Do Americans need a visa to Brazil?
Yes. Starting April 10, 2025, US citizen will be required to obtain a visa to enter Brazil. Now, citizens from USA will need to obtain a visa to visit Brazil. However, for the convenience of travelers, an electronic visa system (eVisa) will be available to simplify the application process. If you are planning a trip to Brazil before this date, the visa-free regime will still be valid.
Visa to Brazil for US citizens
Visitor Visas (VIVIS) are aimed at those travelling to Brazil for maximum stays of up to 90 days, without the intention to establish residence, for the purposes of tourism and transit.
VIVIS holders are strictly forbidden to practice any paid work in Brazil, but are allowed to receive payments from the government, a Brazilian employer or a private entity for the purposes of daily allowances, artistic paychecks, compensation or travel expenses, as well as to receive cash prizes in sports, artistic or cultural competitions.
What could be the purpose of a trip to Brazil?
- Tourism and transit;
- Business (e.g., holding meetings, participating in corporate fairs and events, searching for advertising opportunities, signing contracts);
- Non-corporate events (e.g., conferences, seminars, congresses, workshops, cultural meetings/fairs/events);
- Audits or consultations;
- Artistic or sporting events;
- Training, academic internships, professional development programs, research or research programs;
- Cooperation;
- Journalistic coverage, reporting or filming of news;
- Volunteer services;
- Medical treatment;
- Adoption;
- Work as a crew member of ships or aircraft, maritime industry workers;
- Family reunification (based on marriage by proxy);
- Other exceptional conditions.
How can Americans obtain a visa to Brazil?
1. US citizens need to fill out a visa application form on the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Brazil. The application form is submitted exclusively online.
What do US citizens need to indicate in the application form?
- Personal data.
- Citizenship and place of birth.
- Information about parents (if necessary) and a representative.
- Purpose of the trip and date of arrival.
- Planned duration of stay (in days or months).
- Passport details.
- Information about profession or occupation.
- Information about the place of work.
- Contact information.
- Photos and additional documents.
- A contact person in Brazil.
Important details of the application
- Apply three months before your trip.
- The application form must be filled out in Portuguese.
After filling it out, you will receive an automatically generated code. Save it, because you will need it to edit the application form or verify the information.
Print the receipt, paste the photo in the appropriate field and sign the document.
2. The next step is to submit the application form together with all the necessary documents to the nearest Brazilian consulate or embassy.
Documents to be submitted by US citizens
- Online visa application form
- Original and copy of passport (valid for at least 6 months, at least 2 blank pages)
- Proof of financial capacity (for example, a bank statement for the last three months or a salary slip)
- A passport photo, taken within the last 6 months
- Air tickets (ordered route with entry and exit from Brazil)
- Payment of relevant consular fees by deposit/bank transfer. Deposits/transfers must include the applicant's name
- A personal cover letter with relevant information about the applicant and the planned trip. In English, Spanish or Portuguese.
- Hotel reservation or similar document
- For minors: visa authorization form signed by both parents and notarized.
- Travel insurance
If you are traveling for a non — tourist purpose, but one that subjects to the above criteria, you need a supporting document with a seal, translated into English or Portuguese, to visit Brazil.
The original documents, along with a printed receipt, must be submitted to the consulate for consideration of the application. The review process can take up to 180 days, after which the application form will be deleted.
The type of visa is determined by the consular office based on the information provided.
3. Payment of the visa fee
- After verifying all the data, the consular agent will issue the payment and provide confirmation.
- All documents must be submitted to the consulate within 30 days from the date of application.
- Only paper documents are accepted.
You can apply for an extension of almost any type of Brazilian visa. You must apply for a visa extension at your local Brazilian Federal Police Office (DPF). You must apply at least two weeks before the visa expires, but not earlier than one month in advance.
The decision to extend the visa depends on the Federal Police Department.
Transit in the national area: VIVIS isn’t required in case of a stop or flight in Brazil, as long as the visitor leaves the international transit zone and has one ticket (under a single booking link, indicating both the place of origin and the final destination, regardless of multiple stops or multiple carriers).
If the Traveler doesn’t use visa-free travel and has separate tickets, you must pass border/passport control upon disembarkation, and he/she must receive a VIVIS.
A permit to import dogs and cats is not required (any other pets must have an import permit issued by the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and food).
When you arrive in Brazil, you must present an international veterinary certificate/pet passport, issued or approved by an official veterinarian from the country's Veterinary Office. Veterinary certificates/pet passports signed only by a private veterinarian are not accepted.
Official pet passports are accepted only from countries that mutually accept the Brazilian pet passport. Currently, the European pet passport is not valid for entering Brazil.
You don't need an animal microchip to enter Brazil.
The international veterinary certificate/passport of the animal must meet Brazilian sanitary requirements:
- Animals older than 90 (ninety) days must have rabies vaccinations approved by veterinary authorities;
- If this is the first vaccination, the trip should take place only 21 days after vaccination;
Animals under three months of age can enter Brazil without rabies vaccination if:
- The Veterinary Authority confirms that at the time of issuing the International Veterinary Certificate, the animal was less than ninety (90) days old and was not in any property where cases of urban rabies were registered in the last ninety (90) days on the basis of the owner's application or official epidemiological information.
