Brazil Entry Requirements For Tourists In 2026

Published on Nov 22, 2025, 10:13 pm CST

13 min read

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Planning a trip to Brazil now means paying closer attention to entry rules than it did a few years ago. This guide explains how short stay entry works in 2025 and 2026 for typical tourists and business visitors, with a particular focus on travelers from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and European countries.

Brazil has recently reinstated visa requirements for some nationalities that were used to simply showing up with a passport, while keeping visa free entry for many others. The result is a patchwork that depends heavily on your citizenship and travel history, so you should treat this guide as general information and always confirm details with official sources before you book or travel.

Entry Snapshot

For most travelers, short visits to Brazil fall into two broad categories. Many nationals of European Union countries, the United Kingdom, and much of Latin America continue to enter visa free for visits of up to about ninety days, admitted as visitors on arrival. By contrast, citizens of the United States, Canada, and Australia must now obtain an electronic visitor visa before boarding a flight, even for a simple holiday.

Who Can Visit And For How Long

Brazil applies its entry rules based on reciprocity, which means that what you face at the border depends heavily on the passport you carry. If your country allows Brazilians to visit without a visa, Brazil often offers you the same courtesy. If your country requires Brazilians to obtain visas, Brazil is more likely to require a visa or e visa from you as well.

If you travel on a passport from any European Union country or from the United Kingdom, you are currently visa exempt for short visits. In practice, this usually means you can enter Brazil for tourism or typical business activities for up to ninety days at a time, with a total stay that normally cannot exceed about one hundred eighty days in any twelve month period. Border officers will record your entry and exit dates in a central system, and they may look closely at your past stays if you visit frequently.

If you hold a United States, Canadian, or Australian passport, the situation changed in April 2025. The Brazilian government ended its previous visa waiver for these nationals and reinstated a visitor visa requirement from 10 April 2025 onward, with applications handled primarily through an electronic visitor visa system. In practical terms, you now need an approved e visa, or a traditional visitor visa in your passport, before you travel.

Under the visitor visa framework, which also covers e visas, Brazil normally allows you to stay up to ninety days per visit and up to one hundred eighty days in any rolling twelve month period. Extensions may be possible through the Federal Police while you are in the country, but they are discretionary and should not be relied on for casual planning. If you have already spent significant time in Brazil in the past year, you should expect more questions about your travel pattern and you should carry strong documentation of your plans and ties home.

Citizens of neighboring Mercosur and associated countries, for example Argentina or Chile, have their own set of agreements that usually allow relatively easy visa free entry, sometimes with identity cards instead of passports when arriving from within the region. If you hold one of these passports and plan a complex itinerary that mixes tourism with work, you should check your specific treaty rights with your consulate before you travel.

Visa Options And Common Exemptions

Brazil divides short stay entries into two main pathways. Some nationalities receive a visa exemption and enter under the visitor category without applying in advance, while others must secure a visitor visa before departure, either as an electronic visa or through a consulate.

If you are from the United States, Canada, or Australia, your default pathway for tourism or short business visits is the electronic visitor visa, often called the e visa. You apply online through the official platform operated for Brazil by VFS, upload your documents, pay the fee, and receive a digital approval that you present at check in and upon arrival. The e visa functions as a multi entry visitor visa and generally allows multiple short visits within its validity, subject to the one hundred eighty day per year limit described earlier.

If you prefer, or if your circumstances require it, you can also apply for a traditional visitor visa through a Brazilian consulate. This may be relevant if you have had past immigration issues, if your online application runs into technical problems, or if you need a different visa category, for example for longer term study or work. For most ordinary tourists from e visa eligible countries, however, the online process is now the standard route.

If you hold a passport from the United Kingdom, an EU member state, or many Latin American and some Asian countries, you remain visa exempt for typical short stays. You do not apply for a visa before travel. Instead, Brazilian border officers will admit you as a visitor when you arrive and will stamp your passport with an authorized period of stay, which for most nationalities is up to ninety days.

Brazil does not normally offer a visa on arrival in the strict sense for travelers who require visas. If your nationality is listed as requiring a visitor visa and there is no e visa option, you should assume that you must obtain a visa from a Brazilian diplomatic mission before you board your flight. Airlines will usually deny boarding if your documents do not match the current requirements, even if you might technically be able to sort things out at the border.

Finally, some specialized groups use different pathways. For example, certain large events in Brazil, such as the COP30 climate conference, involve temporary courtesy visas and separate online portals, and Brazil is gradually expanding e visa options for other nationalities and purposes, including some business travelers from India. If you are traveling as part of a delegation or a sponsored project, you should follow your organizer's instructions and confirm your visa type directly with the nearest Brazilian consulate.

Documents You Should Prepare Before Travel

Regardless of whether you are visa exempt or traveling with an e visa, you should treat Brazil as a documentation heavy destination. Border officers are used to asking detailed questions, and airlines are under pressure to verify that passengers are properly documented before boarding.

At a minimum, you should plan to have the following ready, in both printed and digital form where possible

A passport that is in good condition, with at least one or two completely blank pages and a validity period that comfortably covers your trip.
If required for your nationality, an approved visitor visa or e visa confirmation, ideally printed as well as saved offline on your phone.
Proof of onward or return travel out of Brazil, such as a return airfare or a ticket onward to a third country.
Evidence of accommodation for at least the first part of your stay, such as hotel bookings or a clear invitation letter from a host that matches the address you will give at the border.
Proof of sufficient funds, which may include recent bank statements, credit card limits, or a letter from your employer confirming expenses for a business trip.

