White-Collar Crime 2025 Comparisons

Under Brazilian law, criminal offences are divided into two groups: crimes and misdemeanours. Crimes can be committed by commission, that is, when the perpetrator engages in conduct prohibited by law, or by omission, when the perpetrator fails to act as expected, causing harm. Crimes, in turn, can be considered to have greater or lesser offensive potential. Crimes of lesser offensive potential carry a maximum penalty of less than two years. Crimes can be considered intentional or negligent. Intentional crimes are those committed with intent. Negligent crimes are those committed through negligence, recklessness, or incompetence. For criminal liability to arise from negligence, there must be an express legal provision to that effect. Otherwise, criminal liability only arises when the conduct is intentional. Crimes can also be considered material or formal. In material crimes, the existence of the crime depends on the occurrence of a result provided for by law. In formal crimes, the mere performance of the conduct provided for by law is sufficient to constitute the crime, regardless of whether any harm occurs. Material crimes allow for attempt, whereas formal crimes do not.

The burden of proof always falls on the person making the allegation. In criminal proceedings, this burden initially falls on the prosecution, due to the principle of presumption of innocence.

The statute of limitations is calculated based on the maximum penalty for the crime. The higher the penalty, the longer the statute of limitations. This period varies from three to 20 years. The statute of limitations begins to run from the date the crime was committed. The statute of limitations is interrupted at the following moments: upon filing of the complaint, upon conviction in the first instance, upon conviction, and finally, upon commencement of the sentence.

Brazilian authorities only have the power to act within Brazil. Compliance with their orders outside Brazilian jurisdiction will depend on the existence of international treaties in this regard. Brazil is a signatory to the mutual legal assistance treaty and also to the anti-corruption treaty. Crimes committed by Brazilians outside Brazil can be tried in Brazil, provided that the requirements set forth in Article 7 of the Penal Code are met. Brazil participates in the FATF, the OECD, INTERPOL, and the World Bank. Brazil is not a member of Europol or Eurojust.

Criminal liability in Brazil applies only to individuals. The only possibility for a company to be held criminally liable is in cases of environmental crimes. The attribution of criminal liability in Brazil depends on the direct participation, whether active or passive, of the individual, in a culpable manner (in the broad sense of the word). Without such culpable conduct, it is not possible to attribute criminal liability. Although in some cases Brazilian law provides for the attribution of criminal liability objectively, that is, based on the position held by the person within the company, case law does not accept this type of criminal attribution.

Judges have a lot of freedom to apply penalties in Brazil. However, they must comply with the maximum penalties established for each crime. Since 2019, Brazilian law has included a non-prosecution agreement, applicable to all non-violent crimes with a minimum sentence of less than four years. To qualify, the perpetrator must confess to the crime and provide compensation for the damage, among other conditions that may be established. Corporate culture and remediation efforts may be taken into account in cases involving environmental crimes, which are the only offences for which legal entities may incur criminal liability. In other cases, such factors have limited relevance, as criminal liability attaches to individuals and criminal and civil proceedings are independent of one another.

The judge may set a minimum amount of compensation for damages in the criminal conviction. It is worth noting that this amount will be payable by the accused individual, since, as a rule, there is no criminal liability for companies, except in cases of environmental crimes. For the judge to fix this minimum compensation amount, the victim must be designated as an assistant prosecutor in the criminal proceedings and must explicitly submit this request. There is also the possibility that the judge may substitute the custodial sentence with a financial penalty payable to the victim.

The main authorities are the police and the Public Prosecutor’s Office. As a general rule, crimes are investigated by the state civil police and the proceedings are conducted by the State Public Prosecutor’s Office. When the crime affects the assets of the federal government (eg, federal tax evasion) or when there is a specific legal provision (eg, crimes against the financial system and money laundering crimes), jurisdiction passes to the Federal Court. In such cases, the criminal investigation is conducted by the Federal Police and the prosecution by the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office. At both the state and federal levels, there are police units specialising in white-collar crimes, as well as the Public Prosecutor’s Office, which has special action groups.

