Source: Jornal do Commércio - RJ, 01/04/2008

As of today, companies operating in the fuel and tobacco distribution sectors will have to retire their invoice books for good and start issuing coupons in 100% digital format: Souza Cruz is the first Brazilian company to adopt the Note Electronic Tax in all units of the country. In March, the company already issued 300 thousand NF-e.

For Souza Cruz, in addition to simplifying processes, this action contributes to fighting tax evasion. According to the Brazilian Institute of Ethics in Competition (ETCO) - Institute that Souza Cruz supports - electronic invoices are a mechanism to combat tax evasion and a major step towards modernizing tax administration.

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

With the electronic invoice it is possible to identify how much each State gains or loses with the change in the collection of ICMS. According to the information generated, it will be possible to define a reliable compensatory system for States that may lose revenue.

Another advantage of the NF-e is the reduction in the printing of several copies of the document and the bureaucracy, as it makes registration in books unnecessary, since the Secretariat of Finance already has all the purchase and sale operations carried out by the company.

The State is able to immediately visualize the operation and verify that the buyer and seller are duly qualified, with updated documentation.

SMOKE PURCHASE. The marketing of this year's tobacco harvest is new for Souza Cruz's integrated producers. In Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, the issuance of invoices for the sale of the product electronically is in the process of adoption.

The first tests started in late January and the receptivity of farmers has been good, according to Souza Cruz. Instead of several invoice copies, producers receive a receipt that has, on the back, a detailed extract of the commercialization operations, which makes the process more transparent.