Brazil Visa Question - 90 day limit

[sanddunes]

Hopefully someone knows the answer to this...

If I stay in Brazil for the maximum 90 days, and then return in a few months, would I be allowed another 90 days?

Or in order to come back would I have to obtain a 90 day extension?  It would be nice to avoid the hassle/paperwork of applying for the extension.

Is the rule you can stay 90 days in a 1 year period without an extension?  It is very confusing, I have looked online but read different things.

[mvan1]

2 hours ago, sanddunes said:

Hopefully someone knows the answer to this...

If I stay in Brazil for the maximum 90 days, and then return in a few months, would I be allowed another 90 days?

Or in order to come back would I have to obtain a 90 day extension?  It would be nice to avoid the hassle/paperwork of applying for the extension.

Is the rule you can stay 90 days in a 1 year period without an extension?  It is very confusing, I have looked online but read different things.

I travel to Brazil often.  Usually, five to six times each year.  

Each time I enter, I am given an additional 90 days on my entry stamp. 

It is incumbent on me to realize that I can be in Brazil a total of 180 days maximum in any year, but only 90 days at one entry (unless I am given an extension of time).  

To answer your question "If I stay in Brazil for the maximum 90 days, and then return in a few months, would I be allowed another 90 days?"  Yes, provided the number of days in a year do not exceed 180 days.  

[SolaceSoul]

The rule is that if you are traveling to Brazil on a tourist visa, then you are allowed to stay up to 90 days per visit to Brazil and a total of 180 days per year in the country as a tourist. You can stay 180 consecutive days in Brazil, but you’ll need to go to the Policia Federal and request an extension.

The year is calculated based on the first time you enter Brazil, and not on the calendar year.

This explains it simply and succinctly:

http://braziliangringo.com/tourist-visa-brazil/

Helpful Heloise Hint: do NOT get too clever by half and plan a trip with exactly 90 days (or with 180 days with extension) from arrival to departure. Give yourself a few days in case of an unexpected emergency or delay. If you depart Brazil after the 90 days or 180 days maximum, you will be fined and will most likely lose your ability to renter the country.

[sanddunes]

So would going to Iguazu falls for a day or two in Argentina, and then re-entering Brazil “reset” the 90 day clock?

[SolaceSoul]

1 hour ago, sanddunes said:

So would going to Iguazu falls for a day or two in Argentina, and then re-entering Brazil “reset” the 90 day clock?

As mentioned in the instructional article I posted:

“During any one year period you are allowed to spend 180 days inside Brazil. This can be broken up any way that you want [as long as you don’t spend more than 90 days in Brazil without an extension] — 10 days here, 20 days there, 90 days here, 60 days there. Many people stay for 90 days, request a 90 day extension then leave once their second 90 day extension runs out..”

 

[mvan1]

Tough question. 

Technically, the answer is "yes" because you leave and enter Brazil.  

However, I have been to Iguazu falls twice with a garoto.  

Garotos are exempt from immigration rules in that part of the world.  They went through a different line than I did.    

I am not Brazilian.  The first time I went to Iguazu, I had to exit and enter again, including filling out another immigration form.  

The second time, now that the immigration form has been discontinued, I did not have to sign out and sign in again.  A group of us was herded down a long corridor both when leaving and reentry.  The corridors were crowded and a bit disorganized but the process went fast  

So, the answer to your question is "maybe" which is not the answer you want to read.  

Pragmatically, if you leave the Brazilian side of the falls and reenter, you technically need to exit and enter again.  If that happens and your passport is stamped again, your 90 prazo begins again.  

 

[Riobard]

Forgive me if I assume incorrectly, but I believe the OP has the new e-visa, 90 days max within a 365-day period; eg, arrives April 1st, can come and go with stays additively maxed at 90 days, clock resets Apr 2019. No extension allowed.

I think the answers provided here are predicated on the former (but still available) consular visa inserted in passport, 90 day max per visit, 180 days total within a year (commencing initial entry), fed police approval needed to extend past 90 days once the 90 day accumulation reached.

For either visa type in terms of the 90 day rule (without extension), leaving the country for wherever stops the clock until re-entry. I THINK. Conceivably can arrive Brazil April 1st and leave 2nd week of July as long as a lengthy enough jaunt to, say, Argentina occurred, say, in May. Though I would not risk it personally, having had a confusing border experience that also differed from a friend in a different queue at the same instant, though personal circumstances the same. 

