Receita de Consenso and Receita Soluciona aim to prevent and resolve disputes with taxpayers, offering alternatives to traditional litigation in tax and customs matters
In an important step to reduce tax disputes and enhance the cooperative environment between the tax authorities and taxpayers, the Federal Revenue launched the “Receita de Consenso” and “Receita Soluciona” programs. These programs were created to resolve or even avoid disputes involving tax and customs issues.
Receita de Consenso
In this program, companies with the highest compliance ratings (such as CONFIA or the OEA Program) can propose specific procedures to resolve disputes outside the conventional means of administrative or judicial litigation.
The body responsible for conducting these procedures has been named the Center for the Prevention and Resolution of Tax and Customs Disputes (Cecat), which may even hold meetings to seek consensus. The agreed solutions may involve the qualification of tax or customs facts already analyzed in ongoing tax procedures, or even the tax and customs consequences of legal transactions not yet inspected.
If consensus is reached on the matter, an Executive Declaratory Act with binding effect between the parties will be issued, with suspensive effects, outlining solutions included in the consensual agreement, such as the correction of the taxpayer's bookkeeping or declaration, extinction or installment of the debt, and termination of the ongoing tax procedure.
The program cannot involve cases with indications of tax evasion, fraud, collusion, crimes against the tax order, smuggling or customs crimes, or offenses punishable by forfeiture.
There are still concerns regarding important issues, such as the lack of guarantees to taxpayers that the information provided will not be used for potential tax assessments if consensus is not reached through this procedure.
Receita Soluciona
In this other program, companies will not individually negotiate with the Federal Revenue. The project is aimed at the participation of national confederations representing economic categories, trade unions, and national-level class entities.
These entities must submit requests with a brief description of the issues, indicate the relevant areas of the Federal Revenue, and propose solutions. The issues addressed can be broad but must not involve:
- (i) matters subject to a specific procedural process;
- (ii) constitutional challenges to a law or treaty;
- (iii) requests for information that can be obtained through the Access to Information Act;
- (iv) service and procedural progress related to specific taxpayers; and
- (v) complaints.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
