Contributing to Brazil's INSS While Living Abroad: 2026 Guide

Yes. Anyone who leaves Brazil can keep contributing to the INSS (Brazil's national social security institute) as an optional contributor (segurado facultativo), paying the GPS slip by the 15th of the following month, as long as they are not a mandatory contributor. It is worth it if you want to keep INSS coverage; the final answer depends on the benefit you want, your destination country and whether a social security agreement exists.

Can someone who leaves Brazil keep contributing to the INSS?

Yes. Law No. 8,212/1991 (Lei 8.212/1991), art. 14, defines an optional contributor as a person over 14 who joins the General Social Security Regime (RGPS) by making contributions, as long as they are not among the mandatory contributors of art. 12. Law 8,213/1991, art. 13, repeats the rule, referring to art. 11.

In practice, the question is whether you are still classified as a mandatory contributor after the move. The law lists the mandatory cases, and some reach people abroad. One example is a Brazilian hired in Brazil to work at a branch or agency of a Brazilian company abroad (Law 8,213, art. 11, I, "c"). If you do not fit any mandatory case, the route is the optional one. If in doubt, confirm your classification with the INSS before paying.

How much does it cost to contribute as an optional contributor?

The cost is a rate applied to the contribution salary (salário-de-contribuição) you declare. Law 8,212/1991, art. 21, sets 20% for the individual contributor and the optional contributor, with two reduced plans.

The limits come from the INSS official page: the minimum is the national minimum wage in force for the contribution month and the maximum is the social security ceiling, set by interministerial ordinance. Because these amounts change, check the current table at the INSS instead of relying on figures from memory.

Anyone who paid under the 11% plan and wants to count that time for reciprocal counting (art. 94 of Law 8,213) must make up the difference up to 20%, with interest (Law 8,212, art. 21, § 3). This supplementary payment can be required at any time, on pain of the benefit being denied (§ 5).

How do you pay the INSS while living abroad?

You generate and pay the slip yourself. The optional contributor pays by GPS (Social Security Payment Slip), by the 15th of the month following the contribution month. If there is no banking day on the 15th, the deadline moves to the next business day.

Steps according to the official INSS page:

1. •Create or recover your Meu INSS password, which the service requires.
2. •In Meu INSS, go to "Services" and choose GPS issuance.
3. •The system takes you to the SAL (Legal Surcharges System) of the Receita Federal. Choose "Contributors enrolled from 11/29/1999."
4. •Enter the category (optional), the calculation date, the NIT/PIS/PASEP, the contribution month and the contribution salary.
5. •Select the payment code that matches your plan, calculate and generate the GPS.
6. •Check the contribution in the "Contribution Statement" in Meu INSS (CNIS).

What happens if I stop contributing?

You lose insured status after a grace period. While the period runs, Law 8,213, art. 15, § 3, guarantees that the insured keeps their rights before Social Security.

Loss of insured status occurs on the day after the deadline to pay the contribution for the month following the end of these periods (§ 4). Anyone who stays out longer and returns later needs to check how the old contributions will be used, because the waiting period (carência) is counted in monthly contributions (art. 24).

How many contributions do I need to be entitled to benefits?

Each benefit has a waiting period (carência), that is, the minimum number of monthly contributions required (Law 8,213, art. 24). Art. 25 sets, among others:

For retirement by age and by contribution time, do not use the old text of the law as a reference: the rules went through the reform of Constitutional Amendment 103/2019 (EC 103/2019). Run the simulation in Meu INSS or book an appointment at the INSS to see the requirement that applies to your case, without estimating off the top of your head.

Does Brazil have a social security agreement with the country where I will live?

Check the Ministry of Social Security list. The official page lists the countries with agreements in force: Germany, Austria, Argentina, Belgium, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, South Korea, El Salvador, Ecuador, Spain, the United States, France, Greece, India, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mozambique, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Quebec, the Czech Republic, Switzerland and Uruguay. There are also the Mercosur Multilateral Social Security Agreement and the Ibero-American Multilateral Social Security Convention.

The Ministry explains that the agreements seek to guarantee the social security rights of workers in the two countries. They do not change domestic legislation: each country reviews the benefit claim and decides under its own law and the respective agreement. For that reason, what your destination's agreement provides on benefit claims, residence and dependents must be read in the text of the agreement and in the INSS forms, not assumed.

Does reciprocal counting add contribution time from another country?

Not by itself. The reciprocal counting of art. 94 of Law 8,213 ensures, for RGPS benefits, the counting of contribution time in private, rural and urban activity, and of contribution or service time in public administration, with financial compensation between the regimes. It deals with Brazilian regimes. Whether time contributed in another country can be used depends on what the applicable international agreement provides.

What is the CDAM and who is entitled to public healthcare abroad?

The CDAM (Certificate of Right to Medical Assistance) derives from Brazil's social security agreements with Portugal, Cape Verde and Italy. According to the gov.br portal, it allows citizens to use the destination country's public health system as a local citizen. The service is free for the citizen.

Native or naturalized Brazilians over 18 and their dependents can apply. For Portugal, the form has a "reason for travel" field, which defines the validity: 6 months, 1 year or 5 years. For Cape Verde and Italy, the validity is 1 year. The CDAM does not cover other countries and does not replace private health insurance for those moving outside the three agreements. For that part, see the guide on international health coverage for people living abroad.

Is it worth keeping the INSS when leaving Brazil?

It depends on what you want to protect and what your destination country already offers. The INSS is not the only option, and whether to keep contributing is a decision about cost and coverage.

To decide, answer in order:

1. •Do I plan to live in Brazil again, or stay abroad permanently?
2. •Does the destination country have a social security agreement with Brazil?
3. •Will I have pension and health coverage in the new country?
4. •Which INSS benefits (retirement, allowances, maternity pay, dependents) actually matter to me?
5. •Which contribution plan preserves the benefits I chose?

Anyone building a retirement strategy abroad can combine these layers. The article on offshore retirement planning covers that broader view, and the tax planning service helps align the social security decision with your tax situation.

Does the INSS contribution affect income tax and the tax exit?

It can, and leaving the country has its own tax rules that go beyond the INSS. As long as you file income tax as a Brazilian resident, Law 9,250/1995, art. 4, IV, allows you to deduct from the monthly tax base contributions to the Social Security of the Union, the States, the Federal District and the Municipalities.

Changing tax residence, on the other hand, involves other obligations that vary with your case. The guides on permanent exit from Brazil and the exit tax and international tax residence explain this step. For the overall picture of living abroad, also see the offshore guide for Brazilians abroad. The income tax rules are on the official Receita Federal page.