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INSS Begins Cross-Checking Banking, Labor, and Family Data to Detect Fraud. Benefits May Be Blocked in Case of Irregular Income.
The National Institute of Social Security (INSS) has initiated a new phase of inspection on its beneficiaries, aimed at identifying improper payments and fraud in social security and assistance benefits. The change was formalized through Joint Ordinance MDS/INSS No. 28/2024, published in the Official Gazette, which mandates automatic cross-checking of banking, labor, and family data to detect irregular income accumulation and inconsistencies in the information provided by the insured.
INSS Begins Cross-Checking Information From Multiple Databases
According to the ordinance, INSS can now use data from the Unified Registry (CadÚnico), Rais, Caged, the Federal Revenue Service, Dataprev, and the Central Bank to verify if the citizen receiving benefits such as BPC (Continuous Cash Benefit), incapacity aid, or retirement has income exceeding the legally permitted limit.
The cross-checking is done in an automated and continuous manner, integrating systems from different public agencies.
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When the system identifies signs of irregularity, such as financial transactions incompatible with declared income, active employment, or receipt of another unreported benefit, payment may be temporarily blocked until the situation is clarified.
According to the Ministry of Development and Social Assistance (MDS), which supervises the BPC, the goal is not to punish, but to ensure that the benefit reaches those who truly need it. Nonetheless, the cross-checking of banking and labor information has raised alarms among experts and beneficiaries.
Ordinance Establishes Legal Basis for Automatic Blocks
The Joint Ordinance No. 28/2024 expressly authorizes INSS to suspend benefits when there are “sufficient signs of irregularity or improper accumulation of income”, until the insured provides proof.
The text also stipulates that the beneficiary must be notified in advance and has the right to present a defense, in accordance with the principle of full defense provided for in the Federal Constitution.
In cases of proven fraud or improper receipt, INSS may permanently cancel the benefit and demand the reimbursement of amounts paid, in accordance with Articles 115 and 154 of Decree No. 3,048/1999, which regulates Social Security.
The measure is already in effect and will be applied especially to benefits from the BPC (Continuous Cash Benefit), paid to low-income individuals with disabilities and elderly people, whose family income limit is ¼ of the minimum wage per person – currently about R$ 353.
The Aim is to Reduce Fraud and Improper Payments
Official data indicate that, only in 2023, INSS identified over 1.2 million benefits with signs of irregularity, totaling R$ 14 billion in suspicious payments. A large portion of these cases involved irregular accumulation of benefits or family income exceeding the permitted limit.
With the new system, the cross-checking becomes broader: it involves banking information, employment links, FGTS transactions, receipt of pensions, and even income tax declarations.
The objective, according to the government, is to prevent individuals who no longer meet the criteria from continuing to receive benefits improperly, freeing up resources for new beneficiaries.
Impacts for Beneficiaries and Insured Individuals
With the new rule, beneficiaries of BPC and retirees must be extra vigilant with financial transactions in their name or that of family members.
Unusual deposits, high-value transfers, or undeclared income may trigger INSS’s alert system and lead to the temporary suspension of payments until the source of the funds is clarified.
The social security lawyer João Paulo Rodrigues, consulted by the legal portal Migalhas, states that “the cross-checking of data is legal and necessary, but it must be applied with care to avoid unfair blocks. There are cases of beneficiaries receiving help from family members who end up being penalized as if they had another fixed income source.”
On the other hand, the government maintains that notifications will come with clear deadlines and facilitated access to defense, through the portal Meu INSS and MDS’s digital channels.
Stricter Inspection and Digitalization of the Social Security System
This new policy is part of a broader project by the federal government to digitize Social Security and increase transparency in the use of public resources.
In addition to data cross-checking, INSS is integrating the “Benefits Radar” system, which combines artificial intelligence and big data to detect anomalies in payments in real time.
With this, the institution hopes to reduce fraud, speed up reviews, and increase efficiency in granting and maintaining benefits.
Experts believe that the model should be expanded to other types of social security benefits, such as retirement based on contribution time, pensions for death, and temporary allowances.
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