Ministers of the Supreme Federal Court (STF) decided to authorize that individuals with mild intellectual disability and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Level 1 support can acquire new cars with tax exemption. The Court deemed unconstitutional a section of the Complementary Law of 2025, which regulates Tax Reform, because this section limited the zero rate of the Goods and Services Tax (IBS) and the Services Tax Contribution (CBS) only to diagnoses classified as moderate or severe.
The direct action of unconstitutionality was filed by the National Institute of Rights of People with Disabilities Oceano Azul and the National Association for Support of People with Disabilities. Minister Alexandre de Moraes, rapporteur of the case, emphasized in his vote that the granting of this tax benefit must be evaluated individually, respecting legal criteria, and prohibited any form of automatic veto or generalized discrimination.
Moraes stressed that people at Level 1 of the autism spectrum may face considerable difficulties in daily communication and social interaction. Mara Ligia Kiefer, who works as a partner and inclusion project leader at Somar Diversidade and is a member of the SAE (Society of Mobility Engineers), assessed that the STF's determination is aligned with the needs of those falling into Level 1 support or having a mild disability.
According to the specialist, the support level serves to guide individual needs, not to restrict rights. She argued that the tax limitation violated the principles of Human Dignity, Equality, and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Furthermore, the ministers' decision gave greater emphasis to the evaluation model provided for in the legislation, focusing on the person, their limitations, the barriers faced, and their context, as established by the Brazilian Inclusion Law.
Mara Ligia Kiefer also highlighted that the annulment of the impediment expanded the debate about the conditions of people with invisible limitations. Thus, Autism is now understood not as a fixed condition of hierarchical severity, but rather by the functional support level the individual requires to achieve autonomy and carry out their activities.
Alessandro Fernandes, columnist for AutoPapo and author of the Disabled Person's Blog, corroborated that the decision was crucial for intensifying inclusion, ensuring that people with disabilities have fair access to their rights, without arbitrary distinctions. He stated that the STF acted correctly by reinforcing constitutional principles such as equality, human dignity, and the prohibition of discrimination, since classification by degrees has a purely clinical and assistance character, serving only to direct the type of necessary aid, and not to determine who deserves or does not deserve legal protection.
However, the columnist pointed out that much still needs to be developed regarding the rights of Persons with Disabilities (PwD). Besides this issue, Alessandro emphasized the urgency of improvements in public transport systems, inclusive education, the creation of job opportunities, as well as the health and rehabilitation conditions of people with disabilities—topics that must be prioritized in legislative projects and governmental decisions at all levels.
The second phase of the 2027 census, which involves counting the population, will for the first time collect information on caste, as indicated by the respondent, among its 40 questions. These questions include new fields such as the number of bank accounts, the location of Covid-19 vaccination, and the voter ID number.
Although these factors are important for determining citizenship or nationality, the collection of such data will not affect individuals. The government asserts that individual census data must remain confidential and cannot be used as 'legal evidence, state benefits, or for public disclosure.'
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is monitoring the situation in the autonomous city of Spain and has conveyed its observations to the authorities after visits by local representatives.
All this is being done to subsequently simplify access to the asylum procedure, which complies with the regulatory framework of the European Pact on Migration and Asylum, according to a report sent to the Spanish news agency EFE.
UNHCR indicated that this situation creates 'significant operational and humanitarian problems,' especially due to the large number of migrants in temporary informal settlements and limited access to basic services in Ceuta.
Many people in need of international protection come from countries affected by war or where widespread human rights violations are observed, such as Sudan, Yemen, Somalia, or Mali, among others.
UNHCR called for special attention to the situation of unaccompanied children, women, and other individuals whose individual circumstances and need for protection must be identified in a timely manner to establish appropriate protection measures and referral mechanisms.
In late July, about 72 thousand people entered Ceuta within 24 hours, although, according to Spanish authorities, the majority (70 thousand) later returned to Morocco.
Furthermore, at least 82 people died while attempting to reach Ceuta by sea.
