CNPJ

CNPJ, or Cadastro Nacional da Pessoa Jurídica, is the Brazilian corporate taxpayer identification number. It is issued and managed by the Receita Federal do Brasil (the federal tax authority) and serves to uniquely identify legal entities operating in Brazil for tax, accounting, and regulatory purposes.

The CNPJ consists of 14 digits, written in the form XX.XXX.XXX/0001-XX. The first eight digits form the company’s base or root, the four-digit 'branch' code identifies the establishment (with 0001 usually representing the head office), and the last two digits are check digits calculated through a modulo 11 algorithm used to validate the number.

Registration creates a public record linked to the company’s official name, trade name, registered address, municipality, state, tax regime, CNAE economic activity codes, and the company’s status. The CNPJ is used in most tax-related documents, commercial transactions, payroll, and social contributions, and is widely required for issuing invoices and conducting business in Brazil. The information is publicly accessible through government portals for purposes of verification.

Digital CNPJ exists as part of electronic documents and the CNPJ can be associated with a digital certificate (e-CNPJ) to sign electronic invoices and other documents. Validation of a CNPJ can be performed by checking the formatting and computing check digits per the official algorithm.

Relation to CPF: CNPJ identifies legal entities, while CPF identifies individuals. The system forms part of Brazil’s tax and corporate registration framework, and is complemented by additional identifiers such as NIRE in some state registrations.