81 The complexity of tax law in the road implements and transport sector is well established. After all, there are several challenges when we talk about VAT and the constant need to review the concept of an input for state social support taxes. In such a scenario, the best path for companies is compliance, which is no more than practices to ensure tax rules that govern a business are followed to protect it against risks and fines. This mitigates other issues in the sector, as stated by Tax Group partner, José Carlos Antunes: “The difficulties involving the provision of services can be reduced by rebooking the company’s tax obligations, registering items and reconstructing the entire tax matrix of the business, generating an ecosystem of sustainability, profitability, and longevity for the enterprise.” In addition, there is monitoring of the changes that occur in Brazil’s tax legislation and control of tax records, making it much easier to avoid the loss of resources resulting from excess tax payments. There are more than 70 taxes in Brazil – including fees and contributions – and an average of 54 changes in tax rules each business day, a tax burden that is equivalent to more than 35% of GDP, with red tape requiring 1,501 hours a year of work. This is the reality our sector has to face. Or rather, this is a small part of it, because the challenges in our country go far beyond these examples. In not keeping abreast of all the changes in Brazil’s tax legislation, businesspeople can make mistakes. The most common cases involve excess or insufficient payments of tax, which may result in extra costs, in the former case, or in investigations by the Treasury, in the latter. And in an attempt to protect themselves against such problems, businesspeople have been looking for ways to strengthen the tax structures of their businesses. In this context, compliance has become increasingly relevant and necessary. How can compliance be implemented in companies? Applying tax compliance measures in a company requires a lot of effort, as it never ends and must always be improved. The implementation of this practice is generally divided into four stages: 1. Commitment: First, it is necessary to recognize the need to implement tax compliance measures. And this phase is just about that. It consists of the decision by a businessperson to change the way their business deals with tax issues, and involves aligning the company’s expectations with what the practice of compliance can provide. 2. Implementation: at this stage, the project begins for real. Business issues are identified, solutions are looked at, budgets are made for tools that can help in the process, planning guides the application of changes, teams are formed to apply them, and short and long-term goals are established. 3. Monitoring: when compliance with new practices is supervised in order to ensure that the project will have the desired effects. 4. Continuous Improvement: this stage is where we strive to improve the compliance measures implemented. After meticulous analysis, the improvements are identified and the areas that still need to be developed to ensure the company’s compliance with tax laws are flagged. Tax compliance: the best way. Failure to keep up with changes in tax legislation often results in fines and losses By Luis Wulff, CEO and founding partner of Tax Group
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