Originally published in the May 6 edition of World Tax Daily (Copyrights Tax Analysts – www.taxanalysts.com)
Brazil’s Federal Revenue Attorney General’s Office has approved guidelines for Project Large Debtors (PROGRAN), a new program to monitor large tax debtors, particularly those suspected of tax crimes. The guidelines are contained in Ordinance 320/2008, which was published in Brazil’s official gazette on May 2.
The program will target corporate taxpayers with tax debts in excess of BRL 10 million (approximately $6.08 million). Debts owed to the federal government that are not necessarily of a tax nature are included in that amount.
Ordinance 320 regulates the structure and functioning of PROGRAN and empowers revenue attorneys to start special monitoring programs against targeted taxpayers. It also allows revenue attorneys to implement actions not only against the relevant corporate taxpayer, but also against its economic group, if those actions may assist in the collection of the tax debts. The ordinance contains a broad definition of the term “economic group” and provides that the assets of other companies within such a group (albeit not formal debtors) are subject to pledges in order to secure the debts.
Additional regulations are expected in the near future.
David Roberto R. Soares da Silva