Disability Benefit: INSS creates 10-day deadline to contest denied benefit

INSS changes the rules of sickness assistance and gives a new chance to those who have been denied

The National Institute of Social Security (INSS) has adopted, on Friday (6), new rules for the granting of temporary disability assistance, known as sickness assistance. The main change allows insured persons who have been denied the benefit after reviewing medical documents to request a re-evaluation of the application within ten days, before filing an administrative appeal.

The measure was established by the Joint Ordinance no 54, published in the Official Gazette of the Union on Friday (6). The standard was signed by the Minister of Social Security, Wolney Queiroz Maciel, and by the President of INSS, Ana Cristina Viana Silveira.

The changes affect insured people from all over Brazil, including Ponta Grossa and Campos Gerais workers who depend on the benefit during the temporary withdrawal from professional activities.

New chance for those who have been denied sickness assistance

With the new regulations, the worker who receives a refusal based on technical opinion of the documentary analysis may request a second evaluation of the process.

The application must be submitted within ten days from the date on which the insured person becomes aware of the decision.

During this stage, it will be possible to add new medical or dental documents, such as reports, examinations and reports that help to prove the temporary incapacity for work.

The re-analysis will be carried out by the Federal Medical Permit, before any administrative appeal.

It is important to note that this possibility applies to refusals arising from the technical evaluation of medical documents, and not automatically to all cases of refusal due to administrative issues.

Attention to the deadline to appeal

Another important change involves administrative resources.

Under the new rules, the insured who chooses to appeal directly, while still within the period of ten days to request the re-analysis, will lose the opportunity to use this new stage.

The deadline for filing the administrative appeal will be counted in two ways:

- No request for re-analysis: the count begins when the insured becomes aware of the original refusal.

- With request for re-analysis: the deadline begins after the communication of the decision on the new evaluation.

In this way, the insured can decide between requesting a documentary re-analysis or going directly to the administrative appeal.

Two negatives require referral to expertise

The ordinance also modified the rules for insureds who receive consecutive negatives.

From now on, after two successive refusals by documentary analysis, the following requests must be submitted for scheduling of a medical-expert examination.

The evaluation may take place in person or by telemedicine, provided that the necessary requirements for remote care are met.

This requirement will remain until there is any grant of disability benefit through face-to-face expertise or telemedicine.

Understand how the New Atestmed works

The changes are part of the improvement of the New Atestmed, a system established in March 2026 to allow the analysis of requests for temporary disability assistance based on medical documents, dispensing, in certain situations, the immediate performance of face-to-face expertise.

With the system, the insured can send certificates and other documents for evaluation by the INSS, facilitating access to the benefit.

The New Atestmed also extended from 60 to 90 days the maximum term of the benefit granted by documentary analysis.

According to the federal government, the initiative seeks to expedite the evaluation of applications and reduce the need for face-to-face attendance at Social Security agencies.

The new provisions on re-analysis, appeals and referral for expertise apply to denials communicated to insureds as of November 6, 2026. (The information is from Agência Brasil)

Government announces forgiveness of MEI debts for 3.6 million Brazilians