Alana Aiche do Carmo Dahrouj
Lawyer at Marcos Martins Advogados
The Federal Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on a question involving the levying of ISS (Tax on Services of Any Nature) on the licensing or assignment of the right to use computer programs developed in a personalized way.
The issue was brought before the STF through a lawsuit filed by a telephone operator which argues that the aforementioned hypothesis is not subject to ISS taxation because it constitutes an “obligation to give” and not a provision of service.
Although expressly provided for in the legislation as one of the hypotheses on which the ISS is levied, it must be checked whether there is actually the development of an activity, that is, an “obligation to do”, because as is well known, what happens in practice when you buy software, even personalized software, is that you merely obtain authorization to use it.
Given the significant number of companies that use customized software, determining the form of taxation for this hypothesis is extremely important.
Thus, in the midst of so many uncertainties and insecurities for taxpayers in the current tax scenario, it is hoped that the STF will decide that ISS will not be levied on customized software licensing operations, providing certainty and clarity in the application of the rules contained in the Federal Constitution.
Marcos Martins Advogados puts its tax team at your disposal for further clarification on the subject.
Questions? Talk to our lawyers and get advice.