- If the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) considers a country to be rabies-free, there is no need to provide evidence of rabies vaccination. This information should be indicated in the international veterinary certificate/passport of the animal.
- Within fifteen (15) days prior to the date of issue of the International Veterinary Certificate/Passport, the animal must be treated for internal and external parasites of a wide spectrum of action using products approved by the veterinary authority, indicating the active ingredients.
- The animal must be examined within ten (10) days prior to the date of issuance of the International Veterinary Certificate/Passport of an animal that has no clinical signs of infectious or parasitic diseases and is suitable for transportation.
- Brazil may not accept animals that have previously been diagnosed with Leishmaniasis.
Import of international currency is unlimited, but amounts above 10,000 BRL, in the equivalent to foreign currency, must be declared. Export of the national currency is restricted. Permission to export foreign currency within the limits of the amount declared at entry, National — only under the license of the Central Bank of Brazil.
From what you can take to Brazil by plane without tax:
- Tobacco products: 400 cigarettes or 25 cigars;
- Items intended for your own use: clothing, books;
- Other products and products worth a maximum of 500 USD;
- Items: tape recorder, player, radio, photo, movie or video camera and PDA.
- All non-Brazilian video, film, and audio equipment is taxed.
From the fact that it is forbidden to import and export from Brazil, we can mention drugs, firearms, ammunition, medicines and radioactive materials. Export of any wild animals, their skins and products made of skins, shells, feathers and claws is prohibited. You can’t export meat, meat products, dairy products, eggs, fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as plants and their parts.
190 - police
192 - Ambulance
193 - fire department
Phones of other operational services:
112 - redirect to 190 from mobile phones
911 - redirect to 190 from mobile phones
191 - Highway Police
197 - civilian police
153 - City Police
100 - Human Rights Office
1. If you want to withdraw a large amount of money from a Brazilian ATM, you should always do so before 10 pm. Not only is it safer to withdraw money during daylight hours, but after 10 pm the withdrawal limit drops to 500 reais.
2. The Brazilian bus system is surprisingly good if you know what you're doing. While it can be difficult to find bus schedules and price information online (especially in English), it's best to go to the bus station in person and ask at the ticket office. The metro lines in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo are small, but ideal for getting around the main attractions without spending too much money. Taxis are also quite cheap in the northeast of Brazil. In national parks or on coastal routes, you can even rent a cheap car so that you don't have to depend on expensive travel companies.
3. In Brazil, the hand symbol "OK" is the equivalent of giving someone the middle finger. This is considered very rude and even offensive to some people.
4. Favelas are crowded, very poor neighborhoods usually built on the hillsides of Rio de Janeiro. All favelas are controlled by gangs or the mafia, where people sell drugs and openly carry machine guns.
Although a favela tour is absolutely safe, and favelas in general can be relatively safe during daylight hours, it is still best to avoid them if you are not with a group.
5. In general, don't walk the streets after dark (which is around 6pm all year round). As an international tourist, if you need to go somewhere after dark, use Uber or a taxi, or take the subway if you need to walk less than a block to/from the station to your destination.
Beware of pickpockets (or thieves snatching your phone out of your hand), especially in places like Copacabana, markets, and other touristy places. If you're riding in a taxi or uber with the window down, be aware that passersby, bikers, or people selling on the street when the cars are stopped sometimes snatch phones right out of your hands in the car.
6. There are two types of plugs used in Brazil: type C and type N. The type C plug has two round pins, and it is also widely used in many European countries. The N type plug has two round pins and a grounding pin.
7. The main working hours of most shops and businesses are Monday through Friday from 9:00 to 18:00 and on Saturday from 9:00 to noon, with an extended lunch break from about noon to 2:00. Shops in shopping centers are open until late at night on Saturday. Banks open at 10 am and are open all day, but usually stop changing money at 2 pm or 3 pm; with the exception of banks at major airports, they are closed on weekends and holidays. Museums and monuments more or less follow the opening hours, but many are closed on Mondays.
8. In the subway in the main cities, the cars are reserved for women only, but this rule applies only during peak hours from 6 to 9 am and from 5 to 8 pm from Monday to Friday.
If a man enters one of these cars, he faces a fine of up to 1,000 reais, which is equivalent to $320. Outside of rush hours, both women and men are allowed to use these cars.
Safety in this subway does not tolerate any excuses, especially since there are warnings in the cars that are written in Portuguese and English and are intended only for women.
9. When you arrive at the airport in Brazil, book a taxi through one of the agencies or call uber, rather than using unofficial taxi services. Although it costs more, you will not be charged extra when you arrive at your destination.
Sources:
https://www.travelinglifestyle.net/thing-know-before-travel-brazil/
https://www.roughguides.com/brazil/travel-advice/
https://theunknownenthusiast.com/rio-de-janeiro-travel-tips/
https://southamericabackpacker.com/travel-tips-brazil/
A list of diplomatic missions can be found here.
Brazil