As a measure to help combat Covid-19, the Executive Management Committee (Gecex) of the Foreign Trade Chamber (Camex) of the Ministry of Economy has temporarily zeroed the import tax on 65 more products.
All these products are part of a list of medical equipment that was drawn up by SEAE (Competition and Competitiveness Advocacy Secretariat) of the Ministry of Economy's Special Secretariat for Productivity, Employment and Competitiveness.
Which products have zero Import Tax?
The exemption from import tax covers medicines in the form of raw materials, semi-manufactured products, bulk or finished products. Among the products on the list are:
- Medicines for pain relief, sedation, intubation and artificial respiration, including anesthetics, tranquilizers, analgesics and antibiotics.
- Monitors for clinical and Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds
- Equipment for respiratory gas analysis
- Adult ICU monitoring center
- Bodies and tankers for transporting dangerous cargo such as oxygen.
The basis for including the drugs on the list of products with zero import tax was a resolution issued by Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency) on March 19, which sets requirements for the import of new medical devices and drugs identified as priorities for the fight against Covid-19.
When did the exemption come into force?
The temporary exemption for products to combat Covid-19 was approved by Camex at an extraordinary meeting, at the request of the Ministry of Health. As a result, the measure came into force one day after its publication in the Federal Official Gazette: on March 30.
Other products with zero tariff
With the new list of products exempt from Import Tax, the Covid-19 List now includes 628 products.
Since 2020, Gecex has issued 19 resolutions on tariff reductions under the Covid-19 List. All these measures take into account the Brazilian supply of products related to the health sector during the phases of the health crisis.
In addition, it is important to note that the government monitors and makes adjustments to the list of products with zero import tax - taking into account the assessment of the epidemiological circumstances in the country.
The full list of products with temporary exemption from Import Tax can be found at accessed on the Camex website. It was drawn up with the aim of increasing the supply of medicines to combat the pandemic, as well as the machinery and supplies used to manufacture these products domestically - increasing their availability and reducing costs for the Brazilian health system and citizens.
In its entirety, the Covid List contains medicines and their active ingredients, diagnostic equipment and tests for detecting the virus, materials and equipment for hospital use, vaccines against Covid-19, among others.
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