Summary

In Uruguay, informal work has reduced by half since the beginning of the 21st century: from 43% in 2001 to 21.5% in 2022. One of the measures associated with this reduction was the implementation of the Monotax: a regime of simplified and minimum contributions, which allows access to retirement, maternity, and illness insurance and, with an extra payment, provides access to health care.

Through a set of interviews with qualified informants (7), in-depth interviews with workers (13), three focus groups (18 participants), and supplementary media analysis, quantitative analysis and documentary review, this study analyses: i) the motivations for registering, ii) the evaluations of the social benefits and iii) the formal aspects of the regime, iv) some specific sectors of activity and the focus on vulnerability of Social Monotax, v) the self-perception of Monotax workers, vi) some specific measures taken during the pandemic, vii) and finally emerging aspects, such as potential improvements to the system.