Taxation Seminar in Brazil

ETCO, in partnership with the newspaper Valor Econômico, held on Tuesday (July 23), in São Paulo, the Taxation in Brazil seminar.

The event brought together renowned experts to discuss how tax reform can contribute to Brazil's growth. Access here the exclusive articles covering the event, published on July 30, in a special section of the Valor Econômico newspaper:

Illegality advances and funds violence

In an interview, Edson Luiz Vismona, chief executive of ETCO, tells how smugglers and heavy debtors benefit from the tax system.

Tax review is crucial to the country

Brazilian system is put in check by experts during Taxation seminar in Brazil

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"We don't need to unify taxes"

Roberto Mosquera defends minor changes with more significant economic results

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Smuggling is an evil to be fought

Tax review should prioritize productive sector and focus on weakening the illegal market

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"History in Brazil is a big mistake"

Belief that foreign models can be reproduced here is a mistake, says tax expert

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Fiscal balance challenges lawmakers

Sustainable and harmonious taxes will favor more advantageous negotiations

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"We don't need to unify taxes"

For the doctor and professor of Tax Law Roberto Quiroga Mosquera, the ideal would be for less drastic changes to be made than those currently being discussed by the government. He believes that one way is not to focus on tax unification.
“It is no use just joining the taxes that already exist and putting a different name for them” - says Mosquera. As an example, he cites so-called excise taxes, taxes on specific products such as fuels, tobacco and energy. “We already have our
IPI (Industrialized Product Tax). It is a selective tax, which represents less than 5% of the collection, but which already takes the place of excise taxes. There is no need, therefore, to change this tax. ”
For him, taxation alone will not be enough to change the situation in Brazil. “Currently, R $ 1,4 trillion is collected
federal taxes, 80% of which are levied on income and revenue. It would hardly be possible to raise so many resources otherwise. With only 5% of the population earning more than R $ 4 thousand, it is complicated to transfer taxes in an economy
that is stagnant. It is necessary to have an economic change to then make the taxation accompany it. ”

CONTENTIOUS TAX

Another difficulty is tax litigation, litigation between companies and the tax authorities. According to Mosquera, there are about 15 thousand companies in this situation, which will end in a discussion in the Judiciary with a ten-year term and a decapitalization of the company, which can generate a major macroeconomic problem.
“And today it is not easy to discuss a tax issue within the federal court. Judges demand guarantees, and this is costly for a
company." According to Mosquera, the tax rule has to adapt to the country's economic factors.
“There is no use for a magic rule to solve the economic problem. It is the substrate of the tax issue. Of course, it will impact business, but that means she is not the savior of the country. We need to change the economy a lot to have a tax rule that is really efficient. ”
For Mosquera, it is necessary to create specific solutions for the country and not have principles based on parameters from abroad.
“What to do so that there is no more cigarette smuggling in Brazil? Eventually companies that manufacture cigarettes
Premium can produce other products to compete with the tax evader. You need to know the Brazilian reality to find the best solutions. ”
As alternatives for greater efficiency in Brazilian taxation, Mosquera points to small reforms, which can be much more assertive. “I find it difficult for the merger of taxes at the federal, state and municipal levels to be accepted. But taxing fate and not origin is an interesting idea. And sometimes, a value added tax, thinking about public finances, may be the most correct. ”

Ethics and legality are fundamental to development

The tobacco industry pays the country's highest tax rates, between 70 and 90%. Meanwhile, taxation in Paraguay is the lowest on the continent, at 18%. The consequence of this, together with the lack of border control, is the growth of the illegal cigarette market in the country. Today more than 50% of the cigarette consumed in Brazil is illegal. As a result, the government stopped collecting R $ 11,5 billion in taxes on the sector last year. In addition, as contraband cigarettes do not meet the phytosanitary standards imposed on Brazilian companies, reducing smuggling will prevent Brazilians from consuming unregulated products. For the Brazilian Institute of Ethics in Competition (ETCO), if the taxes were lower, the consumer would buy more of the national product, and this would increase public revenue.
A survey carried out by ETCO, in partnership with the Brazilian Institute of Economics of the Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV IBRE), reveals that 16,9% of GDP - about R $ 1,17 trillion - originates from the informal economy. This calculation includes the production of goods and services not declared to the government. The evasion of taxes and contributions reduces costs and increases the profit of these companies in an illegal way.

