Brazil has no free trade agreement with China, and its import taxes stack up: the import duty (II), the excise tax on industrialised products (IPI), the PIS and Cofins contributions on imports, the state ICMS — which is calculated on a base that includes itself — and, by sea, an 8% surcharge on the freight. For the products in this guide, duty ranges from 0% for industrial robots to 25% for lithium-ion batteries and solar modules. Devices with Wi‑Fi or Bluetooth need ANATEL approval before they are imported for sale, and solar equipment needs INMETRO registration. From January 2027 the tax reform replaces PIS and Cofins with the new CBS. Here is what a company importing equipment from China should check.
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Import duty (II): from 0% to 25% depending on the product
Brazil applies the Mercosur Common External Tariff (TEC) with its own national exceptions, so the duty depends on the product's NCM code and can change by resolution of the Executive Management Committee of the Foreign Trade Chamber (Gecex). Temporary exception lists prevail over the general tariff while they are in force; when they expire, the general Brazilian rate applies again. In the consolidated tariff published by the Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade and Services (MDIC) on 29 October 2026: computers with the processor and input and output units in one housing, such as all-in-one PCs (8471.41), pay 16%; small computers such as mini-PCs with a value of up to US$12,500 FOB per unit (8471.50.10, except servers) 14.4%; monitors designed for computers (8528.52) 10.8%; other monitors and displays (8528.59) 20%; UPS units (8504.40.40) 16%; other static converters (8504.40.90) 20%; lithium-ion batteries (8507.60) 25% from 19 May 2026 to 18 May 2027 — then 18% unless the exception is extended — except certain 48 V lithium-ion batteries, not LFP, for telecom base stations and solar systems of up to 4,800 W, which pay 18%; industrial robots (8479.50) 0%; solar modules (8541.43) 25%.
The code of a kiosk depends on its function: the Federal Revenue Service has classified self-service terminals for electronic payment under 8470.50.10, which pays 20%. Check the code with your customs broker before you order. Duty is calculated on the customs value, which includes freight and insurance to the port or place of entry. For capital goods and IT goods with no equivalent made in Brazil, an importer can apply to MDIC for an "ex-tarifário", a reduced duty for that specific product.
IPI: from 0% to 15% today
Imports also pay the federal excise tax IPI, at the rate in the IPI table (TIPI). In the version updated in February 2026: computers in one housing (8471.41) pay 9.75%, mini-PCs (8471.50) 15%, monitors 13% to 15%, UPS units and other static converters 9.75%, lithium-ion batteries 11.25% and industrial robots 0%. Solar modules pay 0% under exception Ex 01 of code 8541.43.00, which the Federal Revenue applies to photovoltaic modules; the rest of that code pays 6.5%. The IPI base is the customs value plus the duty.
PIS and Cofins on imports: 11.75% in 2026
PIS-Importação is 2.1% and Cofins-Importação 9.65% of the customs value (Law 10,865 of 2004, articles 7 and 8). For tariff codes listed in that law — including UPS units and other static converters (8504.40.30, 8504.40.40, 8504.40.50 and 8504.40.90) and the machines of heading 84.79, such as industrial robots — Cofins-Importação is 0.6 percentage points higher in 2026, and this add-on cannot be credited.
ICMS: the state tax, calculated on a base that includes itself
ICMS is due to the state where the importer — the legal recipient of the goods — is established. Its base is the customs value plus the duty, IPI, PIS, Cofins and any other taxes, fees and customs expenses, and it includes the ICMS itself (Complementary Law 87 of 1996, article 13). São Paulo's general rate is 18%, so the ICMS comes to about 22% of the base before ICMS (18 ÷ 0.82). Rates and incentives differ by state, and some goods have reduced rates or bases.
AFRMM and the Siscomex fee
Sea freight to Brazil pays the AFRMM, a surcharge on the freight to renew the merchant marine: 8% of the ocean freight on long-haul routes (Law 10,893 of 2004, article 6); it does not apply to air freight. Each import declaration (DI or Duimp) also pays the Siscomex usage fee: R$ 115.67 per declaration plus R$ 38.56 for each addition of goods up to the second, with lower amounts for further additions (Ministry of Economy Ordinance 4,131 of 2021; Federal Revenue Normative Instruction 2,024 of 2021). Both are part of the ICMS base.
Example: all-in-one PCs to São Paulo in 2026
All-in-one PCs (8471.41) with a customs value of US$10,000, including freight and insurance, imported by a company established in São Paulo: duty 16% — US$1,600; IPI 9.75% on US$11,600 — US$1,131; PIS 2.1% — US$210; Cofins 9.65% — US$965; ICMS 18% on a base of about US$16,959 that includes the ICMS — about US$3,053. Total about US$6,959, or 70% of the customs value, before the AFRMM, the Siscomex fee and other charges. A company under the non-cumulative regime can normally credit PIS, Cofins, IPI and ICMS — confirm this with your accountant.
