{"id":9972,"date":"2024-11-04T14:39:39","date_gmt":"2024-11-04T17:39:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eseg.edu.br\/blog\/simples-nacional-aliquota-receita-federal\/"},"modified":"2026-05-12T00:23:24","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T03:23:24","slug":"simple-national-tax-rate-federal-revenue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eseg.edu.br\/en\/blog\/simples-nacional-aliquota-receita-federal\/","title":{"rendered":"Simples Nacional: What made the Federal Revenue Service want to review the tax rates?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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What prompted the Federal Revenue Service to want to review the tax rates of the Simples Nacional (Simplified National Tax System)?
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O President Lula (PT),<\/strong> alongside the minister of Ministry and Planning<\/strong>, Simone Tebet<\/strong>, They intend to review the special tax regime. Simples Nacional<\/strong>, This is aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises. The idea is that tax reform would help balance public accounts, generate more revenue for the government, and reduce tax expenditures in Brazil.<\/span><\/p>\n

O <\/span>Simples Nacional<\/b> It is the tax levied on micro and small businesses operating in the MEI <\/strong>(Individual micro-entrepreneur). It is a reduced tax regime in effect since 2006 and aims to reduce bureaucracy and, as the name suggests, create a simple and unified way to collect taxes nationally. Today, the Simples Nacional<\/strong> This applies to companies with a gross annual ceiling of R$4.8 million.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

However, there are some issues raised by the government and experts. The first is that the regime creates a hole in government accounts, which fail to collect up to R$125 billion annually. Another point is that experts believe that... Simples Nacional<\/strong> This could discourage the growth of companies that would otherwise avoid leaving the small business category.<\/span><\/p>\n

Then comes the proposal to revise the Simples Nacional<\/strong>. Some of the ideas include reviewing the revenue ceiling, understanding how people work within their own companies, and seeing for whom it actually makes sense to follow the tax regime \u2013 and who could help boost Brazil's tax revenue.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: What is an entrepreneurial attitude?<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

How to avoid paying Simples Nacional taxes? People find "workarounds".\u201c<\/b><\/h3>\n

O Simples Nacional<\/strong> This is for small and micro-enterprises that invoice up to R$ 4.8 million annually (an average of up to R$ 400,000 per month). The higher the revenue, the higher the tax rate charged \u2013 never exceeding the rate of 33%. However, to reduce this rate, many people prefer to "dilute" their revenue across several different CNPJs (Brazilian tax identification numbers). They then open companies in the names of relatives to perform the same function.<\/span><\/p>\n

The practice may even work, but it is considered tax evasion and is criminal. If the person is audited and it is found that they have several CNPJs (Brazilian tax identification numbers) that perform the same function (the tax authorities call this a "de facto economic group"), they may lose the right to own companies in the country. Simples Nacional<\/strong>, ...paying fortunes for tax evasion and even going to jail.<\/span><\/p>\n

To assess whether companies are actually part of the same economic group, the tax authorities will evaluate whether they carry out the same activity, are from the same family nucleus, have the same trade name and corporate purposes, and whether they share the same lawyer, technical support, accounting, clients, etc.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why will there be a review of the Simples Nacional (Brazilian simplified tax system)?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The main objective of the review of Simples Nacional<\/strong> It's not about eliminating the tax or zeroing out the tax incentives for small businesses, but about improving them, as the minister said. Tebet<\/strong> \u00e0 Folha de S\u00e3o Paulo<\/em>"There are tax expenditures that don't need to be eliminated, but improved. The Simples Nacional (Simplified National Tax System), in relation to the amounts involved. What is considered Simples Nacional in Brazil? Who is a micro-entrepreneur? That's a secondary analysis in the redesign. We're not going to eliminate it, but improve it and streamline it a bit more, because that also generates revenue."\u201c<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more: College for entrepreneurs: what is the best course for those who want to become entrepreneurs?<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

The minister estimated that the Simples Nacional<\/strong> Today, this corresponds to approximately 27% or 28% of the tax incentives (or tax expenditures) of the Revenue Service. According to official tax authority data... Statement of Tax Expenditures attached to the Budget<\/em>, show a slightly smaller reality: 23,94% in 2024 and 22,25% in 2025.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The idea of Tebet<\/strong> It's not about eliminating that number entirely, but she believes the benefit has been "excessively expanded" and now it will be necessary to understand what still makes sense and what needs to be changed. Among the minister's proposals are:<\/span><\/p>\n