Changes to the Civil Code: adjustment for inflation by IPCA and interest by Selic
In brief
On July 1, the Law No. 14,905/24 was published, introducing important changes to the Civil Code regarding monetary adjustment and interest, as well as cancelling the application of Decree-Law No. 22,626/1933 (Anti-usura Law) to certain legal relationships.
More details
In view of such new law, if the monetary adjustment index has not been agreed by the parties or is not provided for in a specific law, the National Consumer Price Index (called IPCA) will be applied. The Selic rate is now expressly indicated in §1 of article 406 of the Civil Code, and will serve as a reference for calculating interest, although the portion corresponding to the monetary adjustment calculated by the IPCA shall be deducted from its calculation. The Selic rate is also now the limit for interest on loans for economic purposes (Civil Code, article 591). In practice, the legislation should lead to a new methodology for applying the Selic rate, which until now has been the index used for interest and monetary adjustment together.
The Selic rate is already in force (although art. 406, §2° provides that the calculation method will be still defined by the National Monetary Council and published by the Central Bank). The other changes, such as the use of the IPCA for monetary restatement, will only come into force within 60 days after the publication of the law. Strictly speaking, these changes should have repercussions on – and be detrimental to – the ongoing discussion before the Special Court of the Superior Court of Justice about the use of the Selic rate for monetary adjustment and the calculation of interest on judicial debts.
Finally, article 3 of Law No. 14,905/24 establishes that the Anti-usura Law does not apply to obligations:
I – contracted between legal entities;
II – represented by bonds or securities;
III – contracted with: a) financial institutions and other institutions authorized to operate by the Central Bank of Brazil; b) investment funds or clubs; c) leasing companies and simple credit companies; d) civil society organizations of public interest referred to in Law No. 9,790, of March 23, 1999, which are dedicated to granting credit; and
IV – carried out on the financial, capital or securities markets.
