Leave for anxiety and depression in Brazil: INSS and job security
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Anxiety and depression that prevent work give the right to INSS leave. If work caused or worsened the illness, there are 12 months of job security.
Conditions such as anxiety and depression, when they prevent work, give the right to a medical certificate and, after 15 days, to the INSS temporary incapacity benefit. If work caused or worsened the illness, it may be recognized as an occupational disease: the benefit is work-related and the employee has 12 months of job security after returning (Law 8,213/1991, art. 118).
Quick summary
- Up to 15 days: the employer pays the certified days.
- From day 16: INSS leave, through a medical exam or Atestmed.
- Link to work: excessive pressure, harassment, exhausting hours; a CAT report must be issued.
- Job security: 12 months after a work-related benefit ends.
- FGTS: the employer keeps depositing during work-related leave.
Ordinary or work-related?
The INSS may grant the ordinary or the work-related benefit. The work-related one depends on a link to work, which the medical exam can recognize, including through the epidemiological technical link (NTEP) that associates illnesses with economic activities. Since 2026, under NR-1, employers must also manage psychosocial risks.
How to protect yourself
- Seek medical care and ask for a detailed report, with the ICD code and any link to work.
- Keep evidence of working conditions: messages, targets, schedules, witnesses.
- Ask the employer to issue the CAT; if it refuses, the doctor, the union or you can issue it.
- At the INSS, present the reports and the CAT.
Returning to work
After discharge, the employee returns to their duties. If the INSS discharges the worker but the company doctor finds them unfit, the employer cannot leave them without pay: this is the "social security limbo", and wages are owed.
Frequently asked questions
Can I be dismissed after returning from leave for depression?
If the benefit was work-related, there are 12 months of job security. Even without it, dismissal because of the illness may be discriminatory.
Can my employer require the ICD code on the certificate?
The ICD code can only appear with the patient's consent. The certificate is valid without it.
Does burnout follow the same rule?
Yes. Burnout is recognized as a work-related illness and has its own guide.
Read more in this series
- Burnout as a work-related illness
- INSS sickness benefit 2026
- Workplace bullying
- Index: complete guide to labor rights
Topic: this guide is part of Health, safety and leave at work, with all the guides on the subject.
Official sources consulted
Informational content, updated in October 2026. This does not replace an individual analysis of your case.
Informational content produced by the Human Case editorial team based on official public sources. Does not replace individual advice.
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