Capital gains tax on selling property in Brazil

The rates

Article 21 of Lei 8.981/1995, in the wording of Lei 13.259/2016 (effective from 1 January 2016), applies the following rates to the gain of an individual on the sale of assets of any kind:

The rates are marginal: each rate applies only to the slice of the gain in its band. The Receita states that the progressive rates apply to sales from 1 January 2017. The 2025 income-tax reform (Lei 15.270/2025) did not change these rates; it excludes capital gains from the base of its new minimum tax on high incomes.

The calculation chain

The Receita Q&A 2026 (question 656) gives the official sequence for sales from 1 January 2017:

1. BC1 = sale value minus acquisition cost.
2. BC2 = BC1 minus the percentage reduction of Lei 7.713/1988 (only for property acquired up to 1988).
3. BC3 = BC2 multiplied by FR1.
4. BC4 = BC3 multiplied by FR2.
5. Tax = BC4 multiplied by the progressive rates above.

The factors FR1 and FR2 and the pre-1989 percentages have their own guide: reduction factors. The Receita’s GCAP program (Programa Ganhos de Capital) computes the reductions and exemptions and generates the payment slip (DARF); the exact month-count convention for the factors is applied by that program, so use it rather than an estimate.

Calculation, not an official figure: if BC4 were R$ 6,000,000, the tax would be 15% of R$ 5,000,000 (R$ 750,000) plus 17.5% of R$ 1,000,000 (R$ 175,000), a total of R$ 925,000.

What counts as acquisition cost

The Receita Q&A 671 lists what may be added to the acquisition cost of a property, if documented and, for expenses, declared in the return of the year they were incurred:

• Construction, expansion and renovation, if the plans were approved by the municipality.
• Small works such as painting, tile repairs, plumbing, floors and walls.
• Demolition of a building, if it was a condition of the sale.
• The broker’s commission paid at purchase by the seller.
• Public works that benefited the property (curbs, paving, sewage, electricity) and the contribuição de melhoria (betterment levy).
• The transfer tax (ITBI) paid by the seller at purchase.
• The laudêmio (fee on transfers of certain leasehold land) paid to the landowner for giving up the right of preference.
• Interest and other charges paid to acquire the property.
• Deed and registration expenses borne by the buyer.

The commission paid by the seller at the sale is deducted from the sale value. For properties acquired from 1 January 1996, the Receita states that the cost is not updated for inflation. If the acquisition cost cannot be proved, the Receita treats it as zero (question 655, which sets out this principle in the non-resident case).

When and how to pay

The tax is paid by the last working day of the month after the gain is received (Lei 8.981/1995, art. 21, paragraph 1). It is paid separately from the annual return and is not deductible. If the buyer pays in instalments, the gain is calculated as for a cash sale, and the tax is paid on each instalment received, by the last working day of the following month. The deferred gain is the ratio of total gain to total sale value applied to each instalment (Q&A 668). Adjustment clauses in an instalment sale are taxed as interest. If several parts of the same property are sold up to the end of the following year, the gains are added to determine the rate band (article 21, paragraph 3, with the tax already paid deducted). The payment slip code for real estate is produced by the GCAP; the Q&A cites code 4600 for other cases, and this guide does not state a code for a property sale.

Exemptions to test first

Test these before computing the tax:

• Single property up to R$ 440,000.
• Reinvestment within 180 days.
• Low-value assets: Lei 9.250/1995, article 22, and Q&A 679 treat as small-value a disposal at or below R$ 35,000 in the month (assets of the same nature are added together; co-owners are measured per share, Q&A 673).

Which professional to consult

An accountant familiar with the GCAP can prepare the calculation, and a lawyer registered with the OAB can advise on a complex case such as an inherited property or a sale between spouses. The reader checks professional registrations on the official registers. See selling a home in Brazil for the overall process.