The vast majority of white-collar crimes are crimes subject to unconditional public prosecution. Consequently, any authority that becomes aware of the commission of such a crime has an obligation to initiate an investigation. In cases where the crime depends on the victim’s initiative, the authorities can only act after the victim expresses this desire. The deadline for the victim to file a criminal complaint (for crimes subject to conditional prosecution) is six months.

Police authorities, acting in conjunction with the Public Prosecutor’s Office, have the power to seek court orders authorising search and seizure and the lifting of banking, tax, telephone or electronic secrecy. They may also order the temporary or preventive detention of suspects. Police authorities have the power to summon witnesses to give evidence, who cannot refuse to testify and are required to tell the truth.In addition, the authorities may request the surrender of documents from companies, which cannot invoke the right against self-incrimination, since they are not parties to the criminal proceedings, except in cases involving environmental offences.

There are no laws regulating the use of AI in white-collar crime investigations.

In cases involving cartel crimes, internal investigations can be very relevant in mitigating the criminal consequences for the individuals involved. This is because these internal investigations can lead to the signing of a leniency agreement, which can result in the extinction of criminal liability for individuals involved in cartel crimes and related offences. Outside of this scenario, internal investigations have little impact on the criminal defence of the individuals involved. Even in corruption cases, while internal investigations may enable a leniency agreement to be entered into on behalf of the company, such agreements do not produce criminal effects for individuals. On the contrary, they may even generate additional evidence against these individuals. Brazilian authorities are entitled to request any and all documents from companies, and this power extends to materials produced in the course of internal investigations, including those conducted by lawyers, as the concept of professional secrecy under Brazilian law differs significantly from that applied in other jurisdictions.

White-collar crimes are mostly crimes subject to unconditional public prosecution. In such cases, any authority that becomes aware of the commission of an offence is under a legal obligation to initiate an investigation, and the prosecuting authority has no discretion as to whether to proceed. In crimes subject to public prosecution conditional on the victim’s representation or in cases of private prosecution, the victim may have the right to submit a representation or to file a criminal complaint.

Brazilian law essentially provides for four types of negotiated resolutions:

• criminal transactions (transação penal)apply to misdemeanours and non-violent crimes with a maximum sentence of less than two years;
• conditional suspension of proceedings applies to non-violent crimes with a minimum sentence of less than one year;
• non-prosecution agreements apply to non-violent crimes with a minimum sentence not exceeding four years; and
• plea bargaining applies to any and all crimes, but depends on the collaborating defendant producing evidence that reveals criminal activity on the part of other people.

White-collar crimes are scattered across various legal statutes. There is no specific definition of what these crimes are and what they entail. Generally, crimes committed in the context of business activity are considered white-collar crimes. The most common are:

• tax evasion (up to five years in prison);
• cartel crimes (up to five years in prison);
• crimes against consumers (up to five years in prison);
• crimes against the national financial system (up to 12 years in prison);
• money laundering crimes (up to ten years in prison);
• environmental crimes (up to five years in prison);
• bid rigging (up to eight years in prison);
• bankruptcy crimes (up to six years in prison);
• corruption crimes (up to 12 years in prison); and
• crimes against trade marks and patents and unfair competition (up to one year in prison).

In Brazil, the crime of corruption consists of offering an undue advantage to a public official. The concept of undue advantage is broad and can be anything that has economic content. The mere offer already constitutes a crime, and it is not necessary for the undue advantage to be delivered. The concept of public official is also quite broad and can even include an employee of a private company that is providing a service typical of public administration as a contracted company or concessionaire. There are only two types of private corruption in Brazil: crimes of corruption in the management of sports entities and corruption of a competitor’s employee (one of the forms of unfair competition).

Brazil has enacted legislation commonly referred to as the Anti-Corruption Law. It is a law that provides for civil and administrative penalties for companies involved in corruption and fraud in public tenders. This law provides that companies with an effective compliance programme may benefit from reduced penalties. Among the various requirements of such programmes is the promotion and encouragement of the reporting of corrupt practices.

