In Brazil, notebooks for personal use cannot be seized by the Receita Federal. The decision is from the Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region and is based on the fact that the item is part of the traveler's personal luggage, without having a commercial purpose. Find out more.
The Receita Federal cannot seize personal notebooks when travelers return from abroad, even without an invoice, because the item is part of the luggage and has no commercial purpose. This was understood by the 7th Panel of the Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region when declaring a seizure null and void and ordering the tax authorities to release the equipment to the owner.
The Union claimed that all merchandise imported without an import guide constitutes damage to the treasury, implying a penalty of forfeiture. The first degree court rejected the arguments.
According to the rapporteur of the case at TRF-1, federal judge called Clodomir Sebastião Reis, article 155 of Decree 6,759/2009 considers baggage to be new or used goods that a traveler can allocate for their own use, personal consumption or as a gift, as long as their quantity, nature or variety do not indicate that the import is made for commercial or industrial purposes.
“The seizure of a notebook, which fits as luggage, more precisely as an item of a clearly personal nature, does not imply the application of the penalty of forfeiture, nor the collection of taxes”, stated Reis.
The same concept applies to the presence in luggage of a used camera, wristwatch and cell phone that the traveler carries at the time of disembarkation. With information from the TRF-1 Press Office.
Process 0013997-35.2007.4.01.3300
Source: TRF-1
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