Senate approves stimulus to coastal shipping

On November 25th, the Senate approved BR do Mar, the program to encourage coastal shipping. The report written by senator Nelsinho Trad (PSD-MS) was voted on after intense negotiations with the Ministries of Infrastructure and the Economy. Since there were changes in the content of the proposal, the text returns to the Chamber.

One of the main innovations is the extension of the Reporto, a special tax regime that relieves the tax burden on investments in port terminals and railways. This regime was created in 2004 and had been successively renewed, but it lost validity at the end of last year after the government blocked the benefit. Now, Trad has proposed to extend the Reporto regime from January 2022 to December 2023.

The benefit guarantees exemption from IPI and PIS/COFINS taxes for the purchase of machinery and equipment, such as locomotives and containers and suspends the collection of Import Tax on items without similar domestic products. The suspension also covers the ICMS tax charged by the States.

Despite pressure from railway concessionaires and port terminal owners, the government signaled to the rapporteur a tendency to veto the new deadline for the Report. This is because the Minister of Infrastructure Tarcísio Freitas is in favor of the extension, but the issue is facing resistance from the economic team.

Source: Valor Econômico

To read the full original article, visit the link:

https://valor.globo.com/politica/noticia/2021/11/26/senado-aprova-estimulo-a-navegacao-de-cabotagem.ghtml

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