Brasília, 2 March 2026 – The Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) has released a document assessing Brazil’s degree of alignment with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recommendation on merger control, updated in June 2025.
The study provides a comparative analysis of the rules and practices adopted in Brazil in light of the international best practices consolidated in the new OECD instrument, which sets out principles to ensure that merger review is effective, efficient and timely, with clear notification procedures and substantive assessment, as well as transparent and reasoned evaluations.
According to the document, the Brazilian regime shows a high degree of alignment with the 2025 Recommendation. The assessment also identifies opportunities for targeted improvements, in line with the spirit of the Recommendation, which recognises the importance of a continuous process of review and updating of merger control rules and practices.
The study notes that the 2025 version represents a significant development compared to the 2005 recommendation, by more broadly incorporating substantive aspects of competition analysis and reflecting recent developments and internationally recognised best practices in the review of concentration transactions.
The document also highlights the historical relevance of OECD recommendations for the development of the Brazilian Competition Defense System, including in the process that led to the adoption of a pre-merger notification model in the country.
Brazil adopted the OECD Recommendation in 2019 through CADE and continues to apply the updated 2025 version. The newly released study underscores CADE’s commitment to following international best practices and to continuously improving competition policy in Brazil.
