The controls on declared wages are reflected in the debate on earnings and end-of-service allowances in Lebanon. But the figures cited in this discussion require a precise reading. The CNSS balance sheet for the period from 15 May to 30 September 2025 distinguishes the companies selected by a risk analysis of the completed inspection missions. It does not lead to the conclusion that 58 per cent of Lebanese companies are fraudulent.
This distinction directly concerns employees. The amount declared is involved in determining their social rights. A salary actually paid higher than the declared amount may therefore indicate an improvement in the immediate income without equivalent protection at the end of the career.
Reported wage controls: what the balance sheet measures
In its balance sheet published on 16 October 2025, the CNSS states that it analysed the risks of 2,521 companies. Of these, 1,469 reported earnings less than twice the 2024 reference minimum. This represents approximately 58% of the study area. The document announced their gradual inspection, not the completion of 1,469 inspections.
The results of the operations carried out included 375 mission orders and 28,894 employees. The Fund reported 886 previously undeclared employees registered after inspection. It also announced the termination of benefits for 788 enrolments considered fictitious and a decision to suspend benefits for 15 companies.
The salary threshold is used to guide controls. It does not constitute an individual conviction. Statistical analysis, on-site verification and administrative decision are three different steps.
The figure of 58% does not describe all enterprises
The proportion applies to files reviewed in this program. There is nothing to treat this group as a representative sample of all companies in the country. Risk-based selection specifically seeks to identify situations that warrant review.
The same reasoning applies to employees. A company can count several workers in different situations. The number of employers reported does not allow to deduct how many people receive under-reported earnings. Individual records and audit results must be known.
Nor should the various irregularities be confused. A job that is missing from the returns, a fictitious registration, and a salary that is declared too low do not describe the same problem. Grouping them into a single total would prevent understanding the rights to be restored and the amounts to be regularized.
An old circular is not valid today
The threshold of 20 million pounds sometimes mentioned in this file refers to a measure of January 2024. Circular 181 then organized the inspection of declarations below this level. The legal minimum was still £9 million.
The circular was subsequently cancelled by Circular 901 of 25 April 2024, after the increase of the minimum to 18 million. The CNSS maintained the requirement to report actual earnings. Presenting the January mechanism today as a still applicable instruction would therefore be inaccurate.
The threshold used for a control campaign must be read with its date and purpose. It does not replace the legal minimum of the moment and does not set the wage actually owed to a person on its own.
Declaration commits future rights
In the November 2026 wage exchanges, Béchara Asmar accuses some employers of declaring only the minimum, without reflecting the actual remuneration. The President of the General Confederation of Workers links this practice to the reduction of termination benefits. His claim describes a problem denounced by the union, without establishing the situation of each company.
The issue is therefore not limited to the future minimum wage. It also concerns the reconciliation between the remuneration paid and that recorded. The 2025 balance sheet provides a documented starting point; An updated review of the inspections would make it possible to know what became of the files then selected.
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