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Customs in Brazil

customs in Brazil
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Updated byAnne-Lise Mtyon 25 March 2022

Visitors to Brazil and returning residents of Brazil are permitted to bring in personal possessions and items for personal use free of taxes, within limits. Travelers to Brazil will usually clear customs (referred to as Alfândega or Aduana in Brazil) at the airport where their international flight lands. The exception is for transit passengers with a final destination outside of Brazil.

Free import

Passengers are permitted to bring in the following items free of duties:

  • Tobacco: 400 cigarettes, or 25 cigars, or 250 grams of tobacco
  • Cosmetics: 10 units
  • Alcoholic beverages: two liters
  • Clothes, laptop, camera or other article intended for personal use
  • Books, magazines, or newspapers

Note that in regards to many items, no firm limit is set. However, the number of items brought in should be consistent with personal use. If customs officials believe that you're bringing in items for resale, you may be taxed. Duties of 100% of assessed value are common.

Also note that international passengers are granted an additional duty-free allotment of up to USD 500 in goods purchased at the airport's duty-free shop, subject to the same limits noted above.

Prohibited products

  • Food items
  • Stamp collections
  • Live plants
  • High-value coins
  • Tins
  • Drugs/narcotics
  • Flammable/corrosive items
  • Birds
  • Cigarettes and alcoholic beverages made in Brazil
  • Counterfeit currency
  • Pornographic material

Good to know:

You must obtain permission from the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture to import plants and related products, as well as edible products such as meat, eggs, and seafood.

Currency

You're required to declare your foreign or Brazilian currency upon arrival if the sum exceeds 10,000 Brazilian reals or the foreign equivalent.

Useful links:

Ministry of Agriculture of Brazil

The International Air Transport Association (IATA)

We do our best to provide accurate and up to date information. However, if you have noticed any inaccuracies in this article, please let us know in the comments section below.

About

Anne-Lise studied Psychology for 4 years in the UK before finding her way back to Mauritius and being a journalist for 3 years and heading Expat.com's editorial department for 5. She loves politics, books, tea, running, swimming, hiking...

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Comments

  • lawyer_rio
    lawyer_rio10 years ago(Modified)
    The information is incorrect. You must declare money only if traveling into or out of Brazil when the amount exceeds R$ 10000 or the foreign equivalent. If you enter Brazil with (new) goods bought abroad with a total value of more than U$ 500. Some things are exempt, such as 1 camera per person, 1 telephone per person.

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