The excellence of the research conducted at the State University of Campinas (Unicamp) demands not only dedication from research groups, but also agile and efficient administrative action. Continuing institutional efforts to ensure a continuous flow of scientific equipment and supplies, Unicamp, the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), and the Unicamp Development Foundation (FUNCAMP) signed an institutional cooperation agreement.
This agreement, unprecedented in the State of São Paulo, establishes guidelines for the administrative and financial management of international acquisitions. In practice, Funcamp will now carry out, on behalf of and for the benefit of Unicamp, all purchases of imported goods and contracting of services abroad that are essential for scientific projects funded by Fapesp. It is important to mention that this procedure is independent of the annual global import quota for research purposes of the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), allowing imports to be carried out predictably and in a continuous flow.
Funcamp will fully assume the logistical and bureaucratic stages of the operation: the purchase, transportation, complex customs clearance, and final delivery of the goods to the researchers. The document also guarantees that all equipment acquired for the research infrastructure will be immediately incorporated into Unicamp's assets and kept on the University's premises.
In 2025, Unicamp paid approximately R$ 2,3 million in import taxes on more than 250 research items, using extra-budgetary resources from grant fees collected for FAEPEX. This emergency action reinforced the institutional commitment to supporting the continuity of our research, but its continuation would have been financially unfeasible.
In this context, the signing of the Unicamp/Fapesp/Funcamp agreement will allow imports to be carried out with the agility of Funcamp, benefiting from Unicamp's tax exemption and without the incidence of import taxes. It is a milestone in the import process, which was carefully prepared by Unicamp's Attorney General's Office.
Less bureaucracy, more science.
The signing of the agreement, which has an initial term of five years, renewable for an equal period, is the realization of the legal instruments that the Central Administration has been developing to bring greater security and predictability to the processes of importing research materials. This initiative focuses on protecting the scientist's time, increasing the speed of the import process.
“This agreement is part of a broader process of managing research project resources involving the intervention of support foundations,” stated the administrative director of Fapesp, Antonio José de Almeida Meirelles. In fact, the schedule defined by Fapesp indicates that the following modalities will have Funcamp intervention starting on November 1, 2026: Thematic Project, SPEC, JP1, JP2, CIP, CPA, PITE, and CEPID. For the APR, Public Policies, Public Education, and Organization of Scientific Meetings modalities, intervention will be mandatory starting on May 1, 2027.
For the academic community at Unicamp, the reduction of this administrative burden has a direct impact. By transferring fiscal and customs procedures to the expertise of Funcamp, the researchers responsible for the projects gain breathing room to concentrate their efforts on research activities.
This is a fundamental step towards continuing to expand the impact of our production on the scientific and economic development of the State of São Paulo and the world. Once again, overcoming administrative bottlenecks with joint solutions, we reaffirm our commitment to excellence. Research at Unicamp matters..
Check out the article at FAPESP Agency
