The FGTS Curatorial Council is expected to approve on Thursday (the 10th) a request from the Ministry of Cities to expand the subsidized funds for the Minha Casa Minha Vida housing program by R$ 500 million. With this expansion, the total allocated to the program this year will reach R$ 13 billion, becoming the highest amount ever allocated to the program without return for the FGTS.
The money is transferred as a non-reimbursable grant, meaning there is no reimbursement from the beneficiaries. The approval comes on the eve of elections, which gives a political character to the measure. The funds are used to provide discounts on housing contracts for families enrolled in Bands 1 and 2 of the program, which encompass incomes of up to R$ 5,000.
Each family can receive a subsidy of up to R$ 55,000 from the housing program. The councilors are also expected to approve a withdrawal of R$ 4.5 billion from the infrastructure fund (FI-FGTS), referring to the return from old projects, to expand FGTS availability and try to unblock suspended works.
