diff --git a/pytrustnfe/nfse/imperial/__init__.py b/pytrustnfe/nfse/imperial/__init__.py
index 64a8125..217c24f 100644
--- a/pytrustnfe/nfse/imperial/__init__.py
+++ b/pytrustnfe/nfse/imperial/__init__.py
@@ -27,11 +27,10 @@ def _send(certificado, method, **kwargs):
 
     client = HttpClient(base_url)
     response = client.post_soap(soap, 'NFeaction/AWS_NFE.%s' % method)
-
-    response, obj = sanitize_response(response)
+    response, obj = sanitize_response(response.encode('utf-8'))
     return {
         'sent_xml': xml_send,
-        'received_xml': response,
+        'received_xml': response.decode(),
         'object': obj
     }