The Federal Government revised the provisions of the Brazilian Informatics Law (Law n. 8.248/1991), seeking to improve legal security, and restructured the PADIS Program for the Semiconductor Industry. They provide financial credit incentives for qualified companies that invest in Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) activities.
Brazilian Informatics Law:
The Federal Government, through Decree n. 10.602/2021, updated the Brazilian Informatics Law (Law n. 8.248/1991, rectified by Law n. 13.969/2019) on the provisions related to Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) financial credit incentives. That law (articles 4 and 11) provides that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) companies that invest at least 5% of their gross annual revenue in RDI activities benefit from financial credit incentives, which are detailed within the law.
The new decree altered Decree n. 10.356/2020, restructuring the legal definitions of RDI and RDI investments, as well as providing more possibilities for the period of assessment and for companies located in different regions. Seeking to improve legal security, those modifications are also intended to clarify which private sector activities are covered by the financial credit incentives, in accordance with the Brazilian Informatics Law.
Depending on their regime and periods of assessment, participating companies submit declarations of investments to the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI), which is responsible for assessing the RDI investment requirements. MCTI also further regulates on the subject.
PADIS Program for the Semiconductor Sector:
The Federal Government enacted Decree n. 10.615/2021, revoking Decree n. 6.233/2007 and establishing new criteria for the Support Program for the Technological Development of the Semiconductor Industry (PADIS), provided by Law n. 11.484/2007, in alignment with its rectification by Law n. 13.969/2019.
The new decree introduced financial credit incentives for participating companies and revised the provisions of the program, complying with the provisions of the law. The new disposition of the PADIS program addresses private sector demands for improved regulatory provisions.
Companies from the semiconductor industry that invest at least 5% of the calculation basis in RDI activities, and whose projects are jointly approved by the Ministry of Economy and MCTI, are enabled in the PADIS Program. Participating companies also submit investment declarations to MCTI. The decree defines semiconductor industrial activities in article 11, RDI investment requirements in articles 14 and 15, RDI activities in article 16, and company obligations in article 21. The financial credit incentives are defined in article 5.
Further details are available in the decree.
