Share The Article
In a drastic change of policy, Brazil will start requiring visas of U.S. passport holders starting April 10.
This means that, unless you have obtained authorization to fly to Brazil, from Brazilian authorities themselves, you will be barred from boarding your flight.
The same rule applies now to Canadians and Australians, and it’s part of a significant reshuffle of border rules that are set to affect millions of tourists flying to Rio, and other paradisaical beach destinations in South America’s largest countries.
Here’s everything you need to know about the new Brazil visa for Americans, how to apply, and why Brazil is tightening entry rules:
Why Is Brazil Targeting Americans With New Visa Rules?
Starting April 10, Brazil will bar all American citizens, as well as Canadians and Australians, who don’t hold a valid visa to enter Brazil.
This means that, before their trip, they must apply for a permit to fly, or else they won’t be let on the plane, much less through the Brazilian border.
This comes amid the current Brazilian administration’s switch from an open-border, tourist-friendly approach to a reciprocity-based policy.
In simpler terms, unless Brazilians can travel visa free to a foreign country, Brazilian officials will no longer allow allow citizens of said country to travel to Brazil visa-free.
This isn’t exactly uncharted territory, as prior to the Bolsonaro Administration, Brazil had already imposed visa requirements on Americans, seeing that Brazilians are not allowed to enter the United States visa-free—for the past 6 years, however, an exemption was made as the country tried to boost tourism.
For political reasons, this is now changing once again.
The same applies to Canada and Australia, who equally impose stricter visa rules on Brazilians, and are thus affected by the policy change, but it doesn’t concern citizens of other Western territories, like the European Union, the United Kingdom, or New Zealand, who have signed visa-waiver deals with Brazil.
How To Apply For The Brazil e-Visa
The good news is that the new Brazilian visa is somewhat simpler than the previous one, so don’t panic just yet if you have a trip planned in the coming months!
Unless, hem, you’re traveling with children, but we’ll get to that.
You will no longer be required to commute to the nearest Brazilian Consulate—which for some living in a small town in the middle of America, may involve flying to a major East of West Coast city—nor submit your paperwork in person, much less attend an interview.
In the words of the Brazilian Government, citizens traveling with passports from the United States, Canada or Australia for tourism and business purposes will be able to request an e-Visa through the VFS e-Visa portal.
They claim the process is ‘easy and quick‘, and that if the requirements listed below are met, the e-Visa will be issued in only a few days.
If you’ve ever dealt with Asian e-Visas, such as the Vietnam or Myanmar one, you know how it goes:
- You must be in possession of a valid passport, valid up to the end of the travel to Brazil
- The passport must have at least 2 blank visa pages
- You must upload a passport-style photo to the platform (2” x 2”, with a white background)
- You must show confirmation of your flight reservation, entering and leaving Brazil
This should all take a few minutes to complete.
The rules are a bit different if you’re traveling to Brazil for business, but as we’re primarily addressing tourists, we won’t go into detail here, though you can always check the requirements for business travelers for yourself on the official page here.
What If You’re Traveling With Children Or Teens?
There’s another catch:
If you’re traveling with children or anyone younger than 18 years of age at the time of application, you must present all the following documentation, and the list is quite extensive:
- An original birth certificate for the underage person and a copy
- A completed Authorization for Issuance of Brazilian Visa for a Minor, available for download here
- If one of the parents is Brazilian, they must present a declaration that the child is not a Brazilian citizen themselves, signed by the Brazilian parent
- In cases where a single parent has sole custody of a child, a notarized copy of the court order awarding sole custody and exclusive parental rights should be attached
- If the child has a deceased parent, a death certificate for the said parent must be included in the application
- A copy of passports or other form of valid photo ID of both parents is required
- Finally, the name on the parent’s photo ID must match the child’s on their birth certificate: if the parent has changed their name since the issuance of this document, they must provide additional proof confirming the name change (for example, a marriage certificate)
We guess families won’t be flocking to Brazil for their vacations, after all.
For travelers aged over 18, they must present bank statements showing transactions dating back at least a month, and proving they have at least US$2,000 in funds for travel.
Last but certainly not least, all must pay an e-Visa fee of US $80.90, for each application, so if you’re a family of 4, other than the extensive paperwork, you must fork out a whopping US$323,60.
Ouch.
Other Important Information About The Brazil e-Visa
As for the issuance of the visa itself, once all the documentation is uploaded and validated by the platform, the e-Visa will take up to five business days to process, so keep that in mind if you have an upcoming travel date and you’re applying on a weekend or public holiday in Brazil.
Our advice to you is to apply as soon as you have a confirmed itinerary for Brazil and your flights booked so as to avoid delays and risk being prevented from boarding due to not having a valid visa.
You should also make sure that you add the correct email address when creating your account in the e-Visa platform. Any updates regarding the application and the authorization to travel will be sent to that email.
Once you get your e-Visa, make sure you download it in PDF form or print out a few copies, as Brazilian border officers are known to be unsure about digital documents.
Based on the information available at this stage, which we will be able to confirm once the system is fully in operation from April 10, this e-Visa is valid for up to 5 years.
It allows for multiple entries into Brazil, so long as each stay does not exceed 90 days at a time.
We guess planning Carnival abroad just got way more bureaucratic than usual…
Vinicius Costa
Vini, our senior lead writer at Travel Off Path, has over 60+ countries under his belt (and currently weaving tales from Paris!), and a knack for turning off-the-beaten-path experiences into informative stories that will have you packing your bags.
Ready For Your Trip? Check The Latest Entry Requirements For Your Destination Here
↓ Elevate Your Travel↓
Sign Up Now For Travel Off Path Premium! No ads, VIP Content, Personal Travel Concierge, Huge Savings, Daily Deals, Members Forum & More!
️Join Our Travel Off Path Community Forum: Where travelers unite, ask questions, share experiences and even find like-minded travel buddies!
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR LATEST POSTS
Enter your email address to subscribe to Travel Off Path’s latest breaking travel news, straight to your inbox.
This article originally appeared on TravelOffPath.com
Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
Please visit:
Our Sponsor