Missed the deadline for applying for RNE...

You never know how serious it is until you ask. If you haven't missed the 90 calendar days (not business days) by too much, maybe they'll take pity on you. Especially if you have some convincing excuse! Good luck.

Cheers,
James       Expat-blog Experts Team

Oh well - turns out the PF's databases have crashed so they have been extending everyone's deadlines for 2 more months. Sometimes, even in Brazil, problems magically solve themselves ... .

Way to go Brazil-zil-zil 

flowtec9000 wrote:

Ok so don't ask me how this happened (basically a misunderstanding about the process), BUT:

I applied for a family reunion visa, which was accepted, but they required me to apply for an RNE within a maximum of 90 days from the time that the note of acceptance was published in the DOU (at least that's how I understand it...). With the whole process having been somewhat unclear to me, those 90 days have already passed (that is, if you are counting all calendar days, if it's only work days I should still be within the limit). So yeah I'm stupid. The question is: how bad is this? I'll go to the PF this week, but could anyone let me know if this will cause serious problems? Thanks!

Flowtec9000, you applied for a family reunion visa  = "Pedido de Permanencia por Reuniao Familiar" or "application for permanent residency based on family reunion," correct? Does this mean that your spouse is not Brazilian? In which city did you apply? Did the Federal Police require a criminal background check in order to process your application? Sorry for all the questions but I'm also in the process of applying for a family reunion visa and would appreciate any advice. Thank you.

Hi Victoria,

The process of "pedido de permanência definitiva com base em reunião familiar" is exactly the same whether the spouse is a Brazilian citizen or a Permanent Resident. It is used just as often for Brazilians who have married abroad, registered their marriages with the Consulado-Geral do Brasil in that country and then their spouse applies for the VIPER Permanent Visa there, as it for foreign spouses of those who have been granted permanency here and with to join their spouse.

Cheers,
James

James wrote:

Hi Victoria,

The process of "pedido de permanência definitiva com base em reunião familiar" is exactly the same whether the spouse is a Brazilian citizen or a Permanent Resident. It is used just as often for Brazilians who have married abroad, registered their marriages with the Consulado-Geral do Brasil in that country and then their spouse applies for the VIPER Permanent Visa there, as it for foreign spouses of those who have been granted permanency here and with to join their spouse.

Cheers,
James

Hi James,

In my experience dealing with the FP here in Campinas, the process is slightly different. I don't know what the law says, but the officer we spoke to back in December informed us that the process is nearly the same with the exception of the following documents which are deemed necessary in my case:

- my Criminal Record Check
- a document from my husband's employer confirming that he is indeed employed
- a declaration from my husband claiming responsibility for me

Even if he was wrong/misinformed, and I'm not saying that he was, unfortunately, I wasn't in a position to argue with him.  So instead of finding a lawyer and arguing with the FP, I decided to start the process to obtain my Criminal Record Check from the U.S. Please see my recent post in my "How to get fingerprinted for a Criminal Record Check in Brazil?" thread for an update on how things have been going.

Victoria

Yes, we needed a criminal background check. But we were able to obtain it from the consulate, so we didn't have to go through this whole nonsensical "document legalized in the country of origin"-procedure. I'd recommend doing that. If they don't accept it, just come back another day. Maybe you'll talk to a different guy who has a different interpretation of the law .

flowtec9000 wrote:

Yes, we needed a criminal background check. But we were able to obtain it from the consulate, so we didn't have to go through this whole nonsensical "document legalized in the country of origin"-procedure. I'd recommend doing that. If they don't accept it, just come back another day. Maybe you'll talk to a different guy who has a different interpretation of the law .

You were able to obtain your background check from the consulate? Really?! Which country are you from?

Hi Victoria,

Yes, those are the only significant differences in the process because you are claiming the stable union relationship with a non-Brazilian permanent resident, as opposed to a Brazilian citizen. Other than that the process is identical.

Also, you may be interested to know that I have sent of an e-mail to the California Department of Justice asking for clarification regarding whether or not they accept a printed off downloadable version of the FD-258 fingerprint card if the prints are rolled by (on duty) law enforcement officers.

I specifically asked them also, if they do indeed only accept the original hard card, then why is there a downloadable version, why is the card not available at Embassies and Consulates worldwide, and where (if at all) it is available here in Brazil.

I will keep you posted as to their reply.

Cheers,
James      Expat-blog Experts Team

I'm consistently amazed by how easy it was for me, especially based on the difficulties I read about in these forums.

I applied at the Consulado Geral in NYC on 2/28/14, enclosing the fee and all other documentation including the FBI Criminal Background Check. On 3/7/14, I received my passport back with the VIPER included. I arrived in Brazil 4/25/14. Reported to the FP in Vila Velha with tall documentation, photo and proof of fee payment on 5/7/14. They told me to return in five months to get the cedula. On 10/7/14, I picked up the cedula. Easy as can be.

Maybe just to pick up on this ... let's assume you were supposed to get a temporary visa from the PF. Let's further assume that, for reasons totally unknown, they hand you a permanent one (which, technically, you shouldn't be able to get). Finally, let's assume you use this permanent visa as an easy way to get a work permit. In that case, what would the legal consequences be if, at some point, they discover that they gave you the wrong visa (like, "nao sabia, nao falo portugues e nao entendo nada, desculpe...!!!"). Big deal? Not a big deal? Entirely their fault?

Cheers!

Well, not knowing the EXACT circumstances of your situation it's impossible to say.

I would think that if you applied for one category of visa, qualified for that, all the documentation was correct, authentic and there was absolutely no false information and you ended up being granted another category visa purely by error then the visa would be perfectly valid.

If on the other hand there was any intent to obtain a visa of any category by means of any false information that would be another matter entirely, that would fall into the classification of immigration fraud.

If you want a more accurate assessment of your particular situation then send me a private message with much more detail about exactly how all this came about. I'll look it over and give you my opinion.

Cheers,
James    Expat-blog Experts Team