“In the meantime, we, who want to keep up with our contributions, encounter all kinds of difficulties. Many 'penduricalhos' have been
placed over the years, and often the Treasury itself cannot understand this whole mechanism ”- highlighted Edson Vismona, president of ETCO and the National Forum Against Piracy and Illegality, during the Taxation and Sustainable Economy panel.
For him, effective practices that guarantee inspection and fair competition are not only a matter of ethics and legality, but, rather, a fundamental step for the development of the
parents. In the case of cigarettes, according to Vismona, the difference in price is drastic: if a pack of legal cigarettes is sold for R $ 7, the one obtained through smuggling can cost only R $ 3.
- Our market is being delivered to the traffic of these illegal products. In states like Mato Grosso do Sul, for example, 82% of the cigarette consumed comes from smuggling.
Organized crime finances itself with these billions that are evaded.

SECTOR SURVIVAL

To solve the issue of parallel products and guarantee the survival of companies in the sector, a group composed of several players has been discussing proposals to make legal trade viable and, thus, to benefit both companies and the government. One solution would be to review the taxation model for these industries.
- We agree that the tax burden on these products needs to be high. But we have to look at the demand, act to crack down on criminal organizations that benefit from this money.

If not, the market will be increasingly dominated by smugglers who pay nothing for it. The largest share of the market does not pay tax. Another practice suggested by currents in these sectors is the physical control of beverages and cigarettes. The ETCO president also stresses that the convergence of actions between public authorities and companies must be a two-way street, always respecting those taxpayers who are up to date with their obligations.
- Otherwise, the beneficiary will always be the regular debtor who makes non-payment of taxes his source of income, harming public coffers, competition and the whole of society.

History in Brazil is of great misunderstandings

In his explanation at the Taxation seminar in Brazil, tax attorney Everardo Maciel, former secretary of the Federal Revenue Service, brought up contemporary tax issues, both in Brazil and in the world - and the main differences in approaches in these scenarios. When it comes to the Brazilian situation, Maciel points out that this is a point of enormous social rejection, and that is why it is easy
find many hasty conclusions on the topic. Among the highlights, he points to the belief that foreign models can be easily reproduced here, without taking into account legal aspects of our reality. The fact that many professionals affirm that the tax system is extremely complex is also a belief that, according to him, needs to be analyzed.

- Complexity is inherent in the system. It needs to be operable and not simple. There are 27 ICMS laws, for example, and you need to have that, because the tax is state. But in general everyone is very similar to each other, except in special situations.

Among the main tax problems in Brazil today, the expert highlights points such as excessive litigation and bureaucracy - however, always stressing that this is a problem with the tax process and not with the tax itself. Therefore, solutions such as joining ICMS and ISS are considered simplistic.

- They are different taxes, with different destination. How is the federative issue? How is all the jurisprudence that exists around this? It is like throwing dirty water with the child in the basin. Is that what you want to do? Or is there a lack of willingness to think about it and find solutions with some degree of creativity?

The tax collector recovered the history of tax reforms that have already taken place in Brazil and assessed the trajectory as being more mistaken than correct. In his opinion, most interventions carried out after 1965 can be classified as disastrous. And Constitutional Amendment Proposal 45, known as the PEC for tax reform, follows the same line of misunderstanding.
According to Maciel, there are currently three major tax issues being discussed in various locations around the world: the erosion of tax bases; the taxation of the digital economy; and new sources of social security financing.

- The transfer of capital and the taxation of profits from countries with higher taxation to countries with lower taxation or without taxation, tax havens, is something that bothers everyone - he highlights.

The taxation of the digital economy, a highlight in this scenario, draws attention mainly for the creation of the GAFAM tax - currently under discussion in countries like France and the United Kingdom. It is an initiative of local governments to tax the big technology companies: Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft. He also talks about the possibility of taxing financial transactions and robots as a way of financing social security.