From 2027: CBS replaces PIS and Cofins
Brazil's consumption tax reform (Constitutional Amendment 132 of 2023 and Complementary Law 214 of 2025) is phased in. In 2026 the new federal CBS (0.9%) and the IBS shared by states and municipalities (0.1%) are a test: a company that meets the reporting obligations is exempt from paying them and still pays PIS and Cofins in full; on imports, Siscomex shows the amounts but does not collect them before 1 January 2027. From that date PIS and Cofins, including on imports, are abolished and replaced by the CBS. ICMS is phased down from 2029 and abolished in 2033, when the IBS fully replaces it.
On imports, the CBS and IBS are charged at the same rates as on the same goods bought in Brazil, on the customs value plus the duty, the Siscomex fee, the AFRMM and other charges due until release (IPI, ICMS and ISS are not in that base), and are paid before the goods are delivered. The Federal Senate fixes the CBS reference rate by resolution: on 28 October 2026 the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) calculated 11.3% for 2027, and the Senate has until 15 December 2026 to fix it; without a resolution, the Court's rate takes effect on 1 January 2027. In 2027 and 2028 the CBS charged is that rate minus 0.1 percentage point.
IPI rates are reduced to zero from 2027, except for products made with incentives in the Manaus Free Trade Zone. The federal government is to publish the list, and information and communication technology goods are excluded from one of the zero-rate rules (Complementary Law 214, article 454). Until the list is out, do not assume that IT equipment will be free of IPI in 2027.
Importer registration and the customs broker
To import, a Brazilian company must be enabled in Siscomex by the Federal Revenue Service (habilitação, formerly known as RADAR). Under Normative Instruction RFB 1,984 of 2020: the express type is only for publicly traded joint-stock companies, their wholly owned subsidiaries and state-owned companies; the limited type allows imports of up to US$50,000 or up to US$150,000 in each consecutive six-month period, depending on the company's estimated financial capacity, which is based on the federal taxes it has paid; above that, the type is unlimited. Import declarations are filed on the Portal Único Siscomex, usually through a licensed customs broker (despachante aduaneiro).
Wi‑Fi, Bluetooth and 4G devices: ANATEL approval
As a rule, telecommunications products — including devices with Wi‑Fi, Bluetooth or a cellular module — must be approved (homologated) by ANATEL before they are used or sold in Brazil (Resolution 715 of 2019). Products for sale may be imported only after approval, by the holder of the approval or its legal representative; the approval code goes on the import declaration, and unapproved goods can be held at customs (ANATEL Act 18,086 of 2025, in force since 25 May 2026). The ANATEL identification must, as a rule, be applied before the goods enter Brazil. The approval code is personal and non-transferable, so ask the factory early whether the exact model is approved and in whose name: only that holder or its legal representative can import it for sale.
Solar equipment: INMETRO
Photovoltaic modules from 5 Wp, charge controllers, batteries for photovoltaic systems — including lithium batteries — and inverters of up to 75 kW must go through INMETRO conformity assessment: tests in an accredited laboratory, the supplier's declaration of conformity, registration with INMETRO and the ENCE label (INMETRO Ordinance 140 of 2022, amended by Ordinance 515 of 2023). Imports of these products also need INMETRO's consent in the import licensing. Check whether the model is already registered before you order.
Paying the factory
Payments abroad go through a bank or another institution authorised by the Central Bank of Brazil to operate in the foreign exchange market (Law 14,286 of 2021, articles 3 and 4). The institution identifies its client, and the client states the purpose of the operation, so keep the invoice, the payment and the import declaration consistent — the same supplier, amounts and currency.
Lithium batteries: shipping as dangerous goods
Batteries and devices with batteries travel as dangerous goods. The batteries must have passed the UN 38.3 tests, and the factory must make the test summary available — the carrier or forwarder may ask for it; forwarders may also ask for a safety data sheet, although IATA rules do not require one. By air, lithium-ion batteries shipped on their own travel on cargo aircraft only, and those shipped on their own or packed with (not inside) equipment must as a rule be at no more than 30% state of charge.
Documents for the shipment
Commercial invoice; packing list; bill of lading or air waybill; insurance policy; the ANATEL approval code for radio devices; INMETRO registration and consent in the import licensing for solar equipment; for batteries — the UN 38.3 test summary and, if the forwarder asks, a safety data sheet.
How we help
We compare the NCM code with the factory's technical data, ask before production for the ANATEL and INMETRO documents of the exact model and check that the documents match the goods. The final classification is for you and your customs broker in Brazil, who clears the cargo; we prepare everything it needs from the factory.
Rules and rates were checked against official Brazilian sources — the consolidated tariff published by MDIC on 29 October 2026, the IPI table of the Federal Revenue Service, the laws and complementary laws on the Planalto website, Siscomex notices and the rules of ANATEL and INMETRO — as of 30 October 2026, and can change. Confirm them with your customs broker before shipping.