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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesSão Paulo city prosecutors were reported to have access to up to R$22,000 every three years to reimburse electronics purchases. The frequently paired R$46,000 figure was not a payment made elsewhere: it was the reported average monthly remuneration for that same municipal prosecutor category. The program, informally dubbed an “auxílio-iPhone,” drew scrutiny over private ownership, the source of its funds and its legal basis.
What was the R$22,000 benefit?
In February 2025, the Procuradoria-Geral do Município de São Paulo (PGM), the city’s legal department, instituted a technology-expense program for municipal prosecutors, according to UOL’s May 14, 2025 report. It was described as reimbursement of up to R$22,000 per prosecutor, renewable once every three years—not an automatic cash bonus or an annual payment.
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Under the reported process, a prosecutor bought eligible equipment, submitted a reimbursement request and provided an invoice. The equipment reportedly became the recipient’s private property rather than a public asset. BNews reported a condition that recipients remain in office for two years; that detail should be understood as a condition attributed to that account, not as independently confirmed here from the underlying PGM rule (BNews).
Why was it called an “iPhone allowance”?
“Auxílio-iPhone” was a nickname, not a description of an iPhone-only payment. Reports described a broader category of electronics and related equipment, including phones, computers, tablets, monitors, keyboards, mice and chairs. UOL reported individual requests of up to about R$10,200 for iPhones and R$16,500 for MacBooks; those figures are reported item amounts, not separate benefits on top of the R$22,000 program ceiling.
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The distinction matters: the program was a capped reimbursement for documented purchases, and the reported ceiling applied to the overall benefit. It did not mean every prosecutor received R$22,000, that each received a phone, or that one phone could account for the full ceiling.
Who could use it—and what does R$46,000 mean?
The reported beneficiaries were prosecutors employed by the municipality of São Paulo, not prosecutors across Brazil, São Paulo state employees generally or public servants nationwide. Municipal prosecutors represent and advise the city government. UOL and BandNews cited 397 active prosecutors in the category (BandNews).
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UOL reported average monthly remuneration of about R$46,000 for the category, excluding certain additional benefits. That is an average reported in 2025 coverage, not a guaranteed salary for every recipient, a net-pay figure or an allowance paid in another place. The same report put a relevant public-service pay-ceiling figure at roughly R$46,300 at the time; it should not be treated as a current, timeless threshold (UOL; Terra).
What was the potential cost, and what purchases were reported?
If all 397 active prosecutors used the full reported ceiling, the simple maximum-exposure calculation would be:
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397 × R$22,000 = R$8,734,000
That is a potential maximum, not evidence that R$8.734 million was spent. The ceiling, submitted claims, approved claims and money actually paid are different figures. The available reporting does not establish a complete final expenditure total.
UOL said it identified more than 30 publicly visible reimbursement requests from March through May 2025. The reported purchases included iPhones, MacBooks, monitors, gaming keyboards and gaming mice. One request by the municipal finance secretary, who was also a career prosecutor, covered a MacBook Air, an iPhone 15 and an adapter for about R$22,300; reimbursement was reportedly approved up to the R$22,000 ceiling.
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The presence of gaming equipment fueled questions about necessity, but does not by itself establish that every such purchase was improper. UOL reported that the PGM defended a gaming monitor on the grounds that its larger screen, higher resolution and viewing comfort could be useful, citing the manufacturer’s description. That was the agency’s justification, not an independent determination that the purchase was necessary.
Where did the money come from?
The PGM’s reported position was that the program drew on a fund associated with attorney fees, rather than directly from ordinary municipal tax revenue. The fees include amounts paid by parties that lose lawsuits against the city and a share connected to municipal debts collected through legal action. The PGM argued that these funds belong privately to public attorneys (TecMundo).
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That is the PGM’s legal and institutional position, not an uncontested conclusion about the funds’ status or permissible use. Critics argued that revenue generated through municipal legal work remains connected to public activity and should be treated as public resources—or at least governed by public-interest controls. The dispute involves more than the label attached to the fund: it raises questions about who controls it, what it may finance and what accountability rules apply (UOL TAB newsletter).
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why did the program become controversial?
- Private ownership: The reported arrangement reimbursed equipment that recipients kept, unlike a work computer issued by an agency and returned when no longer needed.
- Public purpose and necessity: Critics questioned whether expensive consumer electronics and peripherals were necessary for municipal legal work, and why the city would reimburse them rather than provide controlled-use equipment.
- Compensation and the pay ceiling: The reported average remuneration was already high, while the treatment of attorney fees alongside salary raised questions about how the constitutional remuneration ceiling applied.
- Scale and distribution: Full use by the reported workforce could expose more than R$8 million over the three-year cycle, while the actual amount paid was not established by that calculation. Critics also questioned whether the program gave one group of public employees an unequal benefit.
- Transparency: Some requests were reportedly restricted because they contained personal data. That prompted questions about whether invoices, item descriptions and aggregate spending could be made public while protecting genuinely private information.
Federal deputy Tabata Amaral said she had taken the matter to the Public Prosecutor’s Office and called for the benefit to be revoked. Her claim that the arrangement amounted to private appropriation of public resources was her criticism, not an established legal finding (IstoÉ).
What did investigators ask, and what is known about the outcome?
On May 16, 2025, the São Paulo state Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPSP) reportedly asked the PGM for information about the benefit’s legal basis, the administrative rules authorizing it and the legal reasoning for the expense. That request marked scrutiny of the arrangement; it did not, by itself, establish that the program was illegal or that recipients had committed wrongdoing (Terra).
Status as of August 18, 2026: The reporting available for this article confirms the May 2025 inquiry and request for explanations, but does not establish a final ruling, suspension, cancellation or criminal finding. The central unresolved questions are whether the fund’s legal authority covers reimbursement for privately owned equipment, what public-accountability rules apply, and how the payments interact with remuneration limits.
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