Stocks: day trade vs. swing trade

Equities (ações) are the asset class where self-assessment matters most, because no broker withholds the bulk of the tax for you. The Receita treats two styles of trading differently, and you must classify every sale correctly. Rates below are as of the time of writing — verify them.

The two regimes

• Swing trade (operação comum) — buying and selling on different days. Net monthly gains are taxed at 15%.
• Day trade — buying and selling the same asset on the same day. Net monthly gains are taxed at 20%.

The classification is per-operation and is what the broker reports.

The tiny withholding ("dedo-duro")

There is a small amount withheld at source purely so the Receita can cross-check that you declared: commonly 0.005% on swing-trade sales and 1% on day-trade profit. This is the famous IRRF "dedo-duro" (snitch tax). It is almost negligible in value, but two things matter:

• It is not the real tax — you still owe 15%/20% via DARF.
• It can be deducted from the DARF you pay, and if it accumulates unused it can even be recovered on the annual declaration.

A worked example

In one month you do swing trades only, ending with R$5,000 of net gain (and you are above the exemption — next lesson):

Net swing gain     = R$5,000
IR due (15%)       = 5,000 × 0.15 = R$750
IRRF already taken = ~0.005% of sales (a few reais)
DARF to pay        = 750 − IRRF withheld

The golden rule

Never mix day-trade and swing-trade results in the same pool when calculating — they have different rates and their losses can only be offset within the same modality (covered in the loss-offset lesson). Keep separate running totals. Educational only; confirm rates and let an accountant review your apuração.