The Superintendence of Mining Inspection of the National Mining Agency (SFI/ANM) now requires, under Order of Service No. 373/2026, the mandatory use of a standardized form within the Electronic Information System (SEI) to substantiate technical decisions on Final Exploration Reports regarding the lack of existence of a deposit (Negative FERs).
This measure replaces the former framework, where evaluation followed general Mining Code guidelines and varied according to regional office criteria, with a unified nationwide checklist. In practice, this standardization seeks to eliminate regional discrepancies in technical reviews, aiming to provide greater predictability for audits and accelerate the screening of inadequately prepared reports.
Formal Admissibility and Technical Merit
The guidelines set forth by the norm divide ANM’s inspection process into two sequential phases: formal admissibility screening and technical merit examination.
During the admissibility phase, procedural prerequisites are verified prior to analyzing field data:
- Ineffective Report: Occurs when filed after the declaration of forfeiture or the submission of a waiver/relinquishment request for the Exploration Permit, maintaining the legal effects of the title’s prior extinguishment.
- Non-cognizance (Dismissed for Untimeliness): Occurs when the document is submitted after the expiration of the permit’s validity, ending the administrative review without an analysis of the technical content.
Once admissibility is granted, the technical examination evaluates the actual proof of the non-existence of a mineral deposit (Article 30, III, of the Brazilian Mining Code). For the report to be approved and the process archived, the document must cumulatively present the characterization of the geological environment, mapping at prospect scale, and the presentation of at least secondary data resulting from the executed field work.
The non-approval of a negative report serves as a residual outcome when a timely report fails to meet these three minimum requirements. In such cases, direct archiving is denied (Article 30, II, of the Mining Code), and the area is directed to a Public Tender Process.
Summary of Procedural Outcomes
| Classification | Procedural Condition | Area Outcome |
| Ineffective | Filed after forfeiture or waiver/relinquishment | Pre-existing extinguishment effects maintained |
| Non-cognizable | Filed after permit expiration (untimely) | Technical examination precluded |
| Archived | Timely + Compliance with 3 technical requirements | Available area for future application |
| Not Approved | Timely + Insufficient exploration data | Directed to Public Tender |
The establishment of the standardized roadmap reinforces that purely declaratory reports lacking proper supporting exploration data will prevent direct release of the area, resulting in its referral to public bidding.
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