The Minister of Labor, Solidarity and Social Security, Maria do Rosário Palma Ramalho, announced on Friday in Parliament that the lowest pensions are expected to increase by 2.79% in 2026, according to the mechanism provided by law.
“Pensions up to two times the Social Support Index (IAS) are expected to increase by 2.79%, which is 0.5 percentage points above the 2025 inflation rate. This means a recovery in purchasing power for 90% of pensioners,” explained the minister during a parliamentary hearing on the State Budget proposal for 2026 (OE2026).
The minister also stated that the government will “increase pensions at the legal rate and if there is budget leeway, we will also provide a new extraordinary supplement to pensioners,” as other government officials have already mentioned.
CFP: Increase in Lowest Pensions Should Be Funded by the State Budget
The potential increase in the lowest pensions is a redistributive measure that should be funded through the State Budget (OE), particularly through the citizen social protection system, said the president of the Public Finance Council (CFP) on Thursday.
When questioned about the proposals for increasing the lowest pensions during a parliamentary hearing on the State Budget for 2026 (OE2026), Nazaré da Costa Cabral emphasized that “the social security system should be protected per se.”
“It has its own revenues and expenses, and the surplus of the system has a destination defined by law, which is the Social Security Financial Stabilization Fund (FEFSS),” but increases in the lowest pensions are “a redistributive element.”
According to the chairperson, “all redistributive measures should not operate through the social security system, but through the citizen social protection system,” funded by the State Budget, so “taxes and national solidarity should potentially adjust pensions.”
The president of the CFP reiterated that “the social security system should be well defined both in terms of revenue and expenses.”
Nazaré da Costa Cabral also stated that the FEFSS plays “a very important role,” not only as a financial ‘cushion’ but also as “a guarantor of intergenerational equity in the social security system.”
The issue under discussion is a proposal from the PS secretary-general to use the surplus in the social security budget to permanently increase the lowest pensions.
Chega will also propose a permanent increase of 1.5% in pensions during the specialized budget process and has called for consensus to raise pensions, expressing readiness to approve proposals from other parties.
[Updated at 10:20 AM]
