Standing with Street Vendors in São Paulo: Clinic Submits Brief to U.N. Special Rapporteurs 

May 13, 2026 

Today, the International Human Rights Clinic submitted a brief to the U.N. Special Rapporteurs regarding the impact of São Paulo’s Tô Legal licensing system on street vendors’ human rights. A submission to the Special Rapporteurs informs their work and supports engagement with authorities, including through requests for information and communications on alleged human rights violations. The brief was submitted as part of a coalition effort with eight human rights and labor organizations.* 

The submission draws on a human rights assessment that the Clinic conducted in São Paulo, Brazil in autumn of 2025, in collaboration with partner organizations. It raises concerns about the implementation of the Tô Legal system, a new licensing regime that is contributing to deepening insecurity for street vendors. Under the system, long-term licenses held by vendors have been effectively phased out, while vendors are increasingly issued short-term licenses that are easier to revoke, difficult to maintain, and legally ambiguous. 

The insecurity generated by the new system leaves vendors exposed to arbitrary enforcement actions, confiscations of their goods, and confrontations with the police—including fatal incidents. The April 2025 killing of street vendor Ngagne Mbaye is emblematic, for many vendors and organizers, of the escalating human rights crisis that they are confronting. 

Vendors in the city have been advocating against erosion of their rights for decades without an enduring government response. On the contrary, those who speak out in defense of vendors’ rights have faced threats of harm and other reprisals. 

The coalition has asked the Special Rapporteurs to inquire into the human rights situation of São Paulo’s vendors and to seek a response from the authorities, including dialogue with vendors on a workable, rights-respecting licensing system. 

Read more here: Violations Of Street Vendor Rights In São Paulo: Implementation Of The Tô Legal Licensing System

Portuguese Version: Violações dos Direitos dos Vendedores Ambulantes em São Paulo: Implementação do Sistema de Licenciamento Tô Legal

*In addition to the Clinic, the submitting organizations are:  *In addition to the Clinic, the submitting organizations are:  Centro Gaspar Garcia de Direitos Humanos, Coalizão Negra por Direitos, Conectas Direitos Humanos, Central Única dos Trabalhadores (CUT), StreetNet International, União Nacional de Trabalhadoras e Trabalhadores Camelôs, Ambulantes e Feirantes do Brasil (UNICAB), and Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO).