How gold is priced in Brazil
Brazilian gold is quoted in reais per gram — the unit used by B3, the São Paulo exchange — and jewellery is usually 18K (ouro 750). The figures here are international spot gold converted at today's USD/BRL rate: the metal value before IOF or consumption taxes and before the dealer's or jeweller's margin.
Gold as a financial asset: 1% IOF
Brazil taxes gold in two ways. Gold bought as a financial asset (ouro ativo financeiro) — bars and B3 contracts traded through institutions authorised by the Banco Central, mainly DTVMs — is subject only to IOF at 1%, charged once on its first acquisition (Constitution art. 153 §5 and Law 7,766/1989). Gold sold as merchandise, including jewellery, instead carries ordinary consumption taxes such as ICMS, which the tax reform is replacing with CBS and IBS over a transition that runs to 2033.
B3 and the gold market
B3 trades spot gold in reais per gram: the standard OZ1D lot is 250 g of 99.99% gold, with 10 g (OZ2D) and 0.225 g (OZ3D) odd lots, and gold can be delivered as a bar or left in custody. Its price follows the international price × the real–dollar rate. The Banco Central bought 42.8 tonnes of gold between September and November 2025, its first purchases in four years, lifting its holdings to about 172 tonnes.
Traceability rules
Since 3 July 2023 every transaction in gold as a financial asset needs an electronic invoice, the Nota Fiscal Eletrônica do Ouro (Receita Federal IN 2,138/2023). In March 2025 the Supreme Court unanimously struck down the "good-faith" rule that let buyers rely on a seller's own statement of where gold came from, so DTVMs must now check its origin. When buying jewellery, ask for a nota fiscal showing the weight and karat.
Tax and duty information last reviewed October 2026. Rules change — confirm with your dealer or tax authority before a large purchase.