Work and Investor Visas in Brazil for Foreign Executives

When a foreign group sends a managing director, a finance lead or an engineer to run or build its Brazilian operation, immigration is often the step with the longest lead time. Brazil’s system is workable and largely online, but it has its own logic: most work-related visas require a residence authorization approved in Brazil before the consulate issues the visa, the investment thresholds for executives are specific, and business visitors cannot do productive work. This guide explains the main routes for foreign executives and professionals and what happens after arrival.

How the system works

Brazil’s Migration Law (Law 13,445/2017) and its regulation (Decree 9,199/2017) separate two things:

• The visa, issued by a Brazilian consulate abroad, which allows entry for a given purpose.
• The residence authorization, granted in Brazil by the Ministry of Justice and Public Security (MJSP), through its labor immigration department, for people who will live and work in the country.

For work and executive appointments, the usual path is: the Brazilian company files for a residence authorization online, the Ministry approves it, the professional applies for the corresponding temporary visa at the consulate, travels and then registers with the Federal Police. People already in Brazil can apply for the residence authorization directly.

The detailed requirements are set by resolutions of the National Immigration Council (CNIg). In October 2025, Decree 12,657/2025 rewrote the regulation’s articles on work, investor and executive visas so that future requirements will be defined by joint acts of the Ministries of Justice and Foreign Affairs. Until those acts are issued, the CNIg resolutions below remain the reference.

The main routes for a foreign group

Executives: the investment test

The executive route, as amended in 2024, links each foreign executive to foreign direct investment in the Brazilian company: at least R$600,000 per executive called to the role, or at least R$150,000 when the company commits to creating ten new jobs within two years. The investment is proven with the foreign exchange contract and must be registered with the Central Bank (see SCE-IED foreign direct investment reporting). The executive’s appointment must be recorded in the company’s registered corporate documents. Under the regulation, the residence authorization must be approved before the visa is issued.

Employees transferred from the group

Brazil has no “intra-company transfer” category as such. A professional moving from another group company is usually hired by the Brazilian entity under the work route, and time worked in the same group counts towards the experience requirement through a declaration from the Brazilian company. Other routes cover training at a Brazilian group company without employment.

Technical assistance is not for managers

The technical assistance route is useful for engineers who install equipment, implement systems or transfer know-how under a contract between companies, but it excludes administrative, financial and management functions. A regional finance director cannot use it to run the Brazilian subsidiary.

Documents, apostille and translation

Documents issued abroad, such as diplomas, proof of experience and criminal record certificates for the last five years, must be apostilled (or legalized, for countries outside the Hague Convention) and translated into Portuguese by a Brazilian public translator. Some of these documents are waived at the prior residence authorization stage, before the visa. See apostille and sworn translation for parent company documents.

The Ministry’s service charter estimates up to 30 days to decide a labor residence authorization once the file is complete. Requests for additional documents must be answered within 30 days, and decisions can be appealed within 10 days. The processing fee is charged per applicant.

After arrival

1. Register with the Federal Police within 90 days of entry on a temporary visa (30 days from publication, for residence authorizations granted in Brazil). Late registration is fined. The Federal Police issues the national migration registration card (CRNM).
2. Obtain a CPF, the individual taxpayer number, if not issued earlier through the consulate.
3. Activate the digital work card (CTPS Digital), available to anyone with a CPF, before the employee is registered in payroll.
4. Plan the tax position: a foreign executive who lives and works in Brazil normally becomes a Brazilian tax resident (see expatriate tax in Brazil).

Business visitors: what you can and cannot do

The visitor visa (or visa-free entry, depending on nationality) allows business activities but prohibits paid work in Brazil. Under the regulation as amended in 2025, business activities include meetings, trade fairs, prospecting, signing contracts, audit or consulting and technical assistance or technology transfer under a contract between companies, within the visitor stay limits: up to 90 days, extendable up to 180 days per migration year, with audit and consulting limited to 90 days. Receiving per diems and expense allowances is allowed.

Citizens of the United States, Canada and Australia again need a visa to visit Brazil since April 10, 2025, available as an electronic visa. Visitors from other countries should check the reciprocity table of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs before travel.

A checklist for headquarters

1. Define the role (statutory administrator, employee or technical specialist) before choosing the immigration route.
2. For executives, confirm that the foreign direct investment meets the threshold for each appointee, and that it is registered.
3. Collect apostilled and translated documents early; criminal record certificates take time in some countries.
4. Align the start date with the residence authorization, visa and Federal Police registration.
5. Plan payroll, tax residence and, where applicable, social security agreements between Brazil and the home country.

How Solidy can help

Solidy already serves subsidiaries of multinational companies in Brazil. We coordinate the corporate side of executive appointments: the investment and its Central Bank registration, corporate documents, payroll registration and the expatriate’s tax position. Talk to our market entry team or read who can be the administrator of a Brazilian subsidiary.