Work allowed on Family Reunion Visa (VITEM XI) ?

Hi, Duke,

Yes, you will eventually be able to work in Brazil, but it's a multi-step process, and you won't be able to work legally right off the plane:

1. You must register at the local "Estrangeiros" ("Foreigners") office of the Polícia Federal, and apply for your CRNM - Carteira de Registro Nacional Migratório, the National Migratory Registry Card, which will be your permanent ID card in Brazil.
You and your spouse should plan on doing this together, and here are the documents you'll need:
http://www.pf.gov.br/servicos-pf/imigra … o-familiar

There are application fees.  You can download the payment form online, and pay at any bank.

2. You'll want to bring any German documents you'll need with you.  To be accepted by the Polícia Federal, they'll need apostilles from the appropriate German authorities, and both the documents and the apostilles will need to be translated by a Sworn Translator here in Brazil. 

3. Once your application has been accepted by the Polícia Federal.  you'll receive a "Protocolo", an official document verifying that your residency application has been accepted and is being processed.  These days, we hear that it's taking 2-4 months for the cards to be completed and returned, so be patient.

4. Once your residency is established, you go to the Labor Department of the state where you live to apply for your Labor Card, formally "Carteira de Trabalho e Previdência Social".  This is the document that entitles you to work legally.  You file your application, they take your picture, and you go back in a few days to pick up your "card", which is actually a passport-like document.  As I recall, there's no charge.
I waited until I had my ID Card to apply; with the longer waits that people are now encountering, you may want to try applying on the basis of your Protocolo.  I don't know whether that will work, but, depending on how much of a hurry you're in, it might be worth a try.

Any more questions, ask away.