INSS expands biometric ID mandate and speeds up benefit processing

The National Institute of Social Security (INSS) has issued a series of measures to modernise and accelerate the delivery of benefits in Brazil. A new portaria, published on 22 June 2026, extends the requirement for biometric registration – fingerprints and facial photo – to virtually all retirement, aid and social assistance requests, including the Benefício de Prestação Continuada (BPC/Loas). Registrations already held in the National Identity Card (CIN), voter title or driver’s licence are accepted; new captures will become mandatory for requests submitted after 21 Nov 2025. Exemptions apply to persons over 80, migrants, refugees, residents abroad, people with mobility limits or living in hard‑to‑reach areas, and claimants of maternity aid, disability aid or survivor pensions.

To reduce the backlog, the government broadened the Programa de Gerenciamento de Benefícios (PGB). A provisional measure now places all requests that have waited 30 days – down from the previous 45‑day threshold – into a priority queue handled by extra‑task forces and by servers receiving productivity bonuses. The mutirão also now includes any pending benefit, including BPC, pension and disability claims that have been idle for more than 30 days.

Additional consumer safeguards were announced. The INSS warned that it never makes phone calls to verify “proof of life” and urged beneficiaries to avoid fraud. A separate notice confirmed the June 2026 payment calendar: benefits up to one minimum wage start on 24 June, with higher‑value payments beginning 1 July. The institute also reported that more than 656 000 retirees and pensioners are eligible for refunds of improperly deducted amounts, with over R$ 3 billion already repaid.

Together, these actions aim to protect beneficiaries, curb fraud, and move the INSS closer to its target of eradicating the benefit‑processing backlog by September 2026.