The early 1940s were marked by a chaotic international scenario, with the great powers immersed in the Second World War and the international financial system shattered. This environment led to the celebration of business among several European nations, the United States and Japan, with the purpose of promoting the reconstruction of Europe in the post-war period. These deals provided for compensation agreements, involving counterparts. Albeit initially aimed at the agricultural and industrial sectors, such compensations quickly extended to the defense area. Called offset, the compensation agreement developed over the subsequent decades, becoming a common practice in international trade, especially in the field of defense, as is the case of Brazil. The target of fierce criticism, the employment of offsets was regarded as a protectionist measure and contrary to the development of international trade. In Brazil, despite having been adopted on a mandatory basis for large-scale acquisitions in the field of defense, offset is still little known, orbiting in a scenario of incipient rules, obscurity, lack of transparency and lack of adequate management and monitoring mechanisms. Considering the origin and evolvement of offset mechanism, it is possible to conclude that the efficient use of such mechanism through proper application, management and monitoring can bring great contributions to Brazil s Defense Industrial Base. The objective of the present study is to broaden the debate on the appropriate use of offset in the Brazilian scenario, seeking to demonstrate the feasibility as a powerful instrument for the industrial, technological and development for the country.