Federal Revenue publishes opinion on the concept of inputs for PIS and Cofins

The Cosit 5 Normative Opinion, published on 12/18/2018 and mandatory application by the federal fiscal authorities, allows fiscal professionals a vision - now more objective - of the process of planning and implementing the work of calculating PIS credits and Cofins. This is because, as of 12/18/18, for the Federal Revenue, everything that the production process depends on "intrinsically and fundamentally" must be considered "essential." And "relevant" to the productive process, everything that is necessary, but not indispensable. Therefore, PN CST 5/18 can be an effective working tool in managerial decision-making regarding process mapping that reviews, updates and broadens the base for taking contributions credits, eliminating future tax contingencies and reducing the past tax burden .

The repercussions of the new Income Tax Regulation: donations abroad and IRRF

The amounts remitted as a donation to a resident or domiciled abroad - individual or legal entity - are always outside the IRRF calculation, based on the Income Tax Regulation (RIR) of 1999. But, as the new November 22, 2018, extinguished Article 690 of the RIR of 1999 - which was the instrument that guaranteed non-withholding of IRRF in the case of donations - the tax authorities have already advanced their understanding for the IRRF collection. The Consultation Solution of the General Coordination of Taxation (Cosit) nº 309, of December 26, 2018 (DOU 12/31/2018), analyzed the request for a consultation solution from a religious organization that sent donations to another religious organization with headquarters in Spain. And as a result of the analysis, the RFB expressed the understanding that taxpayers who donate abroad must now pay IRRF on these amounts, at a rate of 15%, or 25%, in the event that the beneficiary is resident or domiciled in country or dependency with favored taxation.

The Friendly Procedure in the operational day-to-day of the companies

For those companies with operations in Brazil and abroad, there is sometimes a long way to go in equalizing the tax burden of your financial flow. However, alternatively, a work instrument that is now repaginated and with a broad application manual can be searched for more effective dissolution of divergent understandings that lead to a lack of tax equalization among different jurisdictions, with special reflection, for example, in the case of of transactions in which there is a tax credit receivable. In line with the OECD guidelines, Brazil follows its path of competitiveness in foreign operations by updating, increasing and expanding access to the amicable procedure mechanism (MAP) of international agreements and conventions to avoid double taxation of income (ADTs ). The Procedure and its respective application manual can be found in IN RFB nº 1.846 / 2018 in the annex of Cosit Portaria nº 12/2018. With the MAP, the taxpayer, through request, can equalize its local tax burden when it is, for different reasons, taking a different direction from that provided for in the ADT, and thus correcting positive (credits) and negative (tax) situations of IRPJ, CSLL, and / or taxes due, both in the national scenario and in the other contracting locality of the ADT.

The "rules 2019" of the STT regime of ICMS in interstate operations

For those who work in the planning, coordination and tax control, and always seek the best guarantee of the operations, remember that may have occurred a change - with immediate application now January / 2019 - the operating rules of ICMS ST on interstate operations. From another angle, this repeal of ICMS Agreement No. 52/17 by the new Agreement No. 142/18 is nothing more than the opportunity to raise the factual data of the company, to carry out the purposes of a review of tax parameters and procedures in clash with the new rules of ICMS ST. Among the managerial strategic actions that are relevant and have the focus control of the supervision of taxes, include: what goods and commodities are in fact subject to this ST regime, validity or not of adjusted MVA, inclusion or not of VAT on the basis of calculation of several operations and, finally, what operational measure to take in the event of a possible judicial suspension of the terms of this new agreement 142, as already happened with the agreement 52.