The federal government published, in an extra edition of the DOU (Official Gazette of the Union) this Tuesday (12), the MP (Provisional Measure) that eliminates the import tax on international purchases up to US$50.
The measure was announced early in the evening by President Lula (PT), and will come into effect from this Wednesday (13). The federal tax rate on these purchases was 20%.
Therefore, international purchases will now only be subject to ICMS (Tax on the Circulation of Goods and Services), which is a state tax. Currently, the ICMS rate on these purchases is 20%.
Despite being a regulatory tax, the collection of the tax generated revenue for the federal government in the years it was in force. In 2024, considering the period from August to December, the government raised R$2.88 billion with the measure.
In 2025, the amount collected, according to information from the Federal Revenue, was R$5 billion. And in the first four months of 2026, from January to April, revenue reached R$1.78 billion.
National production sector reacts
Some entities representing the Brazilian productive sector have already reacted to the measure. Fiemg (Federation of Industries of the State of Minas Gerais) released a statement criticizing the end of the “blouse tax”, and warned of a risk to national industry and jobs.
The Federation stated that the measure “reincreases the competitive asymmetry between the national industry and international e-commerce platforms”.
The CNI (National Confederation of Industry) states that the measure will mainly impact micro and small businesses and will result in the loss of jobs.
“Allowing the entry of imports of up to 50 dollars without taxation is the same as financing the industry of countries like China, the main exporter of low-value products to Brazil, especially in the textile sector. The loss is direct to those who manufacture and sell in Brazilian territory”, stated the president of the CNI, Ricardo Alban.