But perhaps mvan knows better than me ... he thinks the 90 days is reset, whereas I think it is just frozen. Again perhaps depends on e-type vs consular-issued type. 

The OP is inquiring about a border run as a way to satisfy the  consular visa length of stay obligations, bypassing the extension procedure with BRZ fed police. Well, technically, it should be workable. I THINK. But would I personally risk it? Probably not. I think that at the border back to Brazil the customs officials would put you on the spot to provide the same documentation, proof of funds to cover "extension of stay", proof of future exit travel ticket, proof of accommodations, etc. They might think you strategically tried to bypass the procedure and might give you a hard time. 

I have tried to find a clear answer myself in the past by looking online, but gave up. If it were really important to me, for example if I wanted to stay down there for 6 months and break out to a neighbouring country briefly, I would probably seek clear direction from my consulate. 

But it's a moot point because I will likely go with the e-visa when my consular visa expires.

In a similar vein, since e-visas expire after 2 years I wonder if the slate is wiped clean. If so, one could stay 90 days closer to the back end of the term and then apply for a new one and not have to wait 9 months to return. It seems strange, though, that the required elapse period between visits would hinge on your position in consecutive 2-year cycles.

Perhaps other readers here have a clearer answer or have used the proposed 'work-around' consistently successfully.

[sanddunes]

Thanks Riobard.

I do have the new 2 year tourist e-visa, and I believe you are right that it is 90 days max per year, non-extendable.  I did not know it was non-extendable when I applied for it, or I probably would have just gotten the regular 10 year tourist visa..

 

”The Brazilian Government has announced a new e Visa for USA citizens for Tourist, Business, Transit, and Artistic or Sports Activities travel purposes, the new visa type will be valid for 2 years, good for multiple entries with a maximum stay of up to 90 days per year. (Non-Extendable) “

[mvan1]

1 hour ago, sanddunes said:

Thanks Riobard.

I do have the new 2 year tourist e-visa, and I believe you are right that it is 90 days max per year, non-extendable.  I did not know it was non-extendable when I applied for it, or I probably would have just gotten the regular 10 year tourist visa..

 

”The Brazilian Government has announced a new e Visa for USA citizens for Tourist, Business, Transit, and Artistic or Sports Activities travel purposes, the new visa type will be valid for 2 years, good for multiple entries with a maximum stay of up to 90 days per year. (Non-Extendable) “

Thanks for asking your initial question.  

We, who have traveled to Brazil for many years, did not know the rules for the new electronic visa.  

It is good to know that the electronic visa is short lived and very restrictive.   In other words, a word to the wise.  

What an education we got. 

[Riobard]

A few more things, trying to cobble together bits of info:

If you hear that it is possible for a visitor to have a 90-day allowable stay within a year but be able to go locally (in Rio it would be the airport) to apply for a fed police extension up to an additional 90, that is for non-visa visitors such as UK/EU passport holders. They can also apply for a traditional consular tourist visa in their country of origin. 

In contrast, e-visa holders cannot get the extension. It is designed to mimic the 90-day waiver during the 2016 Olympics. 

If you apply for a 5-year (Canada) or 10-year (US) traditional consular visa, your passport must expire no sooner than 6 months (I believe, cannot find the small print today) from the application date. When you have to get a new passport, you just keep your old passport with the visa together with the new one when you travel to Brazil. Obviously, they cannot expect passports to last the duration of these long periods. 

However, for the e-visa, I believe that the visa privilege will last 2 years or less, whichever comes first (passport expiry or 2 years). For example, your passport's expiry satisfies the initial application requirements but expires after 14 months: your e-visa period will be short-changed by 10 months. It is non-transferable. I believe they simply check your passport at time of application to determine the expiry. 

[wncdemcub]

The e-visa is really designed for those who are planning a single trip to brazil to increase tourism from the US because a consular visa is a pain in the ass for those kind of travelers (and many would forgo a trip because of it). It is not designed for those of us on the forum who might make mulit annual visits each year.

[Riobard]

I would add: not suitable for multiple longer-stay visits. 

An e-visa holder can make as many trips as desired within the 2 consecutive 90-day annual limits.

[Riobard]

I cannot figure out how to embed this old thread in the new e-visa topic thread, but simply adding to it will pull it up close to the new thread.