Under Lula, the INSS minimum rose R$ 140 above inflation. Under Bolsonaro, R$ 51.

In August 2026, seven in ten benefits paid by the INSS (29.5 million of 42.7 million) were worth exactly one minimum wage^[1]. At September 2026 prices, that minimum gained R$ 51 above inflation under Bolsonaro and R$ 140 under Lula^[4][6].

The R$ 1,302 of January 2023 was set by Bolsonaro and counts for him^[5]. From 2024, Lula’s law adds GDP growth to inflation^[2]. Since 2025, that gain has been capped at 2.5%: the 2026 minimum was R$ 1,621, not R$ 1,636^[10][6].

Those above the minimum got 3.9% in 2026, equal to inflation as measured by the INPC^[11]: only the inflation catch-up.

Flávio voted Yes to the pension reform on 22/10/2019, passed by the Senate 60 to 19^[12]. Under it, a survivor’s pension is 50% of the retirement benefit plus 10 points per dependant; the retirement benefit is 60% of the average, plus 2 points for each year beyond 20 of contributions^[13].

The INSS queue hit a record under Lula^[14]: 3,126,220 claims in February 2026, the highest in the current series^[9]. By August there were 1,251,813, down 59%, and those waiting more than 45 days fell 79%. From January to August, rejections rose 72% on the same period of 2025 and outnumbered grants: 6.1 million claims rejected and 5.9 million granted^[1].

The average wait for a medical assessment is 17 days, against 70 in August 2023^[15]. A benefit took 85 days on average to be granted in May 2022, and 33 in August 2026^[7][1]. Flávio’s plan cites the record and says: “Em 2022, nós entregamos essa fila em queda” (“In 2022, we handed over this queue falling”)^[3]. The way the queue is counted changed in July 2023, and earlier figures are not comparable with current ones^[1].

From 2019 to 2024, association deductions from INSS benefits totalled R$ 6.3 bn, according to INSS and CGU data^[16]. Flávio’s plan says unions and left-wing parties “conseguiram suprimir” (“managed to suppress”) the revalidation of those deductions^[3]. It ended in 2022, in a voice vote backed by every party, in a law signed by Bolsonaro^[17].

According to the Social Security minister, R$ 3.3 bn was returned to 4.8 million retirees^[18]. In January 2026, Law 15,327 banned those deductions^[19].

The text of Flávio’s registered plan does not mention the minimum wage, pension increases or the BPC^[3]. According to Folha de S.Paulo, Flávio’s economic team is considering limiting increases to pensions and to the BPC to inflation. The campaign said this “não consta no programa registrado” (“is not in the registered programme”) and that informal conversations cannot become an official position^[20].

For seven in ten INSS benefits, the minimum wage increase is their increase^[1]. On 25 October, the vote chooses who will steer that policy for the next four years.

For the thirteenth-month payment of retirees and pensioners, read the Constitution page. Read about the Constitution