The ex-tariff regime will be renewed. The statement was made by the Secretary of Foreign Trade, Lucas Ferraz, to Poder360 last Thursday (18).
“The Ministry of Economy will renew the former 'business as usual' tariff, but there must first be orchestration with Mercosur,” he stated.
According to him, resistance is not expected from the other three signatories of the Mercosul – Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay – unless they request compensation.
The subject will be the topic of the virtual meeting of the Common Market Group, on Wednesday (24). According to Ferraz, the agreement is expected to be concluded by the bloc's summit meeting, which will be held on December 16 in Brasília (DF).
“The information reinforces Brazil's intentions in relation to tariff reductions and the extension of exception regimes, which are of interest to all member countries of the bloc”, comments Wladimir Janousek, specialist in solar panel technologies and production processes.
“It has been a while since the government commented on the issue. Finally, there is a demonstration, but nothing has been published. We will have the December meeting and only then will something be defined. Now, the extension is expected to happen soon”, highlights Ricardo Valle, CEO of Port Trade Energy, a Brazilian multinational specialized in logistics, financing, trade and dispatch with branches in the United States, United Kingdom, China and Argentina.
“I believe that the government should extend the ex-tariff considering the number of projects that will be impacted and the increase in demand for next year. For these reasons, the presence of ex-tariffs is essential for many projects to stay afloat and remain viable”, he adds.
What is Ex-tariff?
According to Brazilian legislation, the Ordinance of the Ministry of Economy No. 309, of June 24, 2019, regulated by Ordinance of the Ministry of Economy No. 324, of August 29, 2019, is the current standard that provides for the temporary reduction of the import tax rate on BK (capital goods) and BIT (computer technology and telecommunications), when there is no equivalent national production.
According to the Ministry of Economy, the Ex-tariff regime aims to promote and attract investments in the country, as it exempts contributions directed to productive enterprises. Furthermore, it aims to enable increased investment in capital and IT and telecommunications goods that do not have equivalent production in Brazil.
Also according to the Federal Government, the measure allows for an increase in innovation in the country, with the incorporation of new technologies that do not exist in Brazil. This has positive impacts on the productivity and competitiveness of the productive sector, in addition to contributing to the generation of jobs and income in different segments of the national economy.
“It is a legitimate stimulus policy that governments in all countries have to encourage segments, production chains, or certain sectors of the economy”, explains Janousek.
The expert also clarifies that the Ministry of Economy is responsible for Ex-tariffs. “Legislation related to the Ex-tariff, analyses, approvals, deliberations and revocations, is currently under the responsibility of the Ministry of Economy. And the application of the benefit is the responsibility of the Federal Revenue, which is also an entity of the Ministry of Economy”, he explains.
Who can request the Ex-tariff? And how should it be done?
According to the Ministry of Economy, any company or trade association, with an established CNPJ, can request an Ex-tariff. To do this, detailed technical information on the good to be imported is required, in addition it is necessary to inform the import forecast and what the gain will be for the country. Ex-tariff requests must be completed exclusively through external access to the SEI (Electronic Information System) of the Ministry of Economy.
Who analyses?
The technical analysis of Ex-tariff requests is the responsibility of the Secretariat for Development of Industry, Commerce, Services and Innovation, of the Ministry of Economy, which is responsible for:
- instruct and maintain organized processes;
- be the communication link with the plaintiff and challengers;
- provide public consultations and analyze the manifestations of national production of these public consultations;
- prepare opinions relating to the claims to be submitted to the Special Secretariat for Foreign Trade and International Affairs.
The decision on Ex-tariff grant requests is the responsibility of Gecex (Executive Management Committee), of Camex. Rejection occurs when the existence of national production of equivalent goods is proven or due to the parameters contained in section IV of art. 14 da Ordinance of the Cabinet of the Ministry of Economy No. 309, of June 24, 2019.
