The report prepared by the Commission for the Review of the Tax Process, Procedure, and Taxpayer Guarantees was presented today at a conference organized by the Ministry of Finance, following the document’s submission to the Government in May by a group of experts.
Led by lawyer Rogério Fernandes Ferreira, the group proposes defining, within the General Tax Law (LGT), a maximum statute of limitations of 20 years, even when there are reasons that interrupt or suspend the count.
According to the proposal, the general rule remains that tax debts expire within eight years for periodic taxes, starting from the end of the year in which the tax event occurred.
The suggested amendment concerns situations where the statute of limitations for tax debts already exceeds eight years.
This applies to tax debts related to a tax haven (a territory with a significantly more favorable tax regime) or when a bank account in another EU country or outside the community has not been declared to the Tax and Customs Authority (AT).
In these situations, the time for the tax authority to collect the tax is longer, making the statute of limitations extend to 15 years.
The commission’s proposal maintains this deadline. The suggested change pertains to the statute of limitations, proposing that “regardless of the prescribed limitation period and the occurrence of suspensive or interruptive facts, the tax debt always expires once 20 years have passed from the initial term of the statute of limitations.”
During the presentation of key suggestions delivered to the Government, Rogério Fernandes Ferreira stated that all legislative amendment proposals and recommendations were unanimously approved, except for one concerning a transitional provision regarding the effects of this new statute of limitations regime.
The report mentioned that “some members advocated for the immediate application of the new regime to ongoing periods from the date the law comes into force, even drafting a provision accordingly, [but] others warned of the constitutional incompatibility of such a statute of limitations due to its retroactive nature.”
The commission examined the LGT, the Code of Tax Procedure and Process, tax enforcement, procedural costs, the Legal Regime of Tax Arbitration, and the General Regime of Tax Offenses, among other legislation.
Another measure, reported today by the newspaper Negócios, involves penalizing the AT if, in court proceedings, the tax authority acts in bad faith.
This entails adding an article to the LGT, stipulating that “the tax administration and the taxpayer may be sentenced to a fine and compensation for bad faith litigation, according to general law,” presumed as “conduct in court against the tenor of generic guidelines or binding information previously provided” to taxpayers.
Rogério Fernandes Ferreira mentioned that the working group chose not to promote structural changes to the legislation, as the model “has been proven [to work] well,” preferring to suggest “timely and circumstantial” adjustments, establishing rules more easily understood by taxpayers.
In the conference, prior to the presentation of these conclusions, Finance Minister Joaquim Miranda Sarmento emphasized the necessity for changes to protect taxpayers and reduce disputes.
“We want a system that protects taxpayers’ rights, institutional trust, and ensures a swift and fair resolution of tax disputes,” said Miranda Sarmento.
