Federal deputy Antonio Carlos Rodrigues (PL-SP), rapporteur of the Complementary Bill (PLP) 125/2022, known as Debtor Contumaz PL, maintained the text approved by the Senate in September and the project could be voted on in the plenary session of the Chamber this week.
The bill creates rules and penalties for companies that regularly and deliberately evade taxes and gained momentum in Congress after federal police raids against fuel companies.
At the end of November, the Refit group was the target of a mega operation against a tax evasion and money laundering scheme. And the company, led by businessman Ricardo Magro, is Brazil’s largest persistent debtor, according to the Federal Treasury, with a total of more than 26 billion reais in withheld taxes.
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For Antonio Carlos, the project approved by the Senate proposes a “comprehensive and fundamental approach to improve the national tax system, with direct implications for the competitiveness and economic development of the country”.
In October, the Chamber of Deputies had already approved the urgency of the project, which implies that it could be voted on at any time, but the President of the Chamber, Hugo Motta (Republicanos-PB), only appointed a rapporteur almost two months later, after the operation against Refit.
The project establishes mechanisms against shell companies, called “oranges”, such as the requirement of a minimum share capital and proof of the legality of resources to open a CNPJ in the fuel sector. Fintechs will also be subject to stricter coercive measures.
Indeed, in September, the federal police launched Operation Hidden Carbon, which targeted a money laundering scheme involving companies linked to the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) operated by fintechs. The searches and seizures were carried out in Faria Lima, the center of the Brazilian financial market.
Priority for the government
The economic team of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) is one of the biggest supporters of the proposal. Finance Minister Fernando Haddad even discussed the project during its treatment in the Senate and defends a seat against companies that repeatedly circumvent the taxman.
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