Staying in Brazil after marriage

HI Sarah2211,   Permanent residency may need to be obtained in your country of origin.  I suggest you contact the Brazilian Embassy in the UK and get information from them about this.  I received my Permanent Visa in 1983, so things may have changed, but as an American, had to pick it up in the USA and then come into Brazil on that visa.

I assume you will come on a tourist visa....check with the Embassy and you may save time and money.

Cheers, Douglas

Hi Sarah2211,

First of all be very clear about one thing, since you are entering Brazil on a Schengen Area passport and do not require a tourist visa your stay is restricted to 3 months in a six month period. Don't be mislead into thinking you can get an extension. It's 3 months here, 3 months away, 3 months here and 3 away, no exceptions. So you will have to have all the necessary documents ready in order to schedule the wedding virtually upon arrival because it takes time. It might even be best to get all the paperwork together send it off to your fiancee here and get it all underway before you arrive.

Once you have gotten married in the Cartório you should immediately apply for your permanent visa (com base em cônjuge brasileiro). Once you have been issued the protocol which is proof of your visa application you are permitted to remain in Brazil and even obtain a work permit (Carteira de Trabalho) until the process is completed.

No, you will not be permitted to enter Brazil without a return ticket under any circumstances. You should arrange for a ticket that can be refunded or one that can be changed for a flight at some later time. Then you could either get your money back or use it to fly back home to visit sometime. I think that the longest period they will leave a ticket open is 1 year, but you need to check that with the airline.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

Go to the northeast. It will be the honeymoon of your dreams!
Emerson

Hi WJWoodward! I've read some of these threads and you seem to be a great help to folks on here! I just arrived in Rio and will be getting married ASAP to my brazilian fiancee, I have all the necessary documents just need to go get them translated. After we marry, which will hopefully be a month from registering at the cartorio, how long does it take for the Federal Police to issue me a protocolo so that I can work? I haven't been able to find that answer on any of the threads or the internet so I thought I'd ask you.

Thanks for your help!

Tom G.

Hi Tom,

Don't be fooled into thinking you will be getting married ASAP, the process can take up to three months and that's because of all the paperwork involved and the fact that the banns must be published in the Diário Official de União (DOU). So don't delay get the translations immediately and get everything to the Cartório, especially if you are from a Visa Waiver Program or Schengen Area country, since you will only be allowed to stay in Brazil for 3 month (no extension is permitted).

Once you go to the Federal Police with your application for Permanent Visa (com base em cônjuge brasileira) you will get two things, the 'protocolo' which has your photo and bears the Federal Police stamp and a SINCRE which is the printout of your information on file with the Federal Police. You will get those the same day you apply. These are all you will need to stay in Brazil and obtain a work permit.

Since the Criminal Record Check required for the Permanent Visa takes quite some time to obtain from most countries, if you don't already have one then request that the Federal Police fingerprint you on one of their standard forms, stamp it and you send it to the police force in your country responsible for record checks. As far as I am aware the Federal Police here will start the process without the criminal record check and note on your application that it will be provided at a later date.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team