The Ministry of Education announced that 3rd-year high school students in public schools will have automatic enrollment in the National High School Exam (Enem) starting with the 2026 edition. The measure was published in Ordinance No. 422/2026, according to a Jornal de Brasília report that references publication "today" on May 8, although the exact date of the ordinance in the Official Gazette was not located. ✓
Press quotes (1)
"O Ministério da Educação (MEC) anunciou nesta segunda-feira (8) que os alunos concluintes do ensino médio da rede pública terão inscrição automática no Exame Nacional do Ensino Médio (Enem). De acordo com a portaria nº 422/2026, publicada hoje"
Under the new system, graduating students will be automatically enrolled based on data sent by school networks. After enrollment, students will only need to confirm participation, choose a foreign language, and request accessibility resources if needed. The National Institute for Educational Studies and Research Anísio Teixeira (Inep) will expand testing locations by about 10,000 schools, with the expectation that 80% of public school students will take the exam at their own school. ✓
Press quotes (2)
"O aluno terá apenas que confirmar a participação no exame e escolher a prova de língua estrangeira que deseja fazer, além de solicitar recursos de acessibilidade se necessários"
"O Instituto Nacional de Estudos e Pesquisas Educacionais Anísio Teixeira (Inep), responsável pela aplicação do exame, também ampliará os locais de prova em cerca de 10 mil escolas. A expectativa é que 80% dos concluintes da rede pública façam o exame na própria escola onde estudam"
According to Education Minister Leonardo Barchini, the goal is to achieve at least 70% participation of public school graduates by 2026. "We know that Enem engagement is much higher than any other high school assessment test. The idea is to use the exam as a Saeb assessment this year," he stated. The measure integrates Enem into the Basic Education Assessment System (Saeb), consolidating the exam as a tool for evaluating the quality of basic education. ✓
Press quotes (1)
"Nós sabemos que o engajamento do Enem é muito maior que qualquer outra prova de avaliação do ensino médio. A nossa ideia é usar o exame nacional como avaliação do Saeb ainda este ano. Para isso, precisamos alcançar, no mínimo, 70% de frequência dos estudantes"
The change establishes a transition period for 2027 and 2028, when 2025 Saeb results will be considered to maintain comparability of historical series. Enem scores will continue to be used for admission to public and private universities through Sisu, ProUni, and Fies. ✓
Press quotes (1)
"Segundo a portaria assinada nesta segunda-feira, haverá um período de transição para os anos de 2027 e 2028. Nesse período, serão considerados resultados do Saeb de 2025 para o cálculo de indicadores, de forma a manter a comparabilidade das séries históricas"
Automatic enrollment will apply to graduating 3rd-year high school students in public schools starting with the 2026 Enem edition
Goal of at least 70% participation of public school graduates in Enem 2026
Covered by only some sources, or where the accounts diverge.
Covered by only some sources (1)
Transition period for 2027-2028 will consider 2025 Saeb results to maintain historical comparability
Conflicting versions (1)
Date of Ministry of Education announcement
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What is the exact number and publication date of Ordinance 422/2026 in the Official Gazette?
Why it's still unknown: Attempt to obtain the official document in the DOU system failed: search returned zero results for 'Portaria 422/2026 MEC inscrição automática ENEM' in the period 01-19/05/2026
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What is the specific legal foundation that authorizes the Ministry of Education to establish mandatory automatic enrollment?
Why it's still unknown: No outlet reported the specific Constitutional articles or laws cited in the ordinance's preamble as the legal basis for the measure
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How can students who do not wish to participate in Enem cancel their automatic enrollment?
Why it's still unknown: Outlets focused on the participation confirmation process but did not detail the procedure for opting out of automatic enrollment
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What technical systems will be integrated between state education networks and Inep to enable automatic enrollment?
Why it's still unknown: No source detailed the technical infrastructure needed to transfer data from millions of students from state departments to the Enem enrollment system