Brazilian law provides for the crime of insider trading, which carries a penalty of up to five years in prison. There is also a specific law that deals with crimes against the financial system, notably crimes of fraudulent management of a financial institution, which carry a penalty of up to 12 years in prison, and the crime of disseminating false or misleading information about a financial institution, which carries a penalty of up to six years in prison. As for crimes of abuse of economic power, such as cartels, there is a specific law on them, which provides for a penalty of up to five years in prison.

The crime of tax evasion consists of using fraudulent means to avoid paying taxes or reduce their amount. Every company has an obligation to maintain accounting records that accurately reflect its operations. For the crime of tax evasion to occur, the tax authorities must establish the tax liability, which is done by issuing a tax assessment notice. Once the tax assessment notice has been issued, the company will have the right to defend itself in the administrative sphere. Only after the administrative tax proceedings have been completed will the crime of tax evasion be deemed consummated. Once the tax credit has been established, if there is payment or a request for an instalment payment of the debt and this is complied with, the punishment for the crime of tax evasion will be extinguished.

There is an obligation to maintain the company’s financial records. However, there is no specific crime resulting from failure to comply with this obligation. Failure to maintain the company’s financial records may be a constituent element of another crime, such as tax evasion, money laundering, or even fraudulent management of a financial institution.

Cartel crime consists of the formation of an agreement, arrangement, or alliance between companies with the aim of eliminating competition in whole or in part. It is a formal crime. Therefore, the mere agreement between companies already constitutes a crime, regardless of whether competition is actually eliminated. The penalties for this crime are up to five years in prison.

Brazilian law provides for several crimes against consumers. Noteworthy examples include the sale of goods unfit for consumption, which carries a penalty of up to five years in prison; failure to issue a recall, which carries a penalty of up to two years in prison; and misleading advertising, which carries a penalty of up to one year in prison.

As a general rule, the use of computers or other IT and technological resources to commit crimes is something that aggravates the penalties for other crimes.

Brazilian law also recognises the crime of hacking into another person’s computer device, which carries a penalty of up to four years in prison.

With regard to trade secrets, the Penal Code includes the crime of breach of professional confidentiality, which carries penalties of up to one year in prison. In addition, the Industrial Property Code considers the violation of trade secrets a crime and imposes a penalty of up to one year in prison.

Brazilian law recognises two types of customs crimes:

• The crime of smuggling consists of using fraudulent means to reduce the taxes levied on the import or export of products, and it is punishable by up to four years in prison.
• The crime of contraband consists of bringing prohibited goods into the country, and it is punishable by up to five years in prison.

There is no relevant information in this jurisdiction.

Brazilian law provides that anyone who participates in a crime will be held accountable to the extent of their participation. There is also specific provision for the crime of criminal association, where three or more people unite to commit crimes on a regular basis. Critically, this charge does not require the participants to have actually carried out the intended crimes for the crime to be established.

The penalties for this crime can be up to three years in prison. In addition to this crime, there is also the crime of forming a criminal organisation, which consists of four or more people associating in an organised and stable manner to commit crimes punishable by maximum sentences exceeding four years. The penalties for the crime of criminal organisation can be up to eight years in prison.

Money laundering is the practice of conducting transactions intended to conceal or disguise the nature, origin, location, disposition, movement, or ownership of assets, rights, or values derived directly or indirectly from criminal activity. The penalties for this crime include imprisonment for up to ten years.

The money laundering law imposes on various individuals and legal entities the duty to report suspicious money laundering transactions to the Central Bank. Financial institutions, insurance companies, sports betting companies, companies operating in the art market, and agencies representing athletes or artists are some examples of companies with a reporting obligation to the Central Bank.

