Brazil’s executive has agreed to raise the annual revenue ceiling for individual micro-entrepreneurs (MEIs) from R$81,000 to as much as R$140,000, phased in by 2028, a move that the finance ministry estimates will cost R$50 billion per year in forgone revenue. The concession, negotiated with the lower house’s rapporteur, also permits MEIs to hire two employees instead of one. Viewed from Brasília, the adjustment is an election-year deliverable with broad congressional support, though the government is resisting parallel demands to update all bands of the simplified Simples Nacional regime, which officials label a “fiscal bomb” of similar magnitude.

In Tanzania, a quieter but structurally significant reform is embedded in the 2026/27 budget: a legally binding 30-day deadline for VAT refunds, with statutory interest payable by the state for delays. Businesses in Dar es Salaam have long treated pending refunds—which reached roughly $650 million by 2025—as an invisible tax that ties up working capital. The new rule transforms an administrative guideline into an enforceable obligation, a shift that investors and industry associations say will improve cash flow and lower the real cost of doing business. The measure is paired with the removal of the expiry period on VAT credits, further aligning the system with international best practice.

Bangladesh’s parliament is set to pass the finance bill today, with last-minute changes that lift the tax-free income threshold by a total of Tk 50,000 to Tk 400,000, responding to persistent high inflation. The government has also shelved a plan to impose a single VAT rate on small retailers, after pushback from shop owners’ associations. In his closing budget speech, the prime minister proposed further concessions, including relaxing mandatory tax identification number requirements for bank accounts and reducing the corporate tax on private universities from 10% to 5%, conditional on increased research spending and scholarships. Analysts in Dhaka note that the retreat on retail VAT reflects the political sensitivity of taxing informal businesses ahead of elections.

These adjustments, while distinct in scale and context, share a common thread: governments are using tax-policy levers to address inflation, formalisation and investment-climate frictions. The next concrete milestone is the passage of Bangladesh’s finance bill later today, while Brazil’s MEI bill is expected to reach the floor of the Chamber of Deputies in the second week of July.