You will see conflicting guidance about passport validity. The United States government notes that your passport must be valid on the date of entry, while Brazilian consular guidance and airline checklists often advise at least six months of validity beyond arrival, and the e visa platform currently states that your passport should be valid at least one month beyond your intended arrival date. The safest approach is to travel with at least six months of validity remaining and to confirm both your airline's policy and the latest Brazilian consular advice before you finalize plans.

Travel insurance is not a formal entry requirement for most visitors to Brazil, but it is strongly recommended, especially if you are visiting more remote areas where medical evacuation could be costly. If your tour operator, cruise line, or employer requires specific coverage, carry proof and keep it with your other documents.

What To Expect At The Border

Most international visitors arrive in Brazil by air, at large gateways such as São Paulo Guarulhos International Airport or Rio de Janeiro Galeão International Airport. After you disembark, you will follow signs for passport control, where Federal Police officers handle immigration checks. Some airports have automated gates for Brazilian citizens and a limited group of foreign residents, but most tourists will proceed through staffed booths.

If you are visa exempt, the officer will usually ask basic questions about the purpose of your trip, length of stay, accommodation, and onward travel, then stamp your passport with an authorized stay period. If you hold a visitor visa or e visa, you should present your passport and your visa approval printout or digital copy together, so the officer can quickly match them and confirm that the details are consistent.

You should be prepared for follow up questions if you plan to stay close to the maximum permitted period, if you have visited Brazil frequently, or if your travel pattern looks unusual. Officers have broad discretion to refuse entry or to grant a shorter stay than the maximum, even if your documents are technically in order, and you should answer honestly and calmly.

If you are transiting through a Brazilian airport on the way to another country and you remain airside in the international transit area, you generally do not need a Brazilian visa, regardless of nationality. However, you should never assume that you can leave the transit zone without meeting full entry requirements. If you want to clear immigration, collect bags, or change airports, you must be sure that your documents qualify you to enter Brazil.

Customs checks occur after passport control. Brazil has currency declaration rules and restrictions on some goods, but these are separate from entry requirements and are best checked on official customs or tax sites as part of your broader trip planning.

When Rules Are Different

The guidance in this article focuses on short term tourism and mainstream business visits. If your plans involve work, long term study, volunteering, journalism with paid assignments, or technical services, you will probably need a different visa category, often one of the temporary residence visas, and you should not attempt to enter solely on a visitor basis.

If you are a resident of Brazil returning home, or a dual national with Brazilian citizenship, different document rules apply and Brazilian authorities generally expect you to travel on, or at least present, your Brazilian passport or identity card. Trying to enter as a foreign visitor when you are in fact a Brazilian national can create complications, especially if your Brazilian registration is out of date.

Rules can also diverge for minors, especially when children travel alone or with only one parent or guardian. In these cases, Brazilian law often requires additional consent documents or court orders, and airlines may have their own policies on unaccompanied minors. If you are planning travel with children, you should consult both the relevant Brazilian consulate and your airline well in advance.

Finally, if you have a history of overstaying visas, prior refusals of entry, or criminal convictions, your situation is more complex than this general guide can cover. In such cases, you should not rely on generic online summaries. Instead, you should seek advice directly from a Brazilian consulate or, where appropriate, from a qualified immigration attorney before you commit non refundable travel funds.

Where To Confirm The Latest Rules

Brazil's entry rules have shifted more than once in recent years, particularly for United States, Canadian, and Australian citizens. Political debate continues about whether to restore visa waivers for some countries, and Brazil is experimenting with new e visa channels for additional nationalities and business purposes. Because of this, you should always confirm the latest requirements close to your travel date.

Your best starting points are

The official visa and consular services pages of Brazil's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, especially the sections that list nationalities that require a visa and those that are exempt.
The dedicated e visa information and application site, which publishes current eligibility, document, and fee details for electronic visitor visas.
The travel advisory or country information page published by your own government, such as the United States Department of State's Brazil page for U.S. citizens.

You should also check information from your airline, which will usually link to IATA based entry requirement summaries that check the same databases carriers use at check in. Airlines are often stricter than the minimum legal standard, because they bear the cost of carrying passengers who are refused at the border.

Remember that this guide is general information, not legal advice. Final decisions about your admission and length of stay rest with Brazilian border and consular authorities. If your situation is unusual or complex, you should consult a qualified attorney or appropriate official before you rely on any summary, including this one.

Putting It All Together

For most tourists, entering Brazil remains straightforward as long as you match your documents carefully to your nationality and travel plans. If you are from a visa exempt country such as the United Kingdom or a European Union member state, you will usually be able to visit visa free for a stay of around ninety days, provided your passport, tickets, and accommodation proof are in order. If you are from the United States, Canada, or Australia, you now need to build e visa lead time into your planning and treat visa approval as a core pre trip task, not an afterthought.

Whatever your passport, you will reduce your risk at the border if you travel with a solid documentation pack. Aim for a passport with at least six months of remaining validity, carry printed and digital copies of your bookings and e visa approvals where relevant, and be ready to explain your itinerary and ties to your home country in simple, honest terms. Check official Brazilian and home government sources again shortly before departure, since entry rules and e visa eligibility can change with little notice.

If your plans push beyond simple tourism or short business visits, or if you have any immigration history that might raise questions, treat that as a signal to slow down and get individualized advice. Brazil rewards well prepared visitors, and a cautious approach to entry rules is one of the simplest ways to protect your trip.

Sources

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Brazil