Brazil's INSS advances 13th‑salary payments as public‑servant bonus rules clarified

The Federal Social Security Institute (INSS) announced that the larger payments received by retirees and pensioners in late May and early June were not a new permanent benefit but the result of an advance of the annual 13th‑salary bonus (abono anual). More than 35 million beneficiaries received the advance, with a second installment of about R$ 39 billion transferred to account holders. The institute warned that the payment will not be repeated and urged recipients to verify amounts through official channels to avoid scams.

Separately, Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice (STJ) and the National Uniformization Tribunal (TNU) reaffirmed that the "abono de permanência" paid to public‑servants who remain in active duty must be counted in the calculation base of their 13th‑salary gratuity. The courts clarified that the bonus is a regular remunerative benefit, not an indemnity, and rejected claims of duplicate payments, establishing distinct treatment for the administrative rubric that returns pension‑contribution refunds.

Both rulings aim to clarify the composition of the 13th‑salary payments for different beneficiary groups and to prevent misunderstandings about entitlement and calculation.