Tax reform boosts property donations to heirs

The Tax Reform enacted in December 2023 caused an increase in the number of property donations across the country. According to the Colégio Notarial do Brasil (CNB), in 2025, 185,861 public deeds were registered – an increase of 59% compared to the 116,225 acts formalized in 2020. For experts, the “race” to notary offices and the CNB's digital platform, the e-notariat, reflects a growing search by families to anticipate the transfer of assets, before the new rules of the Causa Mortis and Transmission Tax come into force. Donation (ITCMD).

12% tax on oil exports is extended for 60 days. Notary office holders lead the wealth ranking in IR 2026. The ITCMD is a tax that states and the Federal District charge on inheritance and the donation of assets or property rights. Each federative unit has the autonomy to define its own deadlines and fees.

With the gradual entry into force of the Tax Reform, the higher the value of the asset, the higher the percentage of ITCMD rates will be, reaching a maximum of 8%. For example, in the Federal District, the district government charges a progressive rate of 4% to 6% for inheritances and donations, regardless of the value of the assets transmitted. In São Paulo, there are two bills under discussion in the Legislative Assembly: one that reduces the progressive rate currently charged in the state, limiting it to a maximum of 4%, and another that establishes a ceiling of 8%.

Furthermore, according to the text of Amendment No. 132/2023, which establishes the Tax Reform, the tax calculation basis will now be the market value of the property or asset, and no longer its asset value – generally, lower. “The expectation is that this volume of donations will continue to grow and, therefore, also the drawing up of deeds”, declared, in a note, the president of the CNB, Eduardo Calais. Also according to the entity, which represents more than 9 thousand notaries and notaries in Brazil, the registration of public deeds for property donations began to increase in 2020, even before the Tax Reform was enacted, but it has intensified in recent years, until reaching, in 2025, the highest number in the historical series.

“In recent months, there has been a clear increase in demand from clients seeking to anticipate their wealth succession, whether through direct donations to descendants or through the payment of assets in family holdings”, added, in the same note, Joanna Oliveira Rezende Barbosa, specialist in estate planning. For experts, there are many families following the legislative movement in the states and in the Federal District to decide whether to anticipate donations during their lifetime, and how to make them. Especially because, as already established by the Federal Supreme Court (STF), changes in tax collection must be previously approved and regulated by local authorities.

Donations require caution On the other hand, lawyer Matheus Bertolo Piconez warns that acting impulsively can generate a series of problems, including family ones. For example: if parents anticipate donating the only property they own to their child(ren), without establishing their right to continue living or benefiting from the income generated by the property while they are alive, they will become dependent on the goodwill of the heir(s). “Anticipation makes sense when it is accompanied by complete planning, not as a last-minute rush, added the lawyer.”