Fiscal balance challenges lawmakers

Sustainable and harmonious taxes will favor more advantageous negotiations

Taxation and a sustainable economy presuppose adequate taxation. It cannot be very low, to allow the financial health of the State, and it cannot be high, to the point of stifling the economy and making business impossible. With this explanation, Phelippe Toledo Pires de Oliveira, deputy attorney general of the National Treasury, summed up the State's challenges in developing policies conducive to business development in the country during the Taxation seminar in Brazil. For him, reflecting on whether the tax bases are correct and whether they can be improved is of great relevance to the national scenario.
According to data from the latest study conducted by the Federal Revenue, in 2017, taxation in Brazil is based on consumption and the payroll. The rate on equity is less than 5%, while the rate on income is less than 20%, on consumption it is 48% and the one on payroll is 26%.
- Complexity is inherent to our tax system. It is complex because we have different tax types in the Brazilian system: taxes, fees, improvement contributions, compulsory loans. And each of these species still has its own taxes: Income Tax, contribution on the payroll, etc. Being complex, however, does not mean that it cannot be simplified.
For Oliveira, the challenges are great, and this is a great time for this discussion. To illustrate, he explains that currently the country has about 6 million tax foreclosures per year, only within the Union. There are approximately 1 million taxpayer lawsuits against the federal tax administration. The Deputy Attorney General recognizes that it is necessary to think about specific changes to simplify the system and reduce litigation. However, you need to be aware of
do not generate other unwanted occurrences.
- The end of the dividend exemption, for example, while bringing a benefit to end the discussion of disguised distribution of profits, also generated the phenomenon of "Pejotização" to pay less taxes. The individual who would receive that income taxed at a higher percentage creates a Legal Entity to be taxed at a percentage
smaller.
Oliveira also highlighted points such as the reduction of rates as a condition for the broadening of the bases. Despite the fact that tax benefits exist worldwide, it is necessary to ask whether they are fulfilling the purpose
should comply.
- The moment is to bring up these discussions, which until then were not very common in the tax sphere, but unusual among society.
Regarding tax reform, Oliveira says that the government's intention is to discuss the proposals and make the best of each one to arrive at a solution that is viable and reasonable for tax simplification.
- The desirable reform, in my opinion, is one that respects the federal pact, promotes simplification
and respect the fundamental rights and guarantees of the taxpayer.

Illegality advances and funds violence

In an interview, Edson Vismona, chief executive of ETCO, tells how smugglers and heavy debtors benefit from the tax system

 

A system of taxation with unclear criteria, numerous obstacles to the tax regularization of companies and endless lawsuits have been fertile ground for the growth of the illegal market in the country.
Smugglers and regular debtors - those who create formal businesses but do not pay taxes - take advantage of these shortcomings to attract consumers at low prices, but offer products of criminal origin that they do not own
registration nor follow the rules of regulatory agencies. In the case of cigarettes, the illicit trade is already greater than the legal market.

For the executive president of the Brazilian Institute of Ethics in Competition (ETCO), Edson Luiz Vismona, Brazil is at a crucial moment to discuss the tax system and the consequent advance of smuggling and piracy. Highlights that
illegality is a direct beneficiary of this chaotic system and argues that it is necessary to discuss taxation now to guarantee a strong and secure economy in the future.

Why is it so important to discuss taxation at this point?
We are discussing the very survival of our companies and the necessary stimulus for Brazilian development. To
talking about taxation, we are talking about what our future will be. If we are going to stimulate entrepreneurship, the generation of
investments, jobs or we will continue to carry a wasteful state in which the productive sectors are already in the
maximum level of support for that State.

What is the most important point to change this scenario?
When we talk about taxation, the first thing that comes to mind is to lower the tax. But, for that, the only answer is to reduce the waste of public money. The state needs to be more efficient, more effective in the use and administration of public resources. Today what stimulates us a lot are immediate responses. During the presidential election campaign, ETCO presented candidates with a document on taxation and development.
Our proposal is to make rapid progress in simplifying, reducing bureaucracy and seeking mediation in the payment of taxes. The Brazilian tax liability is immense, we estimate it to be R $ 3,3 trillion. Are tax payments being discussed in court? This is what is being discussed in the courts and in administrative proceedings. There must be actions aimed at streamlining the collection
resources and regularize the fiscal situation of many companies. Our tax liability is perhaps half of GDP, which is a
absurd.

What are the biggest bottlenecks in the tax process?
It does not serve the debtor who wants to pay or the creditor who wants to receive. We have to reduce the margin of subjectivity in imposing fines, as this is unacceptable. You have companies today that are paying taxes that they shouldn't, but, due to the imposition of fines and even threats to lead to criminal complaints, the company ends up paying, to later discuss in court. We have to talk about tax compliance and other initiatives that can be done quickly.

What is needed to make fines and collections more transparent?
Clear criteria. It is necessary to facilitate the understanding of the current legislation, which is chaotic. Accessory obligations are an example of this. I don't think even the Treasury knows how many ancillary obligations there are. We are putting so many things into the Brazilian tax structure that it was incomprehensible.

Do you advocate that the country discuss broad tax reform or occasional adjustments?
The clamor is for a new tax system. The hard part is: what system is this? In the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln said to generals:
"If you come across a swamp, don't go into the swamp." That's how I see tax reform. One says the calculation is wrong, another says it will increase the tax, another says it will make a series of sectors unfeasible and nobody wants to lose. For this reason, we defend starting with what can be done now: on the one hand, simplification, rationalization of tax regimes, red tape, reform of the tax process, clear rules and respect for the taxpayer; on the other, it combats the persistent debtor who is structured not to pay taxes. These are points that must be considered. So, I think we will have practical effects
more quickly.

