Spending on paying parliamentarians for official trips increased by 78% in the first year of (-PB)’s administration and went from R$2.1 million in 2024 to R$3.8 million in 2025.
The variation does not consider inflation in the period, which was around 5%. Compiled data obtained by Sheet indicate that 202 of the 513 federal deputies requested the benefit in 2025, compared to 153 in the previous year, causing the total daily allowances to also increase from 876 to 1,482.
In both years, they have in common some of the main postcards in the world, such as London, Rome, Geneva, New York and Buenos Aires. In the ranking of the top ten destinations, no Brazilians.
Stage of , as the Legal Forum headed by the minister of the (Supreme Federal Court) became known, Lisbon appears at the top of the list. In 2024, the Chamber will have 33 federal deputies; .
Last year, an unprecedented edition of “Gilmarpalooza” also motivated parliamentarians to go to the capital of Argentina.
New York and London became centers of attraction due, respectively, to , organized by the former governor of São Paulo .
The previous year, the International Sphere Forum, promoted by , placed Italy on the path of the Brazilian authorities.
Despite being a millionaire, the daily rate only includes small local transport expenses, such as taxis, but not the cost of air tickets or, in the case of President Hugo Motta, the use of FAB (Brazilian Air Force) planes.
Federal deputy Cláudio Cajado (PP-BA), for example, received R$40,000 to pay for tickets to Uzbekistan, in April last year, in addition to R$12,000 in daily allowances, to participate in the UIP (Inter-Parliamentary Union) assembly, an organization that brings together 178 Parliaments.
Cajado says he has been a member of the Foreign Relations Commission for years and is now vice-president of Brazil at the IPU, as well as a member of the global executive committee. The deputy states that the member countries need to participate in the activities by “marking their position, debating and voting on the matters”.
“I was elected to a mandate at the IPU for four years and I do not represent myself, but Brazil and the countries that make up the geopolitical group [da América Latina e Caribe]”, he says, highlighting that the missions he dedicates himself to are always institutional, official and authorized.
The president of the Chamber, who held the record for trips last year, says that the increase in expenses on official missions must be understood within the context of “the growing appeal for so-called parliamentary diplomacy”, in addition to the greater role played by Congress.
He states that the state of global tension and uncertainty makes it even more important for everyone to be better informed and connected and that, therefore, it is natural for deputies to “interact more with their foreign counterparts”.
Motta also highlights that Congress held the presidency of the P20 (G20 of Parliaments) in 2024 and of the Parliamentary Forum in 2025. “This leadership condition also increases the attention of foreign partners to the work of the Brazilian Parliament, with the consequent demand for contacts”, he says.
The value of daily allowances for the then President of the Chamber, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), rose to US$ 391 (approximately R$ 2040) for South American countries, US$ 428 (approximately R$ 2233) for the others and R$ 842 for national trips. The president earns a higher amount: US$428, US$550 (around R$2869) and R$981, respectively.
Federal deputy Murilo Galdino (Republicanos-PB) participated in five official missions in 2025 and received R$55,000 in daily wages — the fourth highest amount paid by the Chamber in the year. Galdino says he attended all the agendas as president of the Special Committee for the New Ports Law.
“It took some trips and displacements to get to know the port reality of other countries”, he says, adding that there is total transparency and that the analysis of public expenditure must always observe the purpose and result, not just the value.
All parliamentarians contacted presented different justifications for the need for the missions. Federal deputy Pedro Paulo (PSD-RJ) says he has received many invitations for being the . At last year’s Lisbon Legal Forum, for example, he stated that he was the speaker in the first debate.
“When I receive these invitations, I don’t accept that they pay for the ticket. I prefer it to be an expense [da Câmara] than a company sponsorship, understand? It’s my compliance choice,” he says.
Travel record holder in 2024, Zé Vitor (PL-MG) was one of the participants at the Esfera Internacional Forum in Rome. All other trips, according to him, were due to the Ethanol Parliamentary Front, of which he is president.
The deputy states that he also went to the (United Nations Conference on Climate Change), in Baku (Azerbaijan), as a member of the Environment Commission.
“I don’t travel for pleasure or to participate in ‘Gilmarpalooza’. When I leave Brazil on behalf of the Chamber, it is to work and represent the production sector”, he says, adding that he has made technical visits about the production of sugar from beets, for example.
Federal deputy Lucio Mosquini (MDB-RO) had the third highest expenditure in 2024, with R$37 thousand. He participated in three official missions — to Lisbon, where he participated in “Gilmarpalooza”, Rome and Guayaramerín (Bolivia).
“The deputy, in the year 2023/2024, was a member of the Board of Directors, and the trips were all on behalf of the Chamber of Deputies. In the year 2025, there was no trip”, he said, in a note, in reference to the position of fourth secretary.
Federal deputy Bia Kicis (PL-DF) received R$36,000 in daily allowances and another R$22,000 in tickets to participate in three official missions in 2024 — among them, the election of the president of the United States, Donald Trump.
The deputy says that her name “is remembered when it comes to defending human rights”, in a reference to the cases of Bolsonaro supporters accused of attempted coups.
One of the agendas that year was a public hearing entitled “Brazil: crisis of democracy, freedom and the rule of law”. “I was invited to participate in several official missions and international forums to recognize my work in defending freedom and against rights violations”, she says.
Deputy João Carlos Bacelar (PL-BA) was contacted, but did not want to comment. Bacelar was the second deputy who spent the most in 2024 and the third in 2025.
