Overtime in Brazil: how to calculate it, limits and how to claim unpaid hours

*Overtime (hora extra) is every hour worked beyond the contracted hours. It must be paid with a supplement of at least 50%, or double on Sundays and public holidays without compensatory time off, and it is reflected in vacation, the 13th salary, FGTS and weekly rest.* The legal limit is 2 overtime hours per day.

Quick summary

• Minimum supplement: 50% (Constitution, art. 7, XVI); collective agreements often provide more.
• Sunday or holiday worked without compensatory time off: double pay (TST Precedent 146 — the TST is the Superior Labor Court).
• Limit: up to 2 overtime hours per day (CLT, art. 59 — the CLT is Brazil's Consolidated Labor Laws).
• Knock-on effects: regular overtime increases paid weekly rest (DSR), vacation + 1/3, 13th salary, FGTS (the Severance Indemnity Fund) and notice pay.
• Positions of trust with a bonus of at least 40% may be excluded from working-hour controls (art. 62, II).
• Note: with the end of the 6x1 schedule, working hours fall and the hourly rate rises.

How to calculate

1. Find your hourly rate: salary ÷ monthly divisor. For a 44-hour week, the usual divisor is 220.
2. Apply the supplement: hourly rate × 1.5 (50%) or × 2 (Sunday and holiday).
3. Multiply by the number of overtime hours in the month.
4. Add the knock-on effects if the hours are regular (DSR, vacation, 13th salary, FGTS).

Example: salary of R$ 2,640 ÷ 220 = R$ 12.00 per hour. Overtime at 50% = R$ 18.00. Twenty overtime hours in the month = R$ 360.00, plus knock-on effects.

The divisor will change

With Constitutional Amendment 141/2026, maximum hours fall to 42h and then to 40h, with no salary reduction. With fewer hours in the month, the divisor decreases (at 40h, the usual divisor is 200) and each overtime hour becomes more expensive. Check the divisor applied on your payroll after the change.

Unpaid overtime: how to claim it

1. Write down your actual hours every day, including late departures and work at home.
2. Keep evidence: messages and emails outside working hours, system logins, witnesses.
3. Ask for the time cards: companies with more than 20 employees must record working hours (art. 74, §2). If the company does not present them in the case, TST Precedent 338 allows the hours stated by the worker to be presumed true.
4. Calculate the amount owed month by month.
5. Claim it through the union or in a labor claim, within 2 years after the end of the contract, covering the last 5 years.

Frequently asked questions

What is the minimum overtime rate?

The normal hourly rate plus 50%. On Sundays and holidays without compensatory time off, double.

Can the employer require more than 2 overtime hours per day?

As a rule, no. The limit is 2 hours, except in cases of compelling need under art. 61 of the CLT.

Does overtime count toward the 13th salary and vacation?

Yes, when it is regular: the average overtime is included in the calculation of vacation, 13th salary, FGTS and DSR.

Does home office work include overtime?

Yes, if the remote work is hours-based. In output- or task-based remote work, there is no working-hour control (art. 62, III).

Read more in this series

• Hour bank: rules, compensation deadlines and what to do
• End of the 6x1 schedule: what changes in working hours and when
• Evidence in a labor case: how to gather and organize it
• Night-work supplement: hours, percentage and how to calculate it
• Index: complete guide to labor rights