How does this chaotic tax situation favor the illegal market?
You see the other side of the force. On the one hand, those who want to pay tax encounter difficulties. On the other hand, who is determined
not paying tax finds support in the chaos of the tax system. We call these hard debtors. The person has a business structure so as not to pay tax. Illegality perverts competition, harms the consumer and burdens the Treasury. It is a direct beneficiary of this chaotic system. We are in the worst of worlds: discouraging those who create jobs and investing in those who pervert this sense of development. The typical example of this, in addition to fuel and beverages, where you have structures designed to not pay tax, is cigarettes. The Brazilian market is being increasingly dominated by smugglers.

Do the figures already indicate an illegal market bigger than the legal one for cigarettes?
Smuggling is 49% of the market, and the debtor is 5%. 54% do not pay tax. The whole Brazilian policy to combat smoking is going down the drain. The policy of increasing the tax and reducing consumption has lost all its effect. The contraband will say: "Very good, it can increase, because that's where I win". This is true for other sectors. In the case of cigarettes, the tax rate ranges from 71% to 90%, depending on the state's ICMS. In Paraguay, it is 18%. This is the photograph. The smuggler pays 18% in Paraguay and does not pay anything here, where he offers cigarettes at very low prices, less than half the cost of the legal product.
In March, the government announced measures against the illegal market, one of which was the study of reducing cigarette taxation.

Has this initiative gone ahead?
A group formed by government agents was created, I have no information on how this work is going, but we have some suggestions to make. We who want to fight smuggling - and I am not talking about cigarettes, I am talking about smuggling - defend an action related to this demand. Our proposal is to keep the tax burden high, but to scale it better. For more expensive brands, which serve the public with greater purchasing power and who will not migrate to a product without any control and quality like smuggled goods, the tax may be increased. And, for a more popular category, lower the tax. You can have a more competitive product to take the smuggling market out. The low-income population pays R $ 2 to R $ 3 for the smuggled product. And you will not buy a legal product that costs at least R $ 5. You need to have a brand of confrontation, which would pay less tax. They say that we want to increase the consumption of the national industry. No, I want to reduce the consumption of smuggling that is only growing and the margin that the smuggler has today to use in crime It is an economic equation. Smuggling is free.

In relation to supply, is the path to border repression?
The Ministry of Justice's proposal addresses a fundamental point in which we believe: the integration and coordination of operations at the borders, not to pick up trucks, but, rather, distributors, warehouses and large operators. We also suggest working on roads with integrated operations. The City of São Paulo has created a committee to combat illegal trade that is breaking all seizure records, in a coordinated action with the Federal Revenue Service and the Civil Police. Another front is international. We have tried to encourage Paraguay to increase the tax on its cigarette, but so far we have achieved nothing. Paraguayan cigarettes remain one of the cheapest in the world because they pay very low taxes.

Do we already have practical results from these actions?
Look at what an interesting situation we have come to. Recently, five illegal cigarette factories in Brazil were closed, falsifying the leading brand, that is, the smuggled cigarette. They were Brazilian factories forging Paraguayan brands, with labor from Paraguay. Another thing we always say: smuggled cigarettes finances organized crime, because it offers
high liquidity, profitability and low risk. The Civil Police closed a factory in the interior of São Paulo in which the criminal organization
he was falsifying cigarettes not to sell, but to distribute in prisons, as an instrument of power.

How can we show society that, in addition to the economic impact, there is a social and also a health consequence?
This is where another issue of demand comes from, which I call ethical inconsistency. This smuggled cigarette consumer is funding organized crime. But he complains about corruption and crime. On the one hand, he criticizes and, on the other, he finances. "If I'm taking advantage, what's the harm?" You are an instrument of piracy and you are happy. Your ethical filter ends in your pocket. There is no developed country that does not defend ethics and the law. How is the cigarette market in the country? The legal market is going down the drain. Four years ago, we had 30% of illegality. Society and government looked and thought it was bearable. It jumped to 54%. And we know that the perspective is that it can reach 60%, a percentage that already exists in some states. How long will it grow? Today
tax evasion is already higher than tax revenue. The collection last year was R $ 11,4 billion, and evasion, R $ 11,5 billion.
The smuggler is R $ 100 million ahead of the collection.

