Brazil now issues temporary visas electronically for visa-exempt nationals

Nationals of visa-exempt countries applying for work, study, family reunion, or digital nomad visas in Brazil no longer need to hand over their passport for a consular sticker

Brazil's Ministry of Foreign Affairs activated an electronic issuance system for temporary visas on September 1, 2026, covering all VITEM categories for nationals of countries exempt from Brazil's visitor visa (VIVIS) requirement. The change was announced on August 28, 2026, by the Brazilian Embassy in Lima, and is intended to apply across Brazil's entire consular network.

The reform targets the consular issuance process rather than the rules governing short tourist or business trips. Nationals who already enter Brazil without a visa for brief visits are unaffected for those purposes. The electronic system applies specifically when those same nationals need a VITEM temporary visa for a longer-stay purpose such as employment, study, family reunification, or remote work.

Before September 1, 2026, obtaining a VITEM typically required applicants to visit or send their passports to a Brazilian consulate so that a physical visa sticker could be affixed inside the document. Under the new system, approved visas are generated digitally and sent directly to the applicant, removing passport submission as a routine step.

Which nationalities are covered by the electronic VITEM?

The change applies to nationals of countries that benefit from Brazil's visitor visa exemption (VIVIS) for short-term travel. Brazil's Ministry of Foreign Affairs maintains a general visa regime table identifying all qualifying nationalities.

Nationals of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Switzerland are among those covered, along with citizens of Japan, South Korea, and several Latin American countries. For any of these nationalities, nothing changes for a tourist or business trip that falls within the existing VIVIS exemption rules. The electronic VITEM applies only when the purpose of stay requires a temporary visa.

Nationals of the United States, Canada, and Australia are in a different position and are explicitly excluded from this measure. Since April 10, 2025, citizens of those three countries have been required to obtain an eVisa even for standard tourist visits to Brazil, following Brazil's reinstatement of visitor visa requirements under the principle of diplomatic reciprocity. Because they no longer hold VIVIS-exempt status, the new electronic VITEM system does not apply to them.

What types of stay require a VITEM?

Brazilian law provides for temporary visas covering a range of purposes beyond tourism and short business trips. Under the categories defined by the Migration Law (Lei 13.445/2017) and its regulatory Decree 9,199/2017, VITEM visas cover research and teaching (VITEM I), study (VITEM IV), employment (VITEM V), religious activities, volunteer work, investment, family reunification, and certain artistic and sports activities.

VITEM XIV also covers digital nomads under the relevant regulations. Brazil's digital nomad visa allows remote workers earning income from sources outside Brazil to reside in the country for up to one year.

The electronic issuance system applies across all of these VITEM categories. A British national relocating to Brazil to take up employment, for example, would now receive their VITEM V electronically rather than having a sticker placed in their passport at a consulate.

How does the new electronic application process work?

Applicants must complete their visa application through the Sistema Consular Integrado (SCI), the platform already used by Brazil's Ministry of Foreign Affairs to register and process visa applications. Required supporting documents for the relevant VITEM category must be uploaded electronically through the same system.

Once a VITEM application is approved, the visa is issued as a digital document and delivered directly to the applicant, including to the email address provided during the application. Brazil already uses this model for other electronic visa procedures. An electronic VITEM scheme introduced in 2025 issued approved visas as PDF files containing a QR code, sent to beneficiaries by email.

The legal authority for this approach already existed before the September 2026 rollout. Article 26 of Decree No. 9,199 of November 20, 2017, provides that a visa may be applied for and issued electronically without a corresponding consular visa sticker being placed in the travel document. The same provision allows application forms, supporting documents, and processing fees to be handled entirely through digital channels.

Do applicants still need to visit a Brazilian consulate?

In routine cases, no. The primary practical consequence of the change is that physically submitting a passport so that a visa sticker can be affixed is no longer a standard requirement. Applicants should not need to hand over their passports to a consulate and wait for their return after processing.

However, the electronic system does not eliminate the possibility of an in-person requirement in individual cases. Article 26 of Decree 9,199/2017 expressly allows consular authorities to request original documents when clarification is needed, require additional supporting evidence, or call an applicant for an interview. These steps are expected to become case-specific exceptions rather than a routine part of the process.

What requirements remain unchanged?

The reform concerns how the visa is delivered, not the eligibility criteria for obtaining one. The documentation requirements for each VITEM category remain in force, as do any translation, apostille, or legalization requirements and the corresponding consular fees.

For certain visa categories linked to employment, applicants may still need to obtain prior residence authorization from Brazil's Ministry of Justice and Public Security before the consulate can proceed with visa issuance. Brazil's Federal Police confirms that this prior authorization applies to specific VITEM categories and is handled through the MigranteWeb system. The electronic VITEM system does not eliminate this step, where Brazilian regulations require it.

After arriving in Brazil, temporary visa holders who are subject to the registration requirement must still register with Brazil's Federal Police to obtain a national migration registry (Registro Nacional Migratório, or CRNM). The electronic issuance method does not change this obligation.

Have Brazilian consulates updated their procedures?

Although the announced start date for the new system was September 1, 2026, the operational rollout across Brazil's consular network still appears to be underway. As of September 2, 2026, no Brazilian consular posts reviewed had published instructions clearly presenting the new electronic VITEM process as fully operational.

In New York, the Consulate General of Brazil's current VITEM instructions state that visa applications must be scheduled through the e-Consular platform and submitted in person. In Montreal, the Consulate General of Brazil continues to instruct applicants to submit documents by mail after initial validation through e-Consular, with separate steps for sending physical documents and retrieving them after processing.

The pattern is similar across Europe. In Paris, the e-Consular portal of the Consulate General of Brazil still states that applicants may be required to appear in person or send documents by mail after uploading them electronically. In London, the instructions for the VITEM I still require an in-person submission with original documents. In Barcelona, the Consulate General of Brazil states that temporary visa applications are handled exclusively by mail and that the passport remains at the consulate throughout the process.

In Geneva, instructions for the VITEM XIV for retirees and pensioners continue to require applicants to send their passports and original documents. In Porto, the VITEM XIV procedure for digital nomads still provides for pre-validation through e-Consular, followed by an in-person appointment at which originals must be presented.

These pages may not yet have been updated. However, the gap between the announced September 1 implementation and the instructions currently available to applicants means that travelers should check directly with the relevant Brazilian consulate before starting an application or sending in a passport. It is also not yet clear how individual consular posts will handle applications submitted before September 1 that are still pending.