President Jair Bolsonaro excluded the cost of the foremanship in national territory from the basis for calculating the Import Tax.

According to the Ministry of Economy, author of the rule, this exclusion will allow the reduction of import costs, “promoting a transversal trade opening of the economy, with positive impacts on the country's competitiveness and integration to global trade flows”. The measure, anticipated by Estadão at the end of May, was published this Wednesday, 8, in the Official Gazette (DOU).

The measure represents, in practice, a 10% reduction in the Import Tax, according to Estadão. For technicians in the foreign trade area of ​​the Ministry of Economy, this cost reduction would be the equivalent of the third round of trade opening. This is equivalent to a drop of around 1.5 percentage points in the import tariff, which averages 11.6% in Brazil.

Unlike its peers in Mercosur, Brazil charged all import taxes and fees including the foreman fee in their calculation. The government, therefore, will now remove this cost, which in Brazil is very high.

The foreman fee is charged on the activities carried out during the movement of goods from the ship until it passes through customs. This process takes place after verification by the IRS. The fee is made up of the activities carried out in the process: unloading the ship, receiving, checking, transporting, opening, handling, organizing, delivering and loading the means of transport used.

The decree published this Wednesday amends another, from February 2009, and, according to the government, “is in harmony with the international commitments assumed by Brazil with Mercosur partners and the World Trade Organization (WTO)”.

The Special Secretary for Productivity and Competitiveness of the Ministry of Economy, Daniella Marques, says in a note published on the ministry’s website that the decree, by reducing import costs in a generalized way, “promotes a better allocation of resources by the productive sector, corroborating for the conformation of a more efficient and competitive economy, and reaffirms the commitment to the reduction of the Brazil Cost”.

Daniella reinforces that the reduction foreseen in the act is horizontal for the entire economy, “potentially reducing costs for consumers and companies installed in Brazil”. The folder does not inform values ​​related to possible fiscal impacts of the measure.

Last month, the government announced a 10% reduction in Import Tax rates on products such as beans, meat, pasta, cookies, rice, construction materials and is valid until December 31, 2023. In November last year, the Ministries of Economy and Foreign Affairs had already announced a 10% reduction in the 87% tariffs on the trade tariff, keeping out goods such as automobiles and sugar-alcohol, which already have a different treatment by the bloc.

Source: www.terra.com.br