Auxílio-reclusão: requirements, the insured person’s low-income threshold, and who can receive the benefit

This page is a translation of the original Portuguese text, provided for convenience. It deals with Brazilian law. If there is any discrepancy, the Portuguese version prevails. Read the original in Portuguese

The auxílio-reclusão (a prison-confinement benefit for dependents) provides income to the dependents of a low-income insured person held in a closed regime, but it depends on strict requirements: income before the arrest, insured status, and a minimum contribution period (carência). It also requires periodic proof that the person is still in custody.

What the auxílio-reclusão is and who counts as a low-income insured person

The auxílio-reclusão is a social security benefit paid to the dependents of an insured person who has been imprisoned in a closed regime, for as long as the confinement lasts. It is provided for in Article 80 of Law No. 8.213/91 and works as a temporary replacement for the income the insured person can no longer bring home while in custody.

The key point, which is often misunderstood, is that the low-income requirement applies to the insured person, not to the family. What counts is the last contribution salary before the arrest, which must be equal to or lower than the limit set each year by an interministerial ordinance. If the insured person earned more than that ceiling at the time he or she lost their freedom, the dependents are not entitled to the benefit, even if the family ends up in financial hardship.

Another significant change concerns the type of custody. Since Law No. 13.846/2019, only imprisonment in a closed regime gives rise to the benefit. Semi-open or open regimes, house arrest, and conditional release do not qualify.

Insured status, the minimum contribution period, and the list of dependents

Besides low income, the insured person had to hold insured status on the date of the arrest. That means either still making contributions or being within the so-called grace period, which keeps social security coverage in place for a time even without contributions. A person who had lost insured status before being arrested generally cannot pass the right on to his or her dependents.

A minimum contribution period (carência) is now also required. Currently, twenty-four monthly contributions are needed for the benefit to be granted. This requirement rules out claims by people who contributed for only very short periods before being imprisoned.

Dependents follow the same order that applies to the survivor’s pension. The first class includes the spouse, the domestic partner, and children under twenty-one, or children who are disabled or have an intellectual, mental, or severe disability. If there are none, parents qualify, and lastly siblings who meet the same conditions of age or disability.

The existence of first-class dependents creates a presumption of economic dependence, which makes it easier for a spouse and children to qualify. Parents and siblings, by contrast, must prove that they depended financially on the imprisoned insured person.

When there is more than one dependent, the amount is divided in equal shares. If one of them loses beneficiary status, that share is redistributed among the others, without increasing the total paid by the institute.

The auxílio-reclusão is a social security benefit paid to the dependents of an insured person who has been imprisoned in a closed regime, for as long as the confinement lasts.

Proof of imprisonment and when the benefit ends

Being granted the auxílio-reclusão does not end the family’s obligations. For payments to continue, the dependents must periodically submit a certificate of imprisonment, a document issued by the competent authority confirming that the insured person is still in custody under the required regime. It is usually due every three months, and failure to keep it up to date results in suspension of the benefit until the situation is regularized.

The benefit also has clear grounds for termination. If the insured person escapes, payment stops, and it can resume only if he or she is recaptured, provided the other requirements are still met. Progression to a semi-open or open regime likewise ends the right, because the person is no longer in a closed regime.

In addition, the benefit ends when the insured person is released, when the sentence is completed, or when the inmate dies, in which case the dependents become entitled to a survivor’s pension. It also ends in the ordinary situations in which a person loses dependent status, such as a child coming of age without being disabled. Paying attention to these milestones helps avoid improper payments and later demands for repayment by the institute.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is entitled to receive the auxílio-reclusão?

The dependents of a low-income insured person imprisoned in a closed regime are entitled to it, as long as that person held insured status and had met the required minimum contribution period on the date of the arrest. Beneficiaries follow the order used for the survivor’s pension, starting with the spouse, the domestic partner, and children under twenty-one or disabled children.

How is the insured person’s low-income requirement assessed?

The analysis looks at the last contribution salary before the arrest, which must be equal to or lower than the limit updated each year by ordinance. The test applies to the insured person’s own income, not to the family’s financial situation after the imprisonment, which often causes confusion among applicants.

What causes the auxílio-reclusão to stop being paid?

The benefit ends with an escape, progression to a semi-open or open regime, release, completion of the sentence, or the death of the insured person. It is also suspended when the dependents fail to submit the periodic certificate of imprisonment, and it is reinstated only after the paperwork is regularized.

As informações deste artigo são de caráter informativo e não substituem consulta jurídica individualizada. Cada caso possui particularidades que exigem análise específica.