Tax review is crucial to the country

Brazilian system is put in check by experts during Taxation seminar in Brazil

Marcos Lisboa draws attention to the tax discrepancy

"We have to recognize that there is something very wrong with our economy, because the world is growing and getting rich, but Brazil is not."  The statement was made by economist and president of Insper, Marcos Lisboa, during the seminar on Taxation in Brazil, held by the newspaper VALOR ECONÔMICO in partnership with the Brazilian Institute of Competition Ethics (ETCO), on Tuesday, July 23, in São Paulo. Paulo. The event brought together renowned experts to discuss how the tax review can contribute to Brazil's growth.

"The tax regime directly affects economic decisions and investments made in Brazil. It is crucial that we discuss tax change, as it will largely contribute to the country's growth. ” For the economist, there is already an agenda of tax micro-reforms that the Secretary of Finance can put into practice.

"First, it is necessary to correct this tax discrepancy, adjust foreign trade and end the insecurity regarding investment in infrastructure" - says Lisbon, defending that the tax rules together with the industrial and education policies are the most important factors for the
countries' growth.

CORPORATE TAX

One way for the economy to develop, according to Lisbon, is to promote the internationalization of companies. But, for that, he explains, Brazil needs to do like the countries that reduced the corporate tax to about 20%. Today, Brazilian companies are not as competitive and have less growth. It also points out that it is necessary to have greater clarity regarding infrastructure works to attract more investments, which can also contribute to the recovery of the economy.
Lisbon defends the value added tax (VAT), which is the most used in the world and can be applied in Brazil. Through it, taxation is made on the amount sold and all taxes that were paid before are discounted. Regarding the CPMF, the economist has his reservations and says that it increases the demand for money, reduces the supply of credit and generates less growth
industry.

The Taxation seminar in Brazil was held at the Tomie Ohtake Institute. In addition to Marcos Lisboa, tax attorney Everardo Maciel, former secretary of the IRS; Edson Vismona, president of ETCO and the National Forum Against Piracy
and Illegality; Phelippe Toledo Pires de Oliveira, Deputy Attorney General of the National Treasury; Roberto Quiroga Mosquera,
doctor and master in Tax Law; and Efraim Filho, federal deputy. The mediation was carried out by journalist Samy Dana, a columnist for the financial education website Valor Investe and a professor at the School of Business Administration at Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV).

The main highlights of the experts' discussions were the challenges of a change in taxation that would bring gains for both the State and taxpayers and provide for national development. The speakers also explained the reasons why the current tax system favors illegality and smuggling in the country, enabling consolidation
of hard-hitting debtors.

Smuggling is an evil to be fought

Tax review should prioritize productive sector and focus on weakening the illegal market

 

 

The fight against the illegal market that took over the country and expectations regarding the tax review were the main issues addressed by the federal deputy and president of the Mixed Parliamentary Front to Combat Smuggling and Counterfeiting, Efraim Filho, at the Taxation seminar in Brazil.

For the deputy, the productive sector needs to be prioritized and be able to maintain his business. “The problems are not circumstantial, they are structuring. There is a rule in the country to make life easier for the State, the collection, but not to collaborate
with the taxpayer. It is necessary to value those who create jobs and offer opportunities. ”
He questioned the fact that the cigarette sector, for example, has almost 60% of the illegal market. “We are failing to collect taxes and generate jobs. Smuggling is extremely harmful to society. ”
According to Efraim Filho, society is tolerant of small deviations, but when investigating, it is possible to see that the market
illegal finances organized crime, generates evasion of foreign exchange, loss of revenue, in addition to harming the formal labor market and offering a product without registration or control by Anvisa. “It is a game of lose lose. Smuggling inhibits business and needs to be fought. ”
For him, during the period when the country's economy was growing, contraband was not adequately combated
and settled down. However, in times of crisis, increasing losses have been a cause for concern for Brazilian companies.

ROLE OF THE CONGRESS
According to the deputy, despite the challenges, there is fertile ground to advance the discussion on tax reform. For Efraim Filho, the role that Congress assumed in pension reform should be repeated in this agenda. He says the intention is that the productive sector, the Federal Revenue and the government give their opinions so that the proposal has legitimacy.

"We have chosen president and rapporteur, the special tax reform commission is installed, but public hearings must take place so that the most diverse sectors can be heard."
According to Efraim Filho, the great challenge of tax reform is not to change the law, but to change the country's culture. “Our role is to lead the renewal process and keep our hands out for those who want to collaborate.”
For the deputy, Congress is open to receiving suggestions and making a really new proposal possible. According to him, parliamentarians need to accept opinions on the matter and call the responsibility to advance reform. “In the Temer government, the discussion that took place in the special tax reform commission left the legacy of a more mature debate. The diagnosis, therefore, is already ready. Now the focus must be on the approval of the materials. ”