Fies renegotiation can benefit 1.2 million and will have a minimum installment of R$ 200

The Fies debt discount program (Student Financing Fund) can benefit up to 1.2 million people, said Minister Paulo Guedes (Economy) this Thursday (10). The renegotiation will involve up to R$38.6 billion in debts and can be carried out as of March 7 with Banco do Brasil or Caixa.

According to Guedes, the measure began to be thought of during the pandemic and, after studies, it was found that the impact on public coffers would be low – since most of the debts were already considered lost.

“We saw that the fiscal cost was negligible. The young people were already without paying, they were the neither-nor [nem estudam, nem trabalham]”, said the minister in a ceremony about the regulation of the measure. “These hopeless young people left college owing R$30,000, R$40,000, R$50,000 and they don’t have a job to pay. [Viraram] victims, goals, objectives of drug dealers and militiamen, owing money and starting life in denial,” he said.

For the minister, Bolsonaro could even ignore the situation since, in his view, the program was formulated by another government. “These young people got into debt under the previous government. The president could ignore and leave this mistake unrepaired, but he did the opposite,” he said.

The minister took the opportunity to recall the episode in which he criticized Fies when talking about the son of a doorman who would have passed the program even though he got a zero grade in the newsroom. Guedes once again defended himself on the declaration, and said he defends a voucher (a voucher, instead of funding) so that the poorest can study.

The renegotiation of Fies was opened through an MP (provisional measure) published on December 30 by the government and is valid for those who signed the Fies contract until the second half of 2017.

The MPs have immediate force of law, but they need to be validated within 120 days by Congress – which can modify the text in this period (for example, changing the value of discounts and payment terms).

Although the government announces that discounts reach 92%, the highest percentages go only to those who have not paid for more than 360 days. In other words, those who have been in default for the longest time will benefit the most – the logic is that these debts were already considered lost and, therefore, the impact on public coffers is practically nil.

The 92% discount will only be received by those who are on CadÚnico (registration of social programs) or have received emergency aid and have not paid the installments for more than 360 days.

The discount will be 86.5% for contracts overdue for more than 360 days, according to the government. Those who are overdue for more than 90 days will have a 12% discount for payment in cash or in installments up to 150 times.

The government has signaled that those with more regular payments and, therefore, cannot access the biggest discounts, will have access to microcredit programs. According to the technicians, debtors will be able to access a specific application from Banco do Brasil and Caixa to carry out renegotiations.

Beneficiaries will have their name removed from the restrictive credit registers when they pay the down payment at the time of renegotiation, corresponding to the first installment. The minimum installment amount will be R$ 200.

Of the 2.6 million active Fies contracts formalized until 2017, more than 2 million have a debt balance – of R$87.2 billion. Of these, more than one million students are in default, that is, more than 90 days late in payment. This represents a 51.7% default rate and R$9 billion in unpaid installments.

According to the president of Caixa, Pedro Guimarães, it will not be necessary to go to the branches. The bank calculates that around 800,000 students are eligible for renegotiation, whose average debt is R$35,000. It is now possible for them to simulate payments on the institution’s website.

Pressured by the likely 2022 candidacy of former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), Bolsonaro decided to give impetus to the Fies proposal at the end of last year, as shown by the leaf.

In a broadcast on social media in early December, Bolsonaro imitated Lula by citing a measure under study to benefit students. “Some people keep promising: ‘If I’m president, I’ll give everyone amnesty.’

A week earlier, PT had said on the Podpah podcast that it is necessary to “amnesty the boys” of Fies. “There are a million boys and girls in debt to Fies, because they cannot pay. Amnesty these children. What is the damage to the country? There are so many businessmen who default, what does it cost to give amnesty to boys?”, said the former president. . At the end of that month, the MP was published.

Discounts at Fies

• 12% discount for payment in cash or in installments up to 150 times for contracts overdue for more than 90 days
• 86.5% discount for contracts overdue for more than 360 days
• 92% discount for those who are late for more than 360 days and are registered with CadÚnico or benefited from emergency aid