The Senate approved this Tuesday (2) the bill (PL) 4,635/2024, which extends, until 2030, tax benefits relating to inspection, installation and operating fees on telecommunications stations. The text now goes to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva for sanction.
According to the proposal, the tax benefits will be applied to payments of the Installation Inspection Fee (TFI), the Contribution for the Promotion of Public Broadcasting (CFRP) and the Contribution for the Development of the National Cinematographic Industry (Condecine) and must apply to telecommunications stations that are part of machine-to-machine communication systems used in internet of things applications and small satellite stations.
The project also says that the reduction in the values of TFI, CFRP and Condecine will be valid until December 31, 2030. It will be up to the Ministry of Communications to monitor and evaluate the tax benefits that come into force on January 1, 2026.
The benefit was established in 2020 as a way to leverage investments in the internet of things.
A study carried out by the Research Institute for Digital Economy (IPE Digital) shows that the tax benefit was responsible for 43.75% of the demand for internet of things equipment in Brazil between 2021 and 2025.
According to the same study, growth projections for this market indicate that, maintaining tax benefits, the total number of these devices could reach 60.5 million in 2030, subject to current macroeconomic variables.
“If the benefit is discontinued, this number would be between 42.04 and 44.72 million devices. Such projections highlight the importance of maintaining the measure to ensure the growth of the adoption of internet of things systems in Brazil”, said the project’s rapporteur, senator Efrahin Filho (União-PB).
The rapporteur said that, as it is a renewal of tax benefits, the measure does not constitute an effective waiver or loss of revenue in relation to the fiscal scenario already incorporated into the current budget projections.
Filho also pointed out that the extension of TFI and TFF exemptions seeks to stimulate the expansion of internet of things (IoT) applications and small satellite networks, strategic sectors for the development of the country’s digital economy.
In the case of CFRP and Condecine, intended for the development of the public broadcasting system and the audiovisual industry, Filho highlighted that the extension of tax benefits relating to inspection fees and intervention contributions in the economic domain does not compromise the regulatory purpose of the respective contributions, “nor does it distort the exercise of police power or state intervention in regulated sectors”.
According to the rapporteur, in the period from 2021 to 2025, the increase in the number of devices resulting from the benefits resulted in an additional revenue of R$2.58 billion, considering all taxes levied on the internet of things value chain.
For the period from 2026 to 2030, the study estimates an additional net revenue of around R$1.35 billion resulting from the addition of devices if the benefits are maintained.
