Companies cannot deduct Income Tax CSLL

In less than thirty minutes, the Federal Supreme Court (STF) ended the taxpayers' hopes and resolved a tax issue that had dragged on for years in the Judiciary. By majority vote, ministers decided that companies cannot deduct Social Contribution on Net Income (CSLL) from the calculation of Income Tax (IR). In meeting the Union's claim, the STF would have prevented a reduction of R $ 14.8 billion in annual revenue, according to the calculations of the Federal Revenue.

The decision was rendered after the defeat of the government in the judgment of another billionaire discussion on the inclusion of taxes in the calculation of other taxes. In March, ministers prevented the IRS from demanding PIS and Cofins on ICMS and the taxes themselves. The impact, according to the Union, would be R $ 34 billion.

As it was analyzed in general repercussion, the decision on the CSLL will serve as a guide for federal judges and regional courts in judging similar cases. According to the STF, there are at least 226 lawsuits on the subject with progress stopped in the courts.

When analyzing the discussion on the CSLL, the ministers also pointed out that the tax legislation allows only the deduction of operating expenses. In addition, they stressed that the deduction is expressly prohibited in legislation. "The law did not change the concept of income provided for in the Constitution," said Minister Teori Zavascki, who resumed the trial. When it was suspended in October 2008, only ministers Joaquim Barbosa and Marco Aurélio Mello had voted.