On May 4, 2026, the Brazilian Federal Government established, through Provisional Measure No. 1,355/26, the “New Desenrola Brasil” program, aimed at renegotiating debts owed by families, students, and companies. As a condition for enrollment, beneficiaries undertake not to use fixed-odds betting platforms and authorize the blocking of their CPF (Brazilian individual taxpayer registration number) for a period of 12 months.
Subsequently, the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting of the Ministry of Finance (SPA/MF) issued Ordinance SPA/MF No. 1,237/26, including beneficiaries of the program among the individuals prohibited from participating in betting activities, and enacted Normative Instruction SPA/MF No. 3/2026, which establishes the operational procedures to be observed by betting operators. The new regulation imposes immediate compliance, customer monitoring, and operational blocking obligations, directly connecting the regulated betting sector to the federal debt renegotiation program.
Below are 5 critical impacts of the measure on the betting industry:
1. Creation of a New Category of Prohibited Bettors: The Normative Instruction effectively expands the list of individuals prohibited from betting, expressly provided for in Article 26 of the Brazilian Betting Law, to include beneficiaries of the New Desenrola Brasil program. As a result, bets placed through CPFs linked to the program may be deemed invalid and subject to annulment.
2. Mandatory Periodic Consultation of SIGAP: Operators are now required to consult the Betting Management System (SIGAP) to verify whether a user’s CPF is linked to the New Desenrola Brasil program. Such consultations must be carried out: (i) upon account creation; and (ii) upon the bettor’s first login of each day.
3. Immediate Verification of All Registered Users: In addition to the periodic verification requirement, operators must also verify, within 15 days from the publication of the Normative Instruction (i.e., by May 19, 2026), all CPFs registered on their platforms through SIGAP, in order to identify whether any user is a beneficiary of the program.
4. Possibility for Users to Voluntarily Withdraw Funds from the Platform: Whenever a SIGAP consultation indicates that a user is prohibited from betting due to participation in the New Desenrola Brasil program, the operator must notify the user of the possibility of voluntarily withdrawing the funds available in their account within two days.
If the user fails to respond, the funds must be returned to a bank or payment account previously linked and registered by the bettor on the platform.
5. Application of the Sanctioning Regime Applicable to the Fixed-Odds Betting Sector: In addition to the annulment of bets placed by prohibited individuals, operators that allow beneficiaries of the New Desenrola Brasil program to place bets may be subject to the penalties set forth in Article 41 of the Brazilian Betting Law, ranging from warnings to revocation of the operating authorization.
In a scenario of increasing regulatory oversight and growing judicialization of the sector, the prompt implementation of the requirements set forth in SPA/MF Normative Instruction No. 3/2026 is essential. Operators that fail to timely adapt to the new regulation may face not only administrative sanctions, but also significant reputational, operational, and litigation risks in an increasingly supervised market.
