The tax reform was enacted in December 2023, as Constitutional Amendment 132, and now the first regulation is under discussion in the Senate (PLP 68/2024). According to a study by the Ministry of Finance, with the changes promoted by the Chamber of Deputies, the reference rate of Value Added Tax (VAT) could reach 27.9%. Several sectors, however, will have discounts of 60% in the reference rate, full exemption or use of credits. The public hearing in the Federal Senate was chaired by Senator Izalci, who coordinates the CAE working group that analyzes the impacts of the first regulatory project of the tax reform.
“The reform will result in a price increase for the end consumer. Why? Because, in fact, it will increase the tax burden for the sector. The impact on our sector today is around 15% to 18%, [it would be the] increase in costs simply to pay the taxes from the reform. So, if we currently have broadband access that reaches R$100, it will reach R$118, R$120 just to offset the tax issue,” estimated the president of the Board of the Brazilian Internet Association (Abranet), Eduardo Parajo.
Credit utilization
The current tax reform focuses on the use of credits throughout the production chain. The goal is to avoid the cascading of taxes, as is the case today. However, for sectors such as IT, which have a large part of their costs in labor, the benefit is limited, according to the participants in the hearing.
Marcelo Almeida
Marcelo Almeida, Director of Government Relations at ABES, explained that the IT sector currently has a reality of very high accumulations of credits, especially in software production chains, which makes it very difficult to obtain returns on the optimization and use of these credits. “It is important that the law establishes deadlines, with the changes we are suggesting in article 28, in addition to ensuring the principle of tax neutrality so that all elements that participate in the production chain and that generate credit in the production chain receive their credits in due time.”
“Commerce can take credit for everything it sells, industry can take credit for everything it transforms, construction can take credit for all the material it uses, but the IT sector cannot take credit for labor, which is our main input,” pointed out Sérgio Sgobbi, from the Association of Information and Communication Technology Companies (Brasscom).
Representatives of software, information technology and internet service companies said they were in favor of the reform, but with the approval of amendments such as number 878, presented by Senator Izalci Lucas (PL-DF), which recognizes the granting of presumed credit on the cost of the hired worker.
Sources: Senate Agency and ABES
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