The discussion about making benefits more flexible and the changes to the Worker Food Program (PAT) has raised some questions about the impact on workers and how companies should implement these changes so as not to stray from the benefit’s core purpose—thus avoiding future fines for companies.

The Worker Food Program (PAT) aims to provide better nutritional and physical conditions for workers. Any company can enroll in the PAT—the program is optional, not mandatory. However, companies that join receive tax incentives: exemption from social charges (INSS and FGTS) on the benefit amount and, for corporate income tax filed under the Actual Profit (Lucro Real) regime, the company may also deduct a fiscal incentive per meal provided, capped at 4% of the tax due.

On November 10, 2021, the federal government published Decree No. 10,854, which introduced significant changes to the program (art. 174), cited below:

Art. 174. The food payment service shall be operated through a payment arrangement, established under item I of the caput of art. 6 of Law No. 12,865, of October 9, 2013, which shall observe, at a minimum, the following rules:

I – the funds to be transferred to the worker by the beneficiary legal entity for use under the PAT:

1. a) must be kept in a payment account held by the worker, in the form of electronic money, and shall be recorded separately from any other funds of the worker that may be held at the same payment institution; and
2. b) must be used exclusively to pay for meals at restaurants and similar establishments or to purchase foodstuffs at commercial establishments, according to the product’s modality, and must be recorded separately;

In practice, under the new regulation, benefits must be paid to the worker in such a way that all their benefits can be grouped in a “single” account, i.e., consolidated into a single means of use, provided that the meal and grocery (food) modalities are kept separate from any others to prevent use for purposes unrelated to the benefit’s objective. That said, even though they are segregated from other funds, it is still possible to allow flexibility of use between the meal and grocery modalities, as there is no interpretation expressly prohibiting this. For workers, this is very positive because it expands the network of establishments where the benefit can be used, maximizing its usefulness.

In any case, it is important to note that the above changes only take effect starting in May 2023, pursuant to art. 188 of Decree No. 10,854.

The same effective date applies to the mandatory interoperability between closed and open payment arrangements, without distinction, to allow sharing of the accredited network of commercial establishments by companies that facilitate the purchase of meals or foodstuffs organized as a closed payment arrangement, as well as to the possibility of transferring accumulated credits from one brand to another billing/issuing company, without any fees, provided that this is previously and expressly requested from the employer. These provisions are set out in arts. 177 and 182 of the Decree, respectively

Article written by: Denise Almeida