The new General Tourism Law, sanctioned this Wednesday (18) by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, now allows airlines to access, through subsidized loans, resources from the National Civil Aviation Fund (FNAC), which total approximately R$8 billion. The resources will be used to expand and renew the fleet and to pay for jet fuel in the states of the Legal Amazon. 
Discussed for about two decades, the changes to the tourism law were approved at the end of last month in the National Congress, with new rules and incentives for the expansion of the sector in Brazil, which accounts for about 7% of the country’s economy, measured by the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
“We need to create conditions so that people from the lower classes have the right to travel. And it is up to the State to guarantee transportation conditions, roads, and competitive prices,” said President Lula, during the sanctioning ceremony, at the Planalto Palace.
According to him, the approval of the law is an opportunity to make tourism a powerful industry. “Not only from the perspective of tourism from abroad, which is very important because it brings in dollars, but also domestic tourism. We have a population of 213 million people,” he added.
From January to July 2024, according to data from the Ministry of Tourism, the Brazilian Agency for International Tourism Promotion (Embratur) and the Federal Police, more than 4 million foreigners visited Brazil. The number represents 10.4% more than in the same period in 2023 and 1.9% above 2019. In the first seven months of 2024, according to the Central Bank, spending by international visitors totaled R$23.7 billion, almost R$1 billion more than in the same period in 2023.
Regarding tourism by Brazilians, in 2023, 21.1 million trips were recorded, 71.5% more than that observed in 2021. In total, 20.4 million, equivalent to 97% of trips by Brazilians, were made to domestic destinations. This flow resulted in a movement of the national economy in the order of R$ 20 billion, an increase of 78.6% compared to 2021, when domestic travel moved R$ 11.3 billion.
“National tourism today will achieve a major milestone that will help convert Brazil’s full potential into economic growth, employment, income and inclusion. The new LGT makes tourism a tool to boost the economy and improve the quality of life of Brazilians,” celebrated the Minister of Tourism, Celso Sabino.
For the Brazilian Association of Airlines (Abear), access to new financing should expand the country’s connectivity.
“It allows companies to expand their fleet and, consequently, be able to transport more passengers and connect more destinations in Brazil,” said the president of the entity, Jurema Monteiro, who attributed the approval of the law to the dialogue between the government, tourism entrepreneurs and the National Congress.
This is the second time that FNAC resources have been made available to guarantee loans to the airline industry. In 2020, a similar measure, but limited to R$3 billion, sought to save the sector during the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in a long period of social isolation and airport closures.
Brasília (DF), 09/18/2024 – President of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, during the sanctioning ceremony of Bill No. 1829/2019, which updates and modernizes the General Tourism Law, at the Planalto Palace. Photo: Ricardo Stuckert/PR
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One of the new features of the new law, according to Minister Celso Sabino, is the possibility for individual microentrepreneurs (MEIs) to register in the Tourism Service Provider Registry (Cadastrur), which will also be open to rural producers and family farmers who provide tourism services, “guaranteeing extra income”.
Cadastur is a system from the Ministry of Tourism that registers and legalizes professionals and companies in the sector, and provides access to various benefits, such as qualification programs, bank financing, support at events and fairs, in addition to being a source of information for consumers themselves.
Veto
Following legal advice, President Lula decided to veto one of the points of the new law that was eagerly awaited by the travel agency sector, which deals with joint and several liability. The vetoed text exempted agencies from liability for services provided in cases of bankruptcy of the supplier or when the failure to provide the service was the sole fault of the supplier.
“What remains for further analysis by the government is the issue of the responsibilities of travel agencies and hotels in relation to this consumer relationship. However, the government is committed to soon presenting a text, through a Provisional Measure or other regulatory instrument, that will better regulate and guarantee both consumers and tourism entrepreneurs”, explained Celso Sabino.
