Portuguese 
English 
Spanish 
6 min of reading 
1 comment 
Federal Revenue Sends 16 Thousand Notifications to Property Owners; Fines Reach 225%, but Proper Assessment Can Reduce Up to 70% of the Amount Due.
The Federal Revenue started 2025 by intensifying one of the most feared audits for those who have built or renovated in recent years: the regularization of construction works. According to an official statement published in June 2024 on the Gov Agency portal and confirmed by the Federal Revenue itself, over 16,000 notifications were sent to taxpayers across the country, both individuals and legal entities, who built without properly declaring the information required in the Works Assessment System (DISO).
The fines, which range from 75% to 225% on the amounts due, are outlined in federal tax legislation and can turn a simple irregularity into a significant problem, including blocking CPF, registration in active debt, and hindering deeds and financing.
Federal Revenue Targets Undeclared Works Nationwide
The crackdown began silently, with the automatic cross-referencing of data between municipal governments, real estate registries, and the Federal Revenue system. The agency began to identify ongoing or completed works in the past four years that were not properly registered. This includes everything from small residential constructions to large commercial enterprises.
-
Created by George Lucas with over $1 billion, a futuristic museum in the shape of a spaceship with 1,500 curved panels is about to open in Los Angeles and will house one of the largest private collections of narrative art in the world.
-
Couple shows how they built a retaining wall on their property using 400 old tires: sloped land turned into plateaus, tires are aligned, filled, and compacted with layers of soil, with grass helping in support and at almost zero cost.
-
Engineer explains drainage during the rainy season: the difference between surface water and deep water, ditches, gutters, and water outlets on the road, as well as drains and drainage mattresses, to prevent erosion, aquaplaning, and flooding at the construction site today.
-
With 55 floors, 177 meters in height, a 15-meter walkway between the twin towers, ventilated facade, and 6,300 m² of leisure space, Ápice Towers already has one tower completed and another nearly at the top.
Every construction in Brazil — even those done on private land or through self-management must be registered with the Federal Revenue, generating a CEI or CNO registration while informing the built area, type of structure, and investment amounts.
This requirement exists for calculating the social security contributions on the labor used, known as the construction’s INSS.
When the taxpayer ignores the process, the system conducts what is known as “official assessment,” meaning the Federal Revenue calculates presumed amounts based on official tables and applies a minimum fine of 75%, which can reach 225% in case of recurrence, fraud, or deliberate omission of information.
In addition to the fine, interest and charges are applied, which can increase the debt to up to three times the original construction amount.
The Consequences for Those Who Ignore the Federal Revenue Notice
Taxpayers who received the notification sent by physical mail and also through Electronic Tax Domicile have a short period to regularize their situation.
If they ignore the notice, the Federal Revenue issues an automatic DARF, registers the debt in the Active Debt of the Union, and blocks the issuance of the Negative Debt Certificate (CND). Without this document, the owner is prevented from financing the property, formalizing deeds, or registering the construction in the registry office.
Furthermore, in cases where the CNPJ is linked to engineering or construction companies, the blockage can affect the issuance of electronic invoices, participation in bidding processes, and access to credit lines. Therefore, the penalty surpasses the tax field and can compromise the economic activity of self-employed professionals and contractors.
How the Federal Revenue Data Cross-Referencing Works
Since 2023, the Federal Revenue has been improving the automatic cross-referencing system among different public agencies. Municipalities send construction permit data, habitation certificates, and approved plans monthly, while real estate registries communicate new registrations.
As a result, the system identifies discrepancies between what was registered locally and what was declared to the Federal Revenue.
When a construction appears in municipal databases but does not exist in the National Construction Register (CNO), the taxpayer is automatically included on the “omitted” list, becoming subject to monitoring by the tax authorities. In 2024, with the advancement of fiscal automation and the use of artificial intelligence, the number of notifications increased by more than 30% compared to the previous year, according to a technical report from the Ministry of Finance.
Proper Assessment Can Reduce Tax by Up to 70%
Although the Federal Revenue’s focus is on collection, there is legal room for significant reductions when the regularization process is done correctly.
According to Normative Instruction No. 2021/2021, taxpayers who apply the Adjustment Factor and submit complete declarations, especially when acting as MEI, self-employed, or small builders, can reduce the final INSS amount of the work by more than 70%.
In many cases, the payment drops to less than 30% of the total originally estimated by the Federal Revenue, provided that the technical data of the work are correct and substantiated.
Engineers and tax auditors warn that seemingly small details can significantly multiply the tax.
Errors such as incorrectly classifying the type of construction (mixed work treated as masonry), failing to report additional areas like pools, garages, and balconies, or declaring a different measurement from the actual one are sufficient to raise the final cost by thousands of reais.
Therefore, professional assessment, adhering to technical standards, is currently the safest and most validated method to avoid undue charges — without the need for “creative solutions” or questionable loopholes.
Experts Warn: Regularizing is Cheaper Than Being Fined
Consultants and accountants specializing in construction reinforce that voluntarily regularizing the work is always the best alternative. By registering the property before being fined, the taxpayer only pays the social security contributions owed, without fines or interest.
After receiving the notification, however, the amount is adjusted by the Selic rate and increases by the minimum penalty of 75%, in addition to the risk of CPF or CNPJ blockage.
Companies specialized in regularization, such as Sua Obra Regular and INSS Construções, confirm the increase in requests since the notification from the Federal Revenue was announced. In some cases, the fines exceed R$ 200,000, even for medium-sized residential works.
“Many owners only discover the problem when they try to register the house at the registry office and find that the CND is blocked. At that point, the damage is already significant,” explains engineer and tax expert Marcelo Moreira in a recent interview with the Gov Agency.
Fines That Can Reach 225% and Blocked CPF
Article 44 of Law No. 9,430/1996, which governs the office assessment by the Federal Revenue, establishes that the basic office fine is 75%, but it can reach 150% when there are signs of fraud, or 225% if evasion and resistance to inspection are proven.
Additionally, the debt is automatically recorded in the name of the legal responsible for the CPF or CNPJ linked to the construction registration.
This means that by ignoring the notification, the taxpayer will be registered in the Active Debt of the Union, blocking financial transactions, preventing the issuance of certificates, and possibly generating protests at the registry office.
The Federal Revenue has emphasized that spontaneous regularization before the assessment avoids all these inconveniences and still allows payment in up to 60 installments.
What to Do If You Have Been Notified
The first step is to check if the construction is indeed registered as irregular. This can be done through the e-CAC Portal of the Federal Revenue, in the “Construction Works” menu.
If there are discrepancies, it is possible to register the regularization by submitting documents such as the permit, approved project, invoices, and contracts with contractors. The process can be completed digitally, and once approved, it allows for the issuance of the CND.
Accountants recommend not to wait for a second notification. The Federal Revenue system already issues automatic DARFs, and failure to pay may lead to fiscal execution. “Ignoring the notification is the worst mistake. The system is fully automated, and interest accrues every day,” warns tax consultant Renata Azevedo, a specialist in work regularization.
A Clear Message from the Federal Revenue
The tax authority’s message is straightforward: those who built need to declare. The technological advancement and integration of public databases have transformed the monitoring of constructions into a continuous process.
The Federal Revenue no longer relies on complaints or sporadic audits; it cross-references data, identifies inconsistencies, and issues fines automatically. The era of informal construction is coming to an end.
Interessante como a receita ameaça as pessoas eles só não conseguem rastrear e monitorar políticos e presidentes com contas no vaticano onde desviam bilhões dos cofres públicos, alguém tem dúvidas que a receita é a maior quadrilha criminosa que temos aqui ?