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Outsourcing, temporary staff, contractors and PJ arrangements in Brazil

Last verified: 2026-10-27 · Status: Changing

Any activity, including the core business, may be outsourced to a service company with adequate capital, and the client is only subsidiarily liable for the provider's labor debts, a model the Supreme Court upheld in 2018. Temporary staff hired through a registered agency may cover replacements or extra demand for up to 180 days plus 90, with a 90 day gap before the same worker returns. Hiring self employed individuals or one person companies (PJ) is lawful only without subordination, and the Supreme Court has yet to rule on the merits of Tema 1389 on when such contracts are fraudulent; individual contractors cost the company a 20 percent social security contribution.

USD figures use the Banco Central do Brasil PTAX selling rate of R$5.5007 per US dollar for 26 October 2026, the last business day before verification. The real moved sharply that day (R$5.0377 on 23 October), so conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Outsourcing of the core activity	Yes, with subsidiary liability of the client Lei nº 6.019 art. 4-A; STF Tema 725, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Client liability for outsourced workers' labor debts	Subsidiary Lei nº 6.019 art. 5-A § 5, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Quarantine before a former employee or partner can serve through a provider	18 monthsLei nº 6.019 arts. 5-C and 5-D, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Minimum provider capital, more than 100 employees	250000 BRLLei nº 6.019 art. 4-B, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maximum temporary placement with one client	180 daysLei nº 6.019 art. 10 § 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Extension of a temporary placement	90 daysLei nº 6.019 art. 10 § 2, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Gap before the same temporary worker returns to the client	90 daysLei nº 6.019 art. 10 § 5, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Minimum share capital of a temporary work agency	100000 BRLLei nº 6.019 art. 6, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Company contribution on individual contractor pay	20 %Lei nº 8.212 art. 22, III, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Supreme Court merits ruling on PJ contracts (Tema 1389)	Pending STF Tema 1389, as of 2026-10-27 · pending

The rule

1. A company may transfer the performance of any of its activities, including its core activity, to a private service company with economic capacity compatible with the work. The service company hires, pays and directs its workers, and no employment bond arises between those workers and the client.
Cost to do it: Service fee agreed with the provider; no employer charges on the provider's staff.Lei nº 6.019 of 3 January 1974, art. 4-A inserted by Lei nº 13.429 of 2017 and worded by Lei nº 13.467 of 13 July 2017, Art. 4-A caput and §§ 1 and 2, 2017-07-13 official text · verified 2026-10-27 · changed: Lei nº 13.467 of 13 July 2017 expressly allowed outsourcing of the core activity.

2. Outsourcing of any activity, core or not, between distinct legal entities is lawful, with no employment bond with the client, which must check the provider's suitability and economic capacity and is subsidiarily liable for labor and social security obligations.
Cost to do it: Due diligence on the provider; subsidiary exposure for its unpaid labor debts.Supremo Tribunal Federal, RE 958.252 (Tema 725) and ADPF 324, judged together in 2018; Tema 725 final 15 October 2024, Tema 725 thesis, 2024-10-15 official text · verified 2026-10-27

3. A service provider must have a CNPJ tax number, a commercial registry entry and minimum share capital by headcount: R$10,000 up to 10 employees; R$25,000 for 11 to 20; R$45,000 for 21 to 50; R$100,000 for 51 to 100; R$250,000 above 100.
Cost to do it: Capital requirement borne by the provider; check it in the provider's articles before signing.
Example: A provider with 60 employees needs share capital of at least R$100,000. / About US$18,179.50.Lei nº 6.019 of 3 January 1974, art. 4-B inserted by Lei nº 13.429 of 2017, Art. 4-B, I to III, 1974-01-03 official text · verified 2026-10-27

4. When outsourced workers work on the client's premises they get the same meals in the client's canteen, transport, on site medical care and needed training as the client's employees, plus the same health, safety and facility conditions. Equal pay is optional by agreement. The client is responsible for safety, hygiene and health where work is done on its premises, may not use the workers for tasks outside the contract and is subsidiarily liable for labor obligations during the service period; social security withholding follows Lei nº 8.212 art. 31.
Cost to do it: Shared facilities and safety compliance for outsourced staff on site.Lei nº 6.019 of 3 January 1974, arts. 4-C and 5-A as worded by Lei nº 13.467 of 13 July 2017, Arts. 4-C and 5-A §§ 1 to 5, 2017-07-13 official text · verified 2026-10-27

5. A company may not contract a provider whose owners or partners worked for the client as employees or non employee workers in the previous 18 months (retired owners excepted), and a dismissed employee may not work for the former employer through a provider for 18 months after dismissal.
Cost to do it: Breach risks recognition of an employment bond with the client.Lei nº 6.019 of 3 January 1974, arts. 5-C and 5-D inserted by Lei nº 13.467 of 13 July 2017, Arts. 5-C and 5-D, 2017-07-13 official text · verified 2026-10-27

