Pillar Two: the 15% Global Minimum Tax and Who It Hits

Pillar Two is a global minimum tax of 15% on the profit of multinational groups with consolidated revenue of EUR 750 million or more in at least two of the four preceding years. In Brazil, it is the CSLL Surtax (Law No. 15,079/2024, Lei 15.079/2024), in force since January 1, 2025. An individual with a small offshore company is not covered by the rule.

This is the site's reference guide on the topic. It draws on the text of the OECD rules, Brazilian law and the Federal Revenue Service (Receita Federal) page on the tax. Where a provision depends on regulation or on the specific case, the text says so.

What is Pillar Two and what is the minimum rate?

Pillar Two (Pilar 2) is the set of GloBE (Global Anti-Base Erosion) rules, approved by the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS on December 14, 2021. It sets a minimum rate of 15%: the OECD text defines "Minimum Rate" as fifteen percent (15%).

The logic is to calculate the multinational group's effective tax rate, country by country. If it falls below 15%, the difference is collected as a top-up tax. The rule does not create a new tax on net worth. It supplements the tax on profit when effective taxation in a jurisdiction is low.

Who does Pillar Two apply to?

It applies to the entities of a multinational group whose annual consolidated revenue is EUR 750 million or more in at least two of the four fiscal years immediately preceding. The OECD (art. 1.1) measures revenue in the consolidated financial statements of the ultimate parent entity. Law 15,079/2024 (art. 4) repeats this criterion.

Brazil's Federal Revenue Service (Receita Federal) may update the euro thresholds and the currency conversions by its own act (Law 15,079, art. 3, I). Check the act in force before deciding.

Is an individual with a small offshore company affected by Pillar Two?

Not by Pillar Two. The rule looks at multinational groups above the revenue threshold, and Brazilian law excludes the natural person from the concept of entity. An offshore company owned by an individual investor, with no consolidated revenue at that level, is not a target of the global minimum tax.

That does not mean there are no obligations. A resident individual remains subject to Law 14,754/2023 on investments and controlled entities abroad. That law has its own 15% rate on income from capital invested abroad (art. 2, §1), and it has nothing to do with Pillar Two. The two 15% rates are distinct rules, with distinct taxpayers.

Law 15,079 also changed the list of favored-taxation countries. Art. 38 added art. 24-C to Law 9,430/1996: the classification of a country as a favored-taxation jurisdiction or privileged tax regime (arts. 24 and 24-A) that results exclusively from not taxing at the maximum rate of 17% may be set aside, as an exception, for countries that foster national development with significant investments in Brazil, under terms the Executive Branch will regulate. The classification matters because Law 14,754 (art. 5, §5, I) uses it to decide whether the profit of a controlled company abroad is taxed on December 31.

If your structure has relevant partners and operations, a case-by-case analysis is worthwhile. See the compliance and tax planning services, and the guide how to declare an offshore company on your income tax return.

How do the IIR, UTPR and QDMTT work?

These are three mechanisms for collecting the top-up tax under the OECD rules. Each country chooses how to implement them.

The QDMTT is collected in the very country where the profit was generated. With it, the top-up tax stays with the jurisdiction of origin instead of being collected by another country.

How does Brazil apply Pillar Two?

Through the CSLL Surtax (Adicional da CSLL), created by Law 15,079 of December 27, 2024. The Receita Federal describes the tax as a QDMTT, which ensures an effective rate of at least 15% in Brazil. The text of the law contains neither the IIR nor the UTPR. Check whether later rules exist before concluding that they do not.

The calculation, according to the Receita page on the AdCSLL:

1. •The GloBE profit or loss is determined, starting from the accounting result with the adjustments required by the rule.
2. •The adjusted covered taxes are added up and divided by the GloBE profit to obtain the effective rate.
3. •The substance-based income exclusion is deducted from the profit, which yields the excess profit.
4. •If the effective rate is below 15%, the surtax is (15% minus the effective rate) multiplied by the excess profit.

The calculation is jurisdictional: all group entities located in Brazil are pooled together. The law has applied since January 1, 2025, and payment is due on the last business day of the seventh month following the end of the fiscal year, using DARF code 1809. The Receita reports that, in August 2025, the Inclusive Framework assessed the CSLL Surtax as a QDMTT and as a safe harbour. The operational detail is in Normative Instruction RFB 2,228/2024 and later acts.

For the general context of the BEPS project and what it means for Brazilians, read BEPS and the OECD actions for Brazilians.

What is the substance-based exclusion (carve-out)?

It is the mechanism that removes part of the profit from the top-up tax base when the group has a real economic presence in the country. Law 15,079 (art. 23) defines the exclusion as the sum of two portions: one based on payroll and one based on tangible assets.

In practice, the more personnel and physical assets the group keeps in the jurisdiction, the larger the exclusion. A group with a paper headquarters and little real structure excludes less profit. That is why substance now weighs on how structures are designed, a topic tied to the risk of a permanent establishment and to the corporate structure.

How do tax incentives fare under the minimum tax?

Incentives that greatly reduce the effective tax can be neutralized by the top-up tax. The OECD rules treat the qualified refundable tax credit (Qualified Refundable Tax Credit) differently: it is a credit that must be paid in cash, or be available as an equivalent, within four years, and it is counted as income in the GloBE profit calculation.

Law 15,079 (art. 37) authorizes the Executive Branch, starting in 2026, to convert tax incentives provided for in Provisional Measure 2,199-14/2001 into a financial credit classified as a Qualified Refundable Tax Credit, which can be offset or reimbursed in cash.

What changed with the 2026 Side-by-Side package?

On January 5, 2026, the Inclusive Framework approved a package with a simplified effective tax rate safe harbour, the extension of the transitional country-by-country reporting safe harbour and a "Side-by-Side" system. A group whose parent is in an eligible jurisdiction and that opts for the safe harbour is no longer subject to the IIR and the UTPR.

All groups remain subject to the QDMTT in each jurisdiction that applies it. The OECD document also says the simplified safe harbour is available in all jurisdictions from the start of 2027, or from the start of 2026 in certain circumstances. This affects those preparing compliance for large groups, not the individual investor.

What should you do if your group is approaching the threshold?

Build a timeline before the threshold, not after. The test looks at the four preceding years, so exposure builds up in advance.

1. •Measure consolidated revenue in the ultimate parent's statements, year by year, in euros, according to the Receita's act in force.
2. •Map the entities and jurisdictions where the group operates, and the effective rate of each.
3. •Gather payroll and tangible assets by jurisdiction, the basis of the substance exclusion.
4. •Review tax incentives and whether they qualify as a qualified refundable credit.
5. •Follow the Receita's rules on the AdCSLL and the OECD guidance, which change often.