Questions about Living in Rio with a Family

Dear Nhoover,


We are moving to Rio in July with a pet.  Here are the requirements:

1) You can travel with the pet if it is small and fit under the seat in front you.  Cost is $100.00 at United Airlines. You can also Check-in the pet if it is medium or a large size pet for the same cost. However, the weather temperature has to be between 45 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit at the time of  departure and at all the subsequent connecting cities.

2) Not all airlines can accommodate live animal check-in.  Check with the airline before booking your flight.  ex.(US Airways does not allow any kind of live animal check-in)

3) If for some reason you need to send your pet via air cargo either ahead of after you have arrived in Rio the cost is about $550.00 for a medium size dog.

4) You will need to ask the airline at the time you book your flight to reserve a spot for your dog if you are planning on checking it.

Government Health Regulations.

1) The rabies shot has to be more then 30 days old and less then 1 year Old. (very Important to remember since here in the US most of rabies shots are good for 3 years.

2) You will need a health certificate issued by a licensed veterinarian.  The certificate has to be less then 10 days old at the time of departure and at the time the animal arrives in Brazil. 

3) The rabies shot and the health certificate has to be approved by you local US department of agriculture. Cost here in Colorado was $35.00

4) The pet cage has to be airline standard. See your local pet store for that.

More detailed information on your Brazilian Consulate office.

http://houston.itamaraty.gov.br/en-us/a … plants.xml

USDA - APHIS

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/


Good luck!

Thank you so much for such a detailed and thorough response.    It is quite a bit to keep track of but helpful to know in advance.  Good luck traveling with your pet!

Dear Nhoover,

You've got quit a few questions and all pretty important ones.
I guess when you will arrive here in Rio you will experience a shock. Cost of living here in Rio (brazil) is quit expensive.

Since you have got a 2 year old education can still be flexibel. Are you looking for a local school or an international one?
If it is an international one you can expect monthly expenses of about 2000Reais and that is not the most expensive one. So you are talking about 1200/1300USD.

For Housing there are several areas that you can consider. If you want to live between expats then areas like Ipanema, leblon, Lagoa, Barra are quit popular. Rents there are between 2000 and 10.000 USD depending on what you want. This is for unfurnished appartments. If you go to Botafogo or Flamengo then you can get appartments a  bit more reasonably priced.

If you want some more info, please feel free to contact me.

Chris

Hi Chris and welcome to Expat.com!

Thank you for your contribution.

All the best,
Harmonie.

Hi all!

First let me greet you and tell a little about myself: I am Brazilian and recently returned from Russia. I am currently working as a real estate broker and decided just recently to extend my stay here and actually bring my wife and settle.

Most of the questions you made i can answer because i had to make them myself just a couple weeks ago. And some other questions will eventually pop up, so don't feel bad about e-mailing me with any doubt. I will gladly help out because i appreciate the help i had when i needed it in similar circumstances. 

The salary you would need:
Decide where you will live. Good neighborhoods are expensive and will dictate your daily expenses accordingly. You should have at least 3 times your rent costs / month. I would add 1 more time to that cost for your daughter comfort. So, if you plan on renting a reasonable apartment in Barra for instance, expect to spend around R$2.000,00. So you should be making R$ 8.000,00 total to live very comfortably, with little worries about money regarding your living expenses.
You can find a job without fluent Portuguese as easy as with it. Only thing you will be competing against people that know the language. But "cariocas " are really ok about hiring expats and the deciding factor will be your qualifications.
If you have money saved, contact me about costs of living places, but a good neighborhood wont give you anything cheaper than R$450.000,00 for a 3 bedroom. If you buy a place you will need a LOT less money monthly, but should do the counting the same way. (3x a regular rent in the region you bought)


Cost of relocation can be high. Brazil has very high taxes (regular imports are 60% for instance) and costs. Shipping is very expensive here too. But i would advise you to buy the furniture here. Its one of the things that will cost similar to other places around the world.(Besides electronics)

I cant say much about preschool, but expensive bilingual schools will cost around U$1100 a month. So take that as basis.

I wouldn't advise you to move to a house away from city because a good school for your daughter would be a problem.
I would have to say there are a couple of good neighborhoods in Rio. South Zone and Barra are good places to live with awesome schools and beaches (which you should look for since you are coming to a city like Rio). Barra is the neighborhood that is growing and South Zone a more established luxury place. If you need more information about that i could chat with you through skype MSN or other.

If you are going to Barra i say you will need a car.. and if you have a car in rio you wont regret it. Its probably one of the worst public transportation systems i know (lackluster) but the price difference on the apartment between those 2 regions can easily make up for that, so, don't worry that much about it.

Don't know about problems during travel, but pets are welcome in 99% of places in Rio so, besides the travel you wont have issues with it.

If i can help with anything else or if anyone else has doubts i could help with, feel free to e-mail me at [email protected].

Hi and welcome to the forum Romaguera!

Thanks for this presentation and for helping out

Regards
Armand

Dear Chris and Romaguera,

I have been traveling and didn't check the forum. Thank you so much for all the detailed information and cost estimates.  My husband is in Rio for work this week and is planning to look at apartments this weekend so your input is greatly appreciated.

Best,
Natalie

You are welcome ^^

Tell him to feel free to e-mail me or even hit my cel phone (
55 21 97402399) if he has any questions or doubts about it.

Hi,
Rio is an expensive city more than Paris for exemple.
With a salary between 4.000 until 6.000 you can live with a confort but not in the south zone (near the beach).
My wife and I are living in the north side and we have a house for 1.000 in the good area Tijuca.
If you need a help I am working in the french consulate,maube I could help you.
See you,
Jeremy

Hi I can't help with living in Rio but I did bring 3 dogs with me when we came and it wasn't difficult and not too expensive. What I did learn was make sure you and the dog take the same flight, easy to sort, and then your dog will get the dog released a lot quicker. They were excellent in the department that releases dogs at Rio airport and it was this department that recommended travelling with the animals in future. Your local airport will have a dog shipper or know of one and they organize everything, really wasn't too hard to organize at all.
Hope you enjoy your move.

Hello expatbrazil and welcome to Expat.com!

Thank you for your help.

Just to note that this thread is quite old (2011).

Thank you,
Aurélie