6. Temporary work is provided by an individual hired by a registered temporary work agency and placed with a client to replace permanent staff temporarily or meet complementary demand (unforeseeable, or foreseeable but intermittent, periodic or seasonal). Replacing strikers is prohibited unless the law allows it. The agency needs a CNPJ, commercial registration and share capital of at least R$100,000, and the contract with the client must be written and state the reason, term and price.
Cost to do it: Agency fee; temporary workers' pay and charges are billed through the agency.Lei nº 6.019 of 3 January 1974, arts. 2, 6 and 9 as worded by Lei nº 13.429 of 2017, Arts. 2, 6 and 9, 1974-01-03 official text · verified 2026-10-27

7. A temporary worker may serve the same client for up to 180 days, consecutive or not, extendable by up to 90 days if the conditions persist; the trial contract rule does not apply. A worker who completes that period may return to the same client only after 90 days, otherwise an employment bond with the client arises. The client is subsidiarily liable during the placement, and jointly liable for pay, severance and social security if the agency goes bankrupt. A clause barring the client from hiring the worker afterwards is void.
Cost to do it: Up to 270 days of placement; hiring the worker directly afterwards is allowed.
Example: A worker placed continuously from 1 February 2027 may stay until 28 October 2027 at most (180 plus 90 days) and come back through the agency only after a 90 day gap. / Not a currency figure.Lei nº 6.019 of 3 January 1974, art. 10 as worded by Lei nº 13.429 of 2017; arts. 11 and 16, Art. 10 §§ 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 and 7; arts. 11 and 16, 1974-01-03 official text · verified 2026-10-27

8. Hiring a self employed worker who meets all legal formalities, exclusively or not, continuously or not, does not make the worker an employee under CLT art. 3. No employment bond exists between cooperatives and their members. Substance still prevails: acts meant to evade the CLT are void.
Cost to do it: No employer package, but reclassification brings back pay, FGTS and contributions.CLT art. 442-B inserted by Lei nº 13.467 of 13 July 2017; art. 442 § 1 as worded by Lei nº 14.647 of 2023; art. 9, CLT arts. 9, 442 § 1 and 442-B, 2017-07-13 official text · verified 2026-10-27

9. The Supreme Court recognized general repercussion in April 2025 on whether hiring self employed workers or legal entities (PJ) to provide services is lawful, who must prove fraud and whether labor courts have jurisdiction. As of the verification date the merits had not been judged; only the general repercussion ruling of 24 April 2025 is published.
Cost to do it: Legal uncertainty: reserve for reclassification risk on PJ arrangements until the thesis is set.Supremo Tribunal Federal, ARE 1.532.603 (Tema 1389), general repercussion recognized 12 April 2025, Tema 1389 status, 2025-04-12 official text · verified 2026-10-27

10. Companies pay a social security contribution of 20 percent of the pay of individual contractors (contribuintes individuais) who provide services to them.
Cost to do it: 20 percent of contractor pay, on top of the fee.
Example: An individual consultant invoicing R$10,000 a month costs the company R$2,000 more in contribution. / About US$363.59 a month.Lei nº 8.212 of 24 July 1991, art. 22, III inserted by Lei nº 9.876 of 1999, Art. 22, III, 1991-07-24 official text · verified 2026-10-27

Provider employees	Minimum capital (R$)	Minimum capital (US$)
Up to 10	10,000.00	1,817.95
11 to 20	25,000.00	4,544.88
21 to 50	45,000.00	8,180.78
51 to 100	100,000.00	18,179.50
More than 100	250,000.00	45,448.76

Minimum share capital of an outsourcing provider by headcount (Lei nº 6.019 art. 4-B, III). USD at R$5.5007.

Model	Best for	Main limit	Client exposure
Outsourcing	Whole functions, core or not	Provider capital; 18 month quarantine	Subsidiary liability
Temporary work	Replacements and peaks	180 plus 90 days; 90 day gap	Subsidiary; joint on agency bankruptcy
Self employed or PJ	Genuinely independent professionals	No subordination; Tema 1389 pending	Reclassification as employee

Choosing a model (Lei nº 6.019 arts. 4-A, 5-A, 10; CLT arts. 3 and 442-B; Lei nº 8.212 art. 22, III).

Worked example

A multinational outsources its customer support to a Brazilian provider with 120 employees and R$250,000 of share capital. It audits monthly proof of salary, FGTS and social security payments of the provider's staff assigned to it, because it is subsidiarily liable for any unpaid amounts during the contract (Lei nº 6.019 art. 5-A § 5).

Step by step

Define the scope as a service with deliverables, not the supply of individual workers.
Check the provider's CNPJ, commercial registration and share capital against art. 4-B.
Screen for former employees or partners within 18 months (arts. 5-C and 5-D).
Require monthly evidence of the provider's labor and social security compliance and retain amounts if missing.
For temporary staff, state the legal reason and term in the agency contract and track the 180 plus 90 day limit per worker.
Use PJ or self employed contracts only for genuinely independent work, without schedules, supervision or integration into the team.

Common traps

Directing outsourced workers like employees or using them outside the contract scope invites recognition of an employment bond (art. 5-A § 1).
Rehiring a temporary worker for the same client before the 90 day gap creates an employment bond (art. 10 § 6).
Converting dismissed employees into PJ contractors within 18 months breaches art. 5-D.
PJ arrangements remain under legal uncertainty until the Supreme Court sets the Tema 1389 thesis.
Temporary workers may not replace strikers unless a law allows it (art. 2 § 1).

Sources

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