Brazil Employee Compensation & Benefits
Capital
Brasilia
Official Language
Portuguese
Currency
Brazilian Real
Payroll cycle
Bi-monthly
Quick facts about Brazil
The sixth largest country in the world by population, Brazil is home to the most species of plants and animals in the world. As one of the world’s most diverse countries, Brazil is a hub for talented workers from all backgrounds. Known as a melting pot, the country has some of the largest Italian, Arab, and Japanese communities in the world.
As one of the most employee-friendly countries, Brazil has a wide range of social benefits that employers must offer their workers.
When it comes to employee benefits in Brazil, workers in the country have some of the strongest social protections in the world, thanks to Brazilian laws.
Employers that fail to set up payroll compliantly and offer all mandatory benefits as part of an employee's compensation package can face steep legal actions from employees, who can sue the company.
Understanding compensation and benefits packages in Brazil
In Brazil, employees are guaranteed a wide range of rights in exchange for working. When creating benefit packages, employers need to clearly define an employee's salary before onboarding, as well as follow all labor laws set forth by the government.
The minimum wage in Brazil is BRL 1,100. However, unions and collective bargaining agreements are a common practice and have a long history in the country of helping to improve working conditions. This means that the minimum wage varies based on industry and whether the employee belongs to a labor union.
The Brazilian government offers basic health insurance to all workers through the government. Brazil has such a large number of mandated benefits, so most company’s opt to give their employees private health insurance and other supplementary perks in order to retain and recruit the best talent.
Mandatory compensation and benefits in Brazil
Brazilian employees are entitled to the following:
Meal vouchers
Transportation vouchers
Life insurance for a family size of 3
13th-month bonus
Social security contributions
Paid holidays
Paid sick and annual leave
13th-month bonus
Employees are given a 13th-month pay that equals one month of their salary, as mandated by law. In their employment contract, employers state whether this 13th-month payment is included in their base salary or is paid as a bonus. 13th month bonuses are usually made in two parts, in November and December.
Paid time off
Employees in Brazil must take a minimum of 30 days of paid time off a year (after 1 year of service). This should be established in their initial employment contract. This is calculated as a monthly salary plus ⅓ the employee’s monthly salary, and must be distributed 2 business days before the employee leaves work.
Following recent labor reforms in the country, workers in Brazil can take their PTO in 3 different periods. The first period must be at least 14 days, whereas the other two must be a minimum of 5 days.
Public holidays
In Brazil, there are 13 public holidays that employees are entitled to have off. These holidays are:
New Years Day
Carnival
Ash Wednesday
Good Friday
Easter Sunday
Tiradentes’ Day
Labor Day
Corpus Christi
Independence Day
Our Lady Aparecida
All Souls Day
Republic Proclamation Day
Christmas Day
Sick days
Employees automatically receive sick pay in Brazil, but they must provide a medical note within the first 48 hours of illness. For the first 15 days, the employer pays 100% of the employee’s salary. After 15 days, social security pays the duration of the employee’s illness.
Maternity leave
All new mothers are entitled to 120 days of maternity leave with payment, even in the cases of adoption. Payments are made to the employee through government contributions. However, the employer has the option of extending the mother’s paid time off for up to 180 days.
Paternity leave
New fathers are entitled to 5 days of paternity leave in Brazil, but the employer has the option of extending this leave, up to 20 days.
Bereavement leave
Employees receive 5 consecutive days of bereavement in Brazil if an immediate relative such as a parent, sibling, or spouse passes away.
Urgent care
Brazil allows 30 days of paid time off for employees with a family member under 12 years of age who is ill, or 15 days of urgent care leave to take care of an older family member.
Marriage leave
When an employee gets married, they are entitled to 3 paid days off, which they can use for their wedding.
Social security and health care registration
In Brazil, social security covers basic medical care, employees pensions, and allows for death and accident allowances. Employees and employers must register with the Brazilian social security department (INSS) and pay a deduction out of their paychecks each month. These deductions range from 7%-14%. This contribution covers all of the employees mandated social security.
Recommended Benefits in Brazil
Most companies in Brazil have an employee benefit plan that helps outline and show their competitiveness to prospective employees. By designing a competitive plan, companies will attract more employees and show you place value on your employees and their work.
Additional perks employers offer include:
Added insurance for better healthcare
Education bonuses
Tuition reimbursement
Remote work options
Flexible work schedules and hours
Gym memberships
By giving potential employees the option to have a competitive benefit package, employers will likely attract high-quality candidates that want to work for your company.
Outsourcing compensation and benefits in Brazil
Because most benefits are mandated by the Brazilian government, having supplementary benefits is a must in order to garner attention from the most skill employees. This is where using a global EOR service like Via can be a strategic move. As your global payroll and HR partner in Brazil, we have valuable knowledge about what benefit packages will attract potential employees and allow employers to stay competitive, all while following local laws.
Companies of all sizes want to hire employees in Brazil, but don’t know how to navigate the country’s local labor laws. Via makes hiring Brazilian talent and building your global team seamless. With our easy-to-use platform, Via helps you manage local HR processes for direct employment such as work visas & permits, benefits, payroll, background checks, and more. Our team of local labor lawyers and on-the-ground experts ensure that your company remains compliant while expanding abroad. As your employer-of-record/entity in Brazil, Via assumes responsibility for employment liability, so that you can focus on what matters: recruiting and managing your team.
With Via’s transparent pricing, you can pay full-time employees or contractors in Brazil with no hidden set-up fees, no foreign exchange or transaction fees, and no minimums–start with 1 employee and scale up at your own pace.
