INSS: retirees should be careful with reviewing their entire lives – 04/14/2023 – Market

The INSS (National Social Security Institute) is warning retirees and other insured persons about care with proposals that deal with the review of their entire lives, which came to an end at the STF (Federal Supreme Court) with the publication of the ruling on this Thursday. -Friday (13).

The institute says that “it continues to work with the AGU [Advocacia-Geral da União] and the Judiciary in order to find the best solution to serve the insured person”. With that, the recommendation is that the beneficiary be aware and refuse any offer offering to release the review of the whole life.

The INSS has implemented a specific correction service on its website, which can be consulted by the insured. The body also says that it only contacts the insured person through its official channels, which are the Telephone Center 135 and the Meu INSS application or website.

There is still no prediction of how and when the payment of the lifetime review will be made. The institute states that it will define the procedure for depositing the amounts to whom it is entitled, including the analysis of specific requests for this correction, and the disclosure will be made on the website inss.gov.br

The whole life review is a lawsuit in which retirees ask for benefit correction to include contributions made before 1994 in the calculation of retirement benefits, benefiting those who had higher payments before the start of the Real Plan.

The decision of the STF has general repercussions and applies to all similar actions in court.

In the lawsuit, the Supreme Court understood that the transition rule created by the 1999 Social Security reform is unconstitutional. The reason is that it harms those who were already in the job market and benefits new policyholders at the time.

“The transitional rule ended up widening the gap between those who earn more and progress and, over time, earning more, those who have more difficulties due to lower education and their average salary is decreasing”, says part of the ruling.

In the ruling, the Supreme Court confirmed the decision taken by the court in December 2022, when the review was approved by 6 to 5, which reads as follows: “The insured person who implemented the conditions for the social security benefit after the validity of Law 9,876, of 26.11. .1999, and before the validity of the new constitutional rules, introduced by EC 103/2019, has the right to opt for the definitive rule, if it is more favorable”.

Understand the whole life review

The 1999 Social Security reform created two calculation formulas for the average salary, which is the basis of the value of the INSS benefit. For those who joined the INSS until November 26, 1999, the average salary was calculated on 80% of the highest contributions made from July 1994 onwards. The lowest 20% were discarded.

However, for new policyholders, who began to contribute to the INSS as of November 27, 1999, the rule for calculating the average salary took into account the highest 80% payments of the entire social security life.

Workers with higher old wages were disadvantaged, because they were not included in the most advantageous calculation, which included 100% of wages.

The 2019 pension reform changed this rule, so new retirees are not entitled to review. Today, the calculation of the benefit is made taking into account all wages since 1994, and discarding the possibility of including old values.

Case reviewed by the Supreme Court

The case that reached the STF was of an insured person who joined the INSS in 1976. In 2003, the worker applied for the social security benefit. The amount of income was calculated according to the transition rule of the 1999 Social Security reform, resulting in a pension of R$ 1,493.59.

The worker went to court requesting correction. The request was for the most advantageous calculation rule to be applied, which would result in a benefit of R$ 1,823. In the month, the difference is R$ 329.41. In the year, R$ 4,282.33, considering the 13th salary.

Judged under Theme 1.102, the case reached the Supreme Court in 2020. Before, however, it was approved by the STJ (Superior Court of Justice), which determined the right, understanding that the insured person should always receive the best benefit, according to a previous judgment regarding of INSS pensions.

Who is entitled to lifetime review

The correction is considered by lawyers as an exception thesis. That’s because the rules limit access.

The insured person who retired in the last ten years is entitled to a review of his or her entire life, as long as it is before the Social Security reform, instituted by amendment 103, on November 13, 2019. It is also necessary that the benefit has been granted with based on the rules of Law 9,876, of 1999.

Experts point out that those who asked for the benefit after the reform, but managed to retire with the old rules, through the acquired right, may also be entitled to review.

The correction pays off, however, for those who had high wages before the start of the Real Plan. Workers who earn less will not have an advantage.