sales Matos and goes further: “Intensify collection it is a work with a pedagogical effect. Those in debt will be penalized and will think twice if they want to evade ”. Now, in October, the attorney general's expectation is to start sending defaulters to credit-restricting services, such as Serasa. Since 2007, PGE has tried to sign an agreement with the agency, but this time the agreement will come out. "We have already overcome bureaucratic procedures", says Matos.