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Repetitive

STJ removes limit of 20 salaries for contributions to System S

 

This Wednesday, the 13th, the 1st section of the STJ decided that the limitation of 20 minimum wages is not applicable to the basis for calculating contributions to System S. The decision, guided by the vote of the rapporteur, minister Regina Helena Costa, established that There is no legal limit for contributions

 

Furthermore, the collegiate, by 3 votes to 2, determined that the application of this decision must be modulated. This means that taxpayers who, until the date of the judgment, had favorable judicial or administrative decisions are protected, maintaining the limitation of the calculation basis only until the publication of the judgment of this last decision.

 

The theses approved were the following:

 

1) Article 1 of Decree-Law 1861/1981, as amended by Decree-Law 1867 1981, defined that contributions due to  apply up to the maximum limit of social security contributions;

 

2) Specifying the maximum limit of social security contributions, article 4, sole paragraph, of the supervening Law 6,950/1981 also specified the ceiling of parafiscal contributions in general, due in favor of third parties, establishing it at 20 times the highest minimum wage current;

 

3) Article 1, item I, of Decree-Law 2,318/1986 expressly revoked the specific rule that established a ceiling for parafiscal contributions due to just as its article 3 expressly revoked the ceiling. limit on social security contributions;

 

4) Therefore, as of the entry into force of article 1, item I, of Decree-Law 2,318/1981, 

 

 

STJ removes limit of 20 salaries for contributions to System S. 

This is Theme 1,079 of repetitive resources. The question submitted for judgment was the following:  "Define whether the limit of 20 minimum wages is applicable to the calculation of the calculation basis of 'parafiscal contributions collected on behalf of third parties', under the terms of article 4 of law 6,950/81, with the changes promoted in its text by articles 1 and 3 of decree-law 2,318/86".

 

Minister Regina Helena Costa, reaffirming her previous vote , highlighted that article 1 of decree-law 2,318/86 expressly revoked the caput and the sole paragraph of article 4 of law 6,950/81, which established the ceiling for contributions parafiscal taxes owed to Sesi, Senai, Sesc and Senac.

 

The position of Minister Mauro Campbell Marques, who presented partial dissent , was defeated , to cover not only System S entities, but also others potentially affected by the decision, such as those in the Autonomous Social Services group.

 

When discussing the modulation of the effects of the decision, Minister Regina Helena Costa highlighted that, in addition to joint judgments by the 1st class of the STJ in 2008 and 2020, there are at least twenty individual decisions that supported limiting the calculation base to 20 minimum wages , with a predominance of these decisions being made by members of the 2nd class.

 

She emphasized that the STJ had long maintained a clear position on the matter, generating legitimate expectations among taxpayers, an interpretation also adopted in several decisions by the TRFs.

 

Ministers Herman Benjamin formed the majority alongside her, supporting the modulation of the effects of the decision.

 

However, ministers Mauro Campbell and Paulo  differed. They believe that the modulation is not justified, given that the previous understanding had not been standardized in decisions by both classes of the STJ, having been dealt mainly by the 1st class.

 

For them, modulation could, in fact, increase legal uncertainty and unduly benefit those who, perhaps hastily, sought the Judiciary without the support of consolidated jurisprudence on which they could base their expectations.