Abstract:This study assesses the impact of the conditional cash transfer programme, Programa Bolsa Família (PBF), on the occupational composition of the Brazilian labour market. In particular, the goal is to analyse to what extent the PBF distorts the occupational choice of beneficiaries in the sense of making them more likely to opt for an informal occupation. The motive behind this investigation is the idea that income from informal employment is less visible to the institution managing the programme than income from formal employment. (…)