Brazil’s National Trade Facilitation Committee (CONFAC) is relaunched – The collegiate member of the Brazilian Foreign Trade Council (CAMEX) supports trade facilitation initiatives and coordinates government bodies engaged in foreign trade



Decree n. 10.373/2020 recreated CONFAC, as per Decree n. 8.807/2016 and adapted it to the new structure of CAMEX. CONFAC focus on the promotion and implementation of measures aimed at simplifying and reducing regulatory burden related to trade procedures, in line with the provisions contained in WTO’s Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA).

CONFAC’s competences include:

  • facilitating the coordination and harmonization of trade-related operational activities performed by bodies and entities of the federal public administration;
  • promoting initiatives for trade facilitation in Brazil in straight cooperation with public and private bodies to reduce bureaucracy and train foreign trade operators in themes related to trade facilitation; and
  • formulating proposals and recommendations for the improvement of regulatory acts and implementing TFA’s commitments and measures to simplify and harmonize procedures and requirements related to imports and exports; the Brazilian adherence to international standards, recommendations, and conventions on foreign trade facilitation.

Within this new structure, Apex-Brasil is a permanent guest at the CONFAC’s Cooperation Subcommittee.  This subcommittee objective is to identify points of inefficiency in bureaucratic processes, procedures, formalities, requirement or controls regarding foreign trade of goods and services and to propose solutions to these points, through cooperation and collaboration among the parties involved.