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High informality, unstable income, and low perception of return help explain why affordable social security contributions have not yet become a habit among informal workers, MEIs, and beneficiaries of social programs in Brazil.
The low adherence of informal workers to social security contributions exposes a challenge that goes beyond the amount charged by the INSS. Even when the monthly contribution fits better into the budget, unstable income, present urgencies, and little clarity about future benefits make retirement planning difficult.
In Brazil, the informality rate was 37.3% of the employed population in the 1st quarter of 2026, according to the Continuous Quarterly PNAD, released by IBGE. The data shows that a significant portion of workers remains outside the traditional social security protection links, despite improvements in some labor market indicators.
This scenario helps explain why retirement remains distant for millions of Brazilians. Without regular contributions, self-employed workers, sellers, service providers, and professionals without a formal contract may reach old age relying on welfare benefits, family income, or occupations maintained out of necessity.
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The problem is not just a lack of information. Many workers know that contributing to the INSS can ensure protection in the future, but they need to choose every month between paying a social security guide or covering immediate expenses, such as food, rent, transportation, debts, and work-related costs.
Informality and unstable income hinder contributions to the INSS
Informality does not only affect the present. When income varies from month to month, social security contributions tend to be seen as a deferrable expense, mainly because the return is associated with rules, waiting periods, and benefits that are not always easily understood.
IBGE data indicates that informality still weighs unevenly among the federation units. In the 1st quarter of 2026, Maranhão, Pará, and Amazonas recorded the highest rates, while Santa Catarina, the Federal District, and Mato Grosso do Sul showed the lowest percentages.
The regional difference reinforces that the social security debate cannot be treated solely as an individual decision. In areas with a more restricted formal market, low income, and a greater presence of self-employed occupations, maintaining monthly payments to the INSS becomes more difficult.
Even so, reducing the contribution amount alone does not solve the problem. When retirement seems distant and the benefits are not perceived as concrete protection, short-term needs often weigh more than planning for old age.
Study cited by Estadão shows limits of incentives
The experience of Thailand, cited in an analysis published by Estadão about the difficulty of saving for retirement, helps illustrate this behavior. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Thai government conditioned the receipt of emergency aid on adherence to a voluntary social security program for informal workers.
According to the analysis, the measure significantly increased the entry of informal workers into the program, but the retention dropped after the end of the initial incentive. The case shows that subsidies and administrative requirements can serve as an entry point, without necessarily creating a habit of continuous contribution.
This difference between adherence and retention is central to understanding the Brazilian problem. The worker may agree to enter the system when there is an immediate benefit linked to registration, but may stop paying when the contribution competes with urgent expenses.
The study also highlights the perception of value. For some informal workers, social security protection does not appear as something close, tangible, and easy to understand, but as a future promise surrounded by conditions and rules.
MEI has accessible guide, but regularity is still a challenge
In Brazil, the Individual Microentrepreneur was created to facilitate the formalization of self-employed workers and simplify the payment of taxes and social security contributions. With a single monthly guide, the MEI can keep an active CNPJ and contribute to the INSS through the Simples Nacional Collection Document.
In 2026, the amount owed by the MEI to the INSS is R$ 81.05, equivalent to 5% of the minimum wage of R$ 1,621. To this total, R$ 5 of ISS and R$ 1 of ICMS may be added, depending on the activity performed, according to Simples Nacional.
In practice, the monthly cost is low when compared to other forms of contribution, but it does not always remain a priority in the budget. For those working with uncertain income, the MEI guide may be perceived as just another fixed expense amid an income that is not fixed.
Regularity also depends on understanding what is being purchased with that payment. Retirement, disability coverage, maternity pay, and protection for dependents may seem distant when the worker does not receive clear communication about the losses caused by default.
Bolsa Família, BPC and the State’s minimum protection
The existence of assistance programs makes the debate more complex. The Bolsa Família program serves families in poverty, while the Continuous Cash Benefit ensures a minimum wage for the elderly and people with disabilities in vulnerable situations, without requiring prior contributions to the INSS.
This safety net plays an important social role, especially for low-income families with little savings capacity. At the same time, it can reduce the sense of urgency among workers who cannot see a clear difference between contributing today and relying on minimal protection in the future.
The point is not to claim that assistance programs automatically discourage Social Security. The issue is that, given limited income, the decision to contribute rarely happens under ideal conditions, with a budget surplus and enough information to compare alternatives.
Therefore, public policy needs to distinguish social assistance from contributory social security without treating informal workers as people who simply ignore the future. Often, the problem is the combination of tight income, distrust, low financial education, and benefits that are not immediately visible.
Social Security needs to be understood before old age
The Brazilian challenge is not only to make contributions cheaper. It is also necessary to explain, in straightforward language, what the worker gains by maintaining regular payments and what they can lose when they stop contributing for long periods.
Personalized reminders, simple communication, integration between public systems, and objective demonstrations of benefits can help bring the INSS closer to the routine of informal and self-employed workers. Contribution tends to make more sense when the worker sees concrete utility, not just an abstract obligation.
With the aging population, delaying this debate increases the pressure on families, social assistance, and the public budget. The more people reach old age without contributory protection, the greater the dependence on minimal benefits and family support networks tends to be.
High informality, unstable income, and low perception of return form the core of the problem. For millions of Brazilians, planning for retirement will only stop seeming distant when Social Security is presented as close, understandable, and relevant protection before the lack of contribution becomes irreversible.
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