Banking in Brazil

Welcome to the forum !!

Do you have a CPF, legal proof of residence, such as a cell phone bill, a light bill, a gas bill, or a property tax bill, etc, and lastly, do you have the CRNM which you will need beforehand to get most of this stuff ? If you already have a bank account here please disregard my question, as you will be in possession of the aforesaid items.

Any of the money transfer services work great and "IMHO" only, as others will disagree, you're really splitting hairs on the fees. I used to use Sendwave and XE until I moved everything here permanently. The money hit my Brasilian bank in 15 minutes. I do not recommend keeping significant life changing amounts of financial assets in the bank or brokerage of any G7/EU country FWIW.......but, that is another thread in it's entirety.

@onthabay My recommendation on a transfer method is to use Wise (formerly known as TransferWise).  They are transparent on their fee structure and in most cases the transfer will be completed in seconds.  I've been using them for years with no issues.  I've found that they are the most cost effective solution (at least for me).  Some folks have reported they use Revolut, but when I tried them they were a bit more expensive and the transfer took overnight.  That may have changed.  Worse case, try both and decide for yourself which is best.

I  agree with Wise. If you don’t meet the criteria for opening a Brazilian account, remember that you can use a US Wise account with its card. You can convert your US balance to BRL as needed and use the card in Brazil spending from the BRL balance you created without any fees. The only exception would be the initial exchange rate when converting the balance here.

Upon arrival, you can also apply for a Brazilian Wise card. Tbh I’m not sure what advantages it would bring, except for ensuring that you’re using a local debit card and it works with Apple Pay etc without problems.

I use a combination of Wise and transfer to my Nubank. As @mikehunter mentioned, the transfers are almost completed in seconds and have never had any problems. I also have a “next” account from Bradesco just in case I ever needed a physical bank account, but I haven’t needed it much yet.

09/27/24 @onthabay.  Welcome!  Are you planning on moving to Brazil on the basis of Family Reunion (VITEM XI visa), Retirement (VITEM XIV visa), or some other basis?  That will determine the process and documents required for you to become a legal resident of Brazil rather than a visitor, which is what will let you open a regular bank account here. 

@onthabay

I am in the "Wise" camp! But all very pointless if you do not have a bank account in Brazil, and to have that you will need a permanent visa. What is your plan?

Out of interest the last bank account I helped open, 2 weeks ago, just required an address not a proof of address... Makes things a little easier.