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National Congress Debates PL 3444/2023, Which Aims to Regulate the Profession of Digital Influencer in Brazil, Defining Work Hours, Contracts, Taxation, and Social Security Rights.
Brazil is undergoing a silent yet decisive transition in how it views digital work. For the first time, the National Congress is discussing a legal framework specifically aimed at digital influencers and content creators, professionals who drive a billion-dollar industry and, until now, operate in a legal limbo between advertising, entertainment, and labor rights.
The debate gained momentum with the advancement of Bill No. 3444/2023, authored by Congressman Erik Figueiredo (PL-PB), which proposes to create a legal framework for those who monetize content on social media. The proposal, currently under review in the Chamber of Deputies, seeks to address a gap affecting both large creators with million-dollar advertising contracts and micro-influencers who rely on occasional partnerships to supplement their income.
A Giant Market, But Without Protection
According to research by Influency.me, Brazil has over 500,000 active content creators, and 70% of them consider this work as their main source of income. Despite the economic weight — estimated at R$ 18 billion per year in digital advertising, the profession still lacks specific regulations, leading to severe distortions in contracts, taxes, and legal security.
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Companies and agencies treat influencers as self-employed service providers, while many of them fulfill requirements typical of an employment relationship: targets, exclusivity, schedules, and mandatory brand use. In practice, the sector replicates dilemmas already known from “pejotização” in other areas of the creative economy.
What the Bill Proposes
The PL 3444/2023 creates a new professional category — the “digital content creator” — and establishes three main fronts:
Work Hours and Contractual Relationship
The text defines that exclusive contracts and direct editorial control characterize a formal employment relationship. Independent creators, who maintain autonomy over the content and provide occasional services, will continue to be classified as self-employed.
Transparency and Responsibility in Partnerships
Brands and agencies will need to specify values, duration, and counter-performance of campaigns. Hidden advertising — a common practice on social media — could be fined up to R$ 50,000 per infraction.
Taxation and Social Security Contributions
The bill provides for the creation of a simplified contribution regime, inspired by the model of individual micro-entrepreneurs (MEI). Influencers with an annual revenue of up to R$ 81,000 could pay a fixed monthly rate, ensuring access to Social Security.
Challenges and Divergences in Congress
The proposal divides opinions. Entities from the advertising sector and digital platforms advocate for self-regulation as an alternative to creating new labor obligations. Meanwhile, unions and labor lawyers argue that the absence of rules fosters abuses and favors precarious contracts.
The rapporteur of the bill in the Labor Commission, Congressman André Figueiredo (PDT-CE), claims that the text will undergo adjustments to balance protection and economic freedom. “This is not about bureaucratizing the sector, but rather about guaranteeing minimum rights and transparency in an activity that is already essential in the economy,” he stated in a public hearing.
The Role of Platforms
Another sensitive point is the responsibility of platforms. The bill requires companies like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube to provide automatic monetization reports and tax certificates for creators who earn through them. The aim is to reduce tax evasion and allow for accounting control of revenues.
The platforms, in turn, argue that this obligation may conflict with privacy policies and standardized global systems. The Ministry of Finance is monitoring the debate because the proposal connects to a larger agenda: taxation of the digital economy, already discussed by the OECD and G20.
A New Era for Digital Work
The discussion about influencers goes beyond the legal field. It represents the acknowledgment that work in the digital environment is real, productive, and economically relevant. According to economist Eduardo Moreira, a consultant at the Institute of Labor and Society Studies, “what Congress is debating now is how to ensure protection for a revenue model that is already the future of urban informal work.”
The expectation is that the report on PL 3444/2023 will be voted on in the Labor Commission still in 2025, before proceeding to the Finance and Taxation Commission. If approved, the text could reach the Senate by early 2026.
In the meantime, content creators continue to work without legal support, negotiating alone with brands and agencies — a relationship that generates billions but still operates under a veil of legal uncertainty.
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