Micro individual business are the main beneficiary

The approval of the Complementary Bill 2/07, from the Deputy Antonio Carlos Mendes Thame (PSDB-SP), should formalize around 4 million of independent professionals in the modality of individual micro-undertaker (MEI). The estimate is from Sebrae (Brazilian Service of Support to Micro and Medium-sized Companies), which also provides for the favoring of 841 business networks and centers throughout Brazil, which can be classified in the so-called Specific Purpose Societies (SPEs).
The bill was approved on December 10th, and allows the collection of fixed installments from micro individual undertakers which participate in the Simples Nacional (Supersimples) with a yearly revenue of up to R$36,000. On the last 19th, the text was sanctioned by the President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and transformed in the Complementary Law 128/08.

The deputies approved the 21 amendments to the bill, proposed by the Senate. The main one postpones the prevailing of the rules on the classification in MEI from January 1st to July 2009.
Another benefit which was approved by the Chamber authorizes that undertaker to hire one employee, paying him the wage floor of his/her professional category or a minimum wage. The former text allowed that hiring only with the minimum wage. However, the fee the undertaker will pay as the employer contribution to social security goes from a fixed value of R$12.45 to 3% of the contribution salary of the employee.

The other values and installments charged for the inclusion in the system were not changed. They keep amounting to R$45.65 per month and in fixed values, as individual contributions to Social Security, and an additional R$1 if the company contributes to value added tax (ICMS), and R$% if it contributes to VAT tax (ISS).

Social benefits
According to Sebrae, the main attractions of the bill are the rights the informal undertaker will be entitled to in Social Security, such as age and disability retirement, labor-accident insurance, health license and maternity license.

Alessandro Machado, a consultant on public policies of Sebrae Nacional, expects the formalization of 40% of the workers currently in informality, especially street vendors, service providers, such as cleaning or security; and companies on cultural and art production; movie producers, and companies mounting booths for markets and fairs.

Specific Purpose Society
Another advancement on the project quoted by Machado is the juridical person of the Specific Purpose Society (SPE), which authorizes the companies which opt for the Simples Nacional to perform together businesses in the domestic and international markets. Purchases, sales, distribution of products and services, among other activities, can be performed by small undertakers associated and constituted as SPEs, with a single CNPJ and address. “SPE legalizes the operation of micro and small companies which work or want to work as associated in the market”, highlighted the consultant
According to Sebrae, the business nets and centrals, which can be classified as SPE, are present in all unities of the Federation and operate in 77 productive segments. According to a mapping of Sebrae Nacional, the largest percentage is located in the supermarket industry (24%), followed by product and service cooperatives (12%); pharmacies and construction materials (7%); handcraft (6%) and fruit culture (4%).