Brazil considers eliminating taxes on tourist shopping

20-04-23

The Brazilian government wants to implement tax-free shopping for tourists, although if the initiative is approved, each state would apply it according to its own needs, said government and private sector officials meeting in Rio de Janeiro on Monday (17).  

According to the study "International tourism: satisfaction and consumption in the state of Rio de Janeiro and tax free", carried out by the Fecomercio Institute of Research and Analysis, the system should be implemented in parallel with the tax reform being promoted by the government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to simplify Brazil's complex tax collection system. 

At the presentation of the study on the prospects for tax free travel in the state of Rio de Janeiro (based on Fecomercio's research), the forecast is that with lower taxes, average spending by tourists travelling to Rio would increase by 18%: from $542 to $665 every ten days, an additional $198.9 million per year in tourist spending. The event was attended by Rio de Janeiro municipal government officials, representatives of Embratur, the Ministry of Tourism and the tourism sector. 

According to a survey included in the study, carried out between 7 and 14 March 2023 in the departure area of Tom Jobim International Airport among 866 people, 55.9% of travellers said they bought items on their trips as souvenirs; 31.5% because they were cheaper than in their home countries and 26% said it was because of the quality of the products. 83.4% of those interviewed stated that they chose Rio de Janeiro for leisure holidays. 

Of the foreign tourists interviewed, 48.7% said they had already heard of tax free, and 50.7% said they had already used the refund programme in other countries. Among those who knew about tax free, 27.3% said that it is important for shopping and 46.2% admitted that they would spend more with the adoption of the measure in future trips to Brazil.