After negative repercussions in Congress and on social media, the federal government decided to revoke part of the increase in import taxes on electronic products and capital goods announced at the beginning of the month.
The measure was approved this Friday (27) by the Executive Management Committee of the Chamber of Foreign Commerce (Gecex), linked to the Chamber of Foreign Commerce (Camex).
The decision reinstates the previous rates for 15 IT products, including smartphones and notebooks. Camex also zeroed the import tariff for 105 items classified as capital goods (machinery and equipment used in production) and products in the areas of IT and telecommunications.
In both cases, the reduction in import tariffs occurs through the ex-tariff mechanism, which reduces rates for items without similar or equivalent production in Brazil.
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Smartphones
With the reduction, the import tax on smartphones returns to 16%. The previous proposal provided for an increase to 20%. In some cases, the increase could reach up to 7.2 percentage points.
Tariffs were also reinstated on products such as notebooks, which return to the original rate of 16%; cabinets with power supply (10.8%); motherboards (10.8%); mice and track-balls (10.8%); graphics tablets (10.8%) and SSD memory units (10.8%).
According to the government, the changes will come into effect after the publication of the resolution in the Official Gazette of the Union. The complete list of benefited products is available on the Camex website.
Political wear and tear
The initial increase reached around 1,200 items and generated a reaction from opposition parliamentarians and business sectors, who warned of a possible impact on consumer prices.
The Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad, had been defending the measure under the argument of protecting national industry and correcting distortions in foreign trade. He clarified that more than 90% of the affected products are produced in Brazil, and the increase only affected imported products.
In the case of electronics produced or assembled in the country with imported inputs, the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services (Mdic) clarified that the components would benefit from the drawback mechanism, which reduces the Import Tax on inputs used to manufacture products intended for export.
The government estimated to raise up to R$14 billion in 2026 by raising tax rates. The Independent Fiscal Institution (IFI), an advisory body to the Senate, predicted higher revenue of R$20 billion this year.
Pressure
Faced with political pressure, the Executive opted for a partial retreat. According to the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services (Mdic), the decision accepted requests filed by companies until February 25th and was already foreseen in the ex-tariff rules, a mechanism that allows tax to be zeroed for products without similar national products. The ministry reported that the higher rates announced at the beginning of the month did not come into effect.
The 105 products that had the tariff reduced to zero will remain exempt for 120 days. New revisions may occur at the next Gecex meetings, which deliberate monthly on tariff realignments.
