End of tax on blouses harms national production, says professor

The CNI (National Confederation of Industry) filed a lawsuit with the STF (Supreme Federal Court) against the federal government's provisional measure that zeroed the import tax on international purchases of up to US$50, a tax popularly known as the "blouse tax".

The entity argues that the decision violates constitutional principles and harms the Brazilian internal market.

The economist and professor at FGV (Fundação Getúlio Vargas), Marcos Cintra, assessed that the end of the tax could have negative consequences for national production. According to him, until 2023, imports made by individuals to other individuals, worth up to 50 dollars, were exempt from any taxation, with no ICMS or import tax.

History of taxation on small imports
As of 2024, the government started charging ICMS on these imports, a measure that Cintra classified as fair.

"It is not reasonable to allow the national producer to pay ICMS and the Chinese producer, which has a notoriously high competitive capacity, to enter the country without any tax", he stated.

Still in 2024, a 20% import tax rate was added, which, according to the economist, provided additional protection to national production. Now, with the reversal of this measure, the industrial sector is showing concern.

Cintra acknowledged that the end of the tax will harm national production, but considered that the previous protection was, "to a certain extent, excessive". For him, the ideal would be to reduce internal taxation on national producers, instead of burdening imported products.

The economist also highlighted that the instability of the rules - with taxation being created and then withdrawn in a short space of time - creates a business environment that is very harmful to the textile sector, especially for small companies.

Income tax: Revenue opens consultation on the 1st batch of restrictions | MORNING CALL

Perspectives on the actions of the STF
Regarding the action filed by the CNI in the STF, Marcos Cintra was skeptical about the relevance of the case for the Court. He argued that the import tax can be regulated by the Executive, including by decree, without the need for consideration by the Supreme Court.

"I think this matter should not have even been brought to this Brazilian Supreme Court", he declared.

Cintra also addressed the operational impact of monitoring these low-value imports. According to him, there are those who point out that part of Correios' recent losses are due precisely to the need to monitor this type of import.

The economist concluded that equal taxation through ICMS, applied to both national and imported products, would be enough to guarantee equality between sectors, without the need for an additional import tax rate.

PLDO 2027: Government predicts minimum wage at R$ 1,717

The texts generated by artificial intelligence on CNN Brasil are made based on video cuts from the newspapers in its programming. All information is investigated and checked by journalists. The final text is also reviewed by the CNN journalism team. Click here to find out more.

Source: CNN