A REGRESSIVIDADE TRIBUTÁRIA NO BRASIL: EVIDÊNCIAS A PARTIR DO ICMS EM MATO GROSSO DO SUL E DA ISENÇÃO DE LUCROS E DIVIDENDOS NO IRPF

Abstract

Among the factors associated with the regressivity of the Brazilian tax system, the high share of consumption taxation and the exemption of profits and dividends from the Personal Income Tax (IRPF) stand out. In this context, this study aims to analyze how these two factors contribute to tax regressivity, based on the effective tax rates of the Tax on the Circulation of Goods and Services (ICMS) in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul and the Personal Income Tax (IRPF) at a national scale. The research is characterized as descriptive, adopting a quantitative approach. For the calculation of the effective ICMS rate, consumption data from the Family Budgets Survey (POF/IBGE 2017-2018) were used, while the ICMS Regulation of the state of Mato Grosso do Sul was utilized to group the nominal ICMS rates. For the IRPF, information was extracted from the income tables of the Grand Numbers of the Brazilian Federal Revenue from 2016 to 2020. For the 2017-2018 biennium, a simple summation of the effective rates of both taxes was performed, assuming income homogeneity for the federal data. The results indicate that the effective ICMS rate decreases as income increases, being nearly three times more impactful for lowest-income families. Regarding the IRPF, an inverted U-shaped curve was observed, where the effective rate grows until it reaches its peak within the 30 to 40 minimum wages brackets, and then falls again toward the bracket above 320 minimum wages. The combined tax rate (IRPF + ICMS) demonstrates that the highest effective tax burden falls on the intermediate income brackets, concluding that, proportionally, the highest income classes pay less ICMS and IRPF.