Brazilian legislation has a specific law for environmental crimes. It is the only type of crime that allows for the criminal liability of legal entities. Brazilian legislation also includes the crime of reducing a person to a condition analogous to slavery, which carries a penalty of imprisonment for up to eight years. In addition, the Penal Code includes the crime of human trafficking, which carries a penalty of imprisonment for up to eight years.

As a general rule, the use of computers or other IT and technological resources to commit crimes constitutes an aggravating factor in sentencing for other crimes.

There is currently no specific offence addressing the misuse of artificial intelligence, algorithmic trading or automated decision-making in financial or commercial contexts.

Crypto-assets encompass a wide range of instruments, including currencies or payment tokens, utility tokens, security tokens, stablecoins, governance tokens, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and platform or ecosystem tokens. It is important to note that some crypto-assets may fit into more than one category (for example, ETH is both a cryptocurrency and a utility token for the Ethereum network), and their classification may evolve as the crypto space matures and regulations develop.

In summary, crypto-asset service providers need to establish very robust governance and compliance structures to navigate this complex and ever-changing regulatory environment. Collaboration with legal advisers and compliance experts is essential to ensure adherence to local and international standards. Failure to meet these requirements may result in fines, cessation of operations, criminal sanctions against individuals, depending on the crimes they are charged with, without prejudice to possible prohibitions on holding management positions in regulated companies in the future.

Criminal defence is a very complex matter, which varies greatly from situation to situation. Therefore, there is no standard defence for white-collar crimes. The existence of a compliance programme may be invoked as an argument to demonstrate good faith, but it is far from constituting a cornerstone of criminal defence, particularly as companies with well-structured compliance programmes may nevertheless commit crimes.

• Tax Law: Very small amounts of taxes owed may be disregarded. Tax issues involving sums less than BRL10,000.00 are considered irrelevant.
• Criminal Law: Minor offences that cause minimal or no damage may not be prosecuted.

Brazilian law essentially provides for four types of negotiated resolutions:

• criminal transactions (transação penal) apply to misdemeanours and non-violent crimes with a maximum sentence of less than two years;
• conditional suspension of proceedings applies to non-violent crimes with a minimum sentence of less than one year;
• non-prosecution agreements apply to non-violent crimes with a minimum sentence not exceeding four years; and
• plea bargaining applies to any and all crimes, but depends on the collaborating defendant producing evidence that reveals criminal activity on the part of other people.

Whistle-blowers of white-collar crimes may be considered witnesses, depending on the situation. In this case, there is a law that regulates witness protection measures. This protection is not limited to witnesses, but may also include victims, collaborating defendants, and even defendants who decide to co-operate with the justice system (plea bargaining). The measures are as follows: change of residence, use of a social name (keeping the real identity confidential), financial assistance for basic expenses, psychological and social support, inclusion in social assistance programmes, escort, and personal security. Inclusion in the programme depends on the analysis of a deliberative council, which assesses the degree of threat and the relevance of the person’s co-operation with the justice system. Protection is temporary and periodically reevaluated, and may be extended or terminated as necessary. The entire process is confidential to ensure the safety of those protected.

Defence strategies may be affected when proceedings involve multiple jurisdictions. Practical difficulties are often related to the production of evidence (difficulty locating and subpoenaing witnesses, difficulties collecting documents, difficulties conducting expert evidence). In addition to these practical difficulties, there are also legal difficulties. Depending on the jurisdiction, there may be no mutual legal assistance treaties or there may be greater bureaucracy involved in complying with letters rogatory. Currently, technological resources such as video conferencing have made things much easier. However, there are legal restrictions in certain jurisdictions on conducting proceedings remotely.

Following the collapse of Operation Car Wash, efforts to combat white-collar crime in Brazil have diminished significantly. The Federal Supreme Court has moved away from a strictly technical application of the law and has become increasingly susceptible to political pressure. Public spending remains high and largely uncontrolled, with a growing tendency towards increasing the tax burden, which places substantial pressure on the business community.

At the end of the year, Brazil will hold presidential, congressional, and state government elections. The political scenario is still very uncertain, and it is difficult to predict what lies ahead.