Here is a great download link. A free book about Doing Business in Brazil from the BrazilianConsulate.org. Download it here: http://www.brazilian-consulate.org/secom/incs/DoingBusinessinBrazil.pdf
Legal Rules Managing an International Business in Brazil
By Alexis Devan, eHow Contributor
updated: September 18, 2010
- Managing a business in Brazil brings up a host of new challenges for an international business that it might not be accustomed to dealing with. Issues such as enforcing contracts, closing a business, or registering property take significantly more time and money compared to the United States and other economies, but there are advantages as well, including the ease of employing workers and protecting investors, compared to other developing economies.flag of brazil image by patrimonio designs from Fotolia.com
- In the case of corporations in Brazil, the Board of Directors has full authority to establish economic, corporate, or financial policies as well as manage the executive staff. Board members who reside outside the country must be represented by someone in Brazil to receive service of process in a lawsuit and they must be shareholders of the corporation. The Board of Directors must have at least three members and each term may not be longer, for each director, than three years. After three years they must be re-elected by the General Meeting, which can also remove them.
- Labor laws in Brazil are quite different than in America and are a vital aspect in managing an international business. For starters, a formal written agreement is not needed to form an employment contract, an oral contract is allowed by law and a contract for an undetermined length still requires the employer to give 30 days notice to the employee. Also, all employees, after one year of service with the same company, are allowed 30 days of vacation, unless they have been absent from work more than five times in that period without reason. In December all employees are paid what is called 13th salary, which is essentially a mandatory bonus, consisting of an average of the workers typical wages throughout the year. The maximum work day is eight hours and cannot exceed 44 hours in one week with one mandatory "rest day."
- Brazilian owned and based and foreign businesses receive the same treatment when it comes to taxation. The taxation rate is 15 percent (plus 10 percent on taxable income exceeding $240 thousand Brazilian Reals) of the company's profits as of September 2010. A unique option available to companies making equal to or less than 48 million Brazilian Reals as their total gross revenue in the preceding calendar year, is they may pay taxes on estimated, rather than actual profits.
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Read more: Legal Rules Managing an International Business in Brazil | eHow.com
I think legal counsel can help you the best to set the business in Brazil.
ReplyDeleteYeah the unfortunate thing about that is that lawyers love to take advantage of gringoes, especially Americans. They tend to draw the process out and make it way more expensive than it has to be. It is best to ask for lawyer references from an associate you already have in Brazil.
ReplyDeleteI know from experience.
ReplyDelete