Countries' Aggressive Tax Treaty Planning: Brazil's Case

In the international taxation sphere, countries are channelling efforts and resources in the fight against 'aggressive tax planning' by enterprises and individuals. However, it is not unusual that countries will also use aggressive tax schemes to increase tax revenues, through measures that exceed internationally accepted standards. Brazil might be considered such a violator, at least from a moral standpoint. The Country has been creating tax-like contributions to tax transactions with non-residents beyond the thresholds established in tax treaties. The objective of this article is to analyse whether discussions regarding morality in taxation can also be applied to State behaviours, demonstrating that shortcomings in ethics are not just the privilege of taxpayers.