The exemption from taxation for international purchases of up to US$50 (around R$255 at current prices) should be abolished by the Chamber of Deputies, as the government missed the deadline to present an alternative to the benefit. The federal government should have presented a new proposal to deputy Átila Lira (PP-PI) on the subject yesterday (07).
Currently, the Compliant Shipment program exempts Import Tax for purchases up to US$50.
The benefit, in theory, favors consumers who have lower incomes. However, some politicians argue that consumers with high purchasing power also take advantage of the exemption, which ends up disrupting the country’s economy.
Átila Lira (PP-PI) is rapporteur for the Mover Program, and had already proposed the end of the US$50 exemption for international purchases. (Image: Chamber of Deputies/Reproduction)Source: Chamber of Deputies/Reproduction
Majority of parties must approve the end of tax exemption
Also last Tuesday, during a party meeting with the president of the Chamber, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), the majority of parliamentarians defended the end of the exemption for international purchases of up to US$50. With this, companies would start paying Import Tax for all products arriving in Brazil and pass the value on to consumers.
Partido Novo and PSOL spoke out against the end of the benefit. PT parliamentarians were divided and the party even proposed a vote on a project by deputy Paulo Guedes (PT-MG) on the topic, but there was not enough support for this.
To discuss the matter, the Chamber of Deputies yesterday approved an urgent request for bill 914 of 2024which establishes the Green Mobility and Innovation Program (Mover) and determines the resumption of the collection of Import Tax for amounts below US$50. The vote on this bill that could end the exemption should be done this Wednesday (08).
International purchases at stores like Shein, AliExpress and Shopee may increase in price. (Image: Bet_Noire/Getty Images)
If the end of the exemption is approved, all international purchases may be taxed at up to 92%, as is currently the case with purchases over US$50. The bill takes into account the 17% ICMS tax (which in reality may end up reaching more than 20% in the final bill) and the 60% VAT Import. The complete account is explained in the article below.
