Mr. Thompson to Mr.
Gresham.
Legation of the United States,
Petropolis, May 31, 1894.
(Received June 25.)
No. 244.]Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith copy
and translation of a circular from the office of the minister of finance
which appeared in the local press of recent date. This circular has
reference to the claims of a number of importers in Rio de Janeiro which
were caused by the imposition of a customs tax upon importations of
American wheat flour in violation of the commercial arrangement between
the United States and Brazil.
The tax, known as expediente, was removed upon the representation of Mr.
Markell and Mr. Conger, acting under Department’s instructions of
February 24, 1893, and reported in Mr. Conger’s No. 425, April 19, 1893,
and No. 448, June 2, 1893, from which will be seen the origin of the
claims.*
The importers, acting presumably under an impression gained from a
statement of the minister for foreign affairs that “the money already
paid for these taxes would be refunded,” have filed their claims through
local attorneys, and the circular inclosed contains the decision of the
minister of finance on them.
From this circular it appears that this adverse decision is based upon
two grounds, viz: (1) That the taxes of expediente are not in the nature
of imposts, and therefore not in contravention of the commercial
arrangement; (2) that the importers, having added the amount of the
[Page 74]
tax to the selling price of the
flour, have been fully reimbursed, and to allow the claims now would
make a double burden upon the national consumer.
As the decision is adverse, and the claims confined chiefly to American
merchants, the case will doubtless come before the Department in the
near future. The claims, it is said, aggregate $300,000.
I have, etc.,
[Inclosure in No. 244—Translation—From
the Jornal do Commercio.]
custom-house charges (dereitos de expedients).
On the 21st of the present month the ministry of finance published
the following circular:
This ministry has received several reclamations based on circular No.
28, of the 25th May, 1893, for the restitution of expediente charges
paid on goods imported from the United States of America anterior to
the date of said circular, such goods being exempt from custom-house
duties, in virtue of the agreement whose execution was determined by
decree No. 1338, of February 5, 1891; and
Considering that the custom-house collected these duties up to the
date of that circular, authorized by order No. 60, of March 31,
1891, issued competently from this capital;
Considering that this order stands on a legal base, because,
according to our legislation, the charges for service have never
been considered as imposts, especially for such goods as are
admitted free, in the terms of article 575 of consolidation, and
therefore, not from the fact of importation, but only and singly as
remuneration for the services of the custom-house employés and for
the work of dispatching said goods.
Considering that for this motive these charges were not contemplated
in the order of March, 1891, as for importation or additional taxes
for importation, the importation duties being only considered in the
agreement.
Considering, therefore, that circular No. 28 of May 25 of last year
was not in accordance with an indispensable precept, but simply
represents a concession, and its effects can not extend to a period
anterior to the reclamations and only can contemplate future cases,
as is clear from the terms of the circular;
Considering that the restitutions asked for, for the period extending
from April 1, 1891, to May 25, 1893, are not only not authorized by
the said circular, which does not allude to restitution, but also
they can not be granted because the importers of goods dispatched
free have already had all the corresponding advantages from the
Brazilian consumer from the amount paid for charges for service;
Considering that if these restitutions were granted, to the American
importer would accrue double advantages and the onus would be
doubled for the Brazilian consumer, who would have to contribute for
the expenses made in the custom-house although he had already paid
for the goods in the conditions in which they were dispatched;
I declare that the circular No. 28, of May 25, 1893, only, is in
vigor for importations made after its date, and I instruct the
custom-houses to re-collect the sums which under protection of this
circular have been restored, whether under the article 552 of the
consolidation or whether under special orders, which orders are
annulled.
