eSocial: obligations remain until the consolidation

Luciana Lupinucci and Marcelo Lima

When the Provisional Measure (MP) of Economic Freedom was in progress, the end of eSocial was even considered. Immediately, a possible system extinction gained the pages of newspapers in a very alarmist tone.

The issue had a major impact, and, as it has been widely commented on, some employers may have felt that they could relax in meeting the demands of the platform in view of its vaunted end.

However, with the advance of MP, there was a treatment to the issue. The eSocial would not be extinguished, but simplified, to the benefit of those who invested so much in meeting the obligation.

The final sanctioned text says - Law 13.874/2019:

"The Digital Tax Bookkeeping System for Social Security and Labor Tax Obligations (eSocial) will be replaced at the federal level by a simplified digital bookkeeping system for social security, labor and tax obligations."

Joining to eSocial

The elimination or simplification of several fields of the layout promises to make the filling of the fields by the employers more dynamic.

The government has been showing, at least in their speech, a great concern to respect the investments made by companies and professionals, whether in systems, training and qualifications of the workforce.

The companies' efforts to join eSocial are reflected in the figures. By July, nearly 6 million employers submitted the information. About 40 million workers are already registered in the system.

 

Employers Group	No. of employers
GROUP 1 - Companies earning annual revenues greater than BRL 78 million	13,078
GROUP 2 - Business entities earning revenues in 2016 of up to BRL 78 million and not opting for Simples Nacional	1,155,364
GROUP 3 - Employers opting for Simples Nacional, individual employers (except domestic), farmers and non-profit entities	3,104,844
Domestic Employers	1,465,480
Total employers	5,738,766

 

Employer Group	No. of employees
GROUP 1	11,742,710
GROUP 2	11,305,264
GROUP 3	14,636,866
Domestic Employers	1,551,713
Total workers	39,236,553

Source: Portal eSocial

How to proceed with the changes ahead

The government guides employers remain providing information to the system until the publication of the new simplified layout, according to the groups’ mandatory schedule.

In other words, companies should keep their obligations up to date while waiting for definitions of the new tool format.

The expectation is that the current system is replaced by a simpler one as of January 2020, with considerable reduction of events and fields, so that its operation would be more objective and less bureaucratic.

The involved agents are still debating changes. Recently, the Commission for Economic Development, Industry, Trade and Services held a public hearing to discuss the changes and simplifications that will be deployed.

Representatives of companies and confederations have met with government officials to help streamline the system, helping to improve layout.

The focus of the work is to replace the accessory obligations currently in force, balancing what current legislation demands with the desired simplification.

Changes already in force

The first simplification measures were published in August, through the Technical Note 15/2019, bringing only changes to the layouts, with corrections and punctual adjustments.

Thus, the following events remain, but from the layout version 2.5, reporting became optional:

• S-1300 - Employers’ Union
• S-2260 - Call for Intermittent Work
• S-2250 - Prior Notice
• S-1070 - Administrative/Judicial proceedings, mandatory only for tax matters, FGTS or Union Contribution

Schedule of Requirement

The use of eSocial is mandatory for the whole private sector. As evidenced by the current schedule, the deadline for providing a range of information, such as hiring, worker registration and non-periodic events, is over.

So far, for January 2020, are still expected:

• The beginning of reporting occupational health and safety data to companies in Group 1;
• The beginning of reporting concerning payroll to companies in Group 3;
• The beginning of employer registration and tables for public agencies and international organizations.

Electronic CTPS

The workers’ data in eSocial will feed the Electronic CTPS, also established by the Law 13874/2019.

Thus, companies that currently use eSocial should hire employees without requiring them to have a physical document. As all data recorded in the CTPS are those that must be informed to the system, the employer is exempt from the notes in the former booklet.

The employer must keep observing the deadlines for reporting to eSocial so that it is not subject to fines and penalties.

See more: Carteira de Trabalho Digital: Understand What Changes

Support to track changes

Although the eSocial project is already in progress, it is necessary to keep on tracking all changes to remain compliant with the obligation, removing the risk of exposure to fines and penalties.

Although program simplification is foreseen, with the strong reduction of fields and events, it is certain that electronic surveillance and crossings with other integrated systems will not retreat.

In this way, we see the necessity to closely monitor this obligation in all its details. Domingues e Pinho Contadores supports companies in identifying gaps in compliance with eSocial and other interconnected systems, eliminating any liabilities.

The Domingues e Pinho Contadores’ experts, always up-to-date with the latest changes in legislation, assist companies in the adaptation and adjustments for permanent compliance with the labor and social security obligations.