Brazilian visa requirements

[Bowie MeMe]

I'm using IE. Did you look at the photos that are acceptable. Pretty picky on that too! Hope the teen at the photo center does not make me look as ugly as the passport photo turned out (severe color problems, cross-eyed due to no glasses, and extremely grumpy due to no smile:mad:) and for the next 10 years never fails to make the TSA/custom people slyly check out the "person" that goes with the ugly passport picture. Oh well as they say if you look like your passport picture you are too sick to travel. :eek:

[WarEagle76]

2. We could not find an email address for the hotel in Rio. Everything but blank caused form to be rejected. Will this go through?

 

If you are staying at the JW Marriott Copacabana it is:

mhrs.riomc.ays@marriott.com

 

4. US Postal Order is made out to whom?

For the Atlanta Consulate it is:

 

Go to the US post office and get a USPS money order. The Consulate only accepts USPS money orders as form of payment payable to the Consulate of Brazil

 

Our appointment in Atlanta is next Monday morning so will advise exactly what we did have to/not have to provide.

[lgcochran]

I completed the visa applications on line and mailed the package to Miami 10 days ago.

On line- I used the address of Marriott in Rio. When they ask for contact info while in Brazil, the Marriott email or tour company email was rejected. My personal email worked. I think they just want to know how to contact you.

I did include the bank statement copies....it was on their website instructions and it indicated that any application that was not complete would be rejected and you'd have to start all over again. Why risk it.

 

We will only be in Rio, so no YF shot needed.:)

 

Now, we'll see when we get the documents back!!!

 

Linda

[Menininha82]

Are they really going to have this whole process for every American going to the Olympics. :D

 

Visa issues between the U.S. and Brasil are based on the idea of "reciprocation".

However, just the other day I noticed that the U.S. government site regarding visas for Brazilians wanting to visit the U.S. is now reading that those tourist visas don't cost a fee anymore. Perhaps the Brazilian government will also see fit to move forward in that direction, in the spirit of reciprocation.

The eventual plan is for the U.S. government to cease requiring visas for Brazilians (when the rejection rate reaches 5% or less), and at that point, the Brazilian government might reciprocate.

 

A note/example about the rejection rate, though, to give you an example of the inequities/stupidities/bad judgement calls that commonly occur: The son of an employed, small business owner U.S. green card holder (legal resident) couple went to the U.S. Consulate in Rio to get a new visa to visit his mother, since his old visa had expired. He has visited her several times, has other relatives residing legally in the U.S., has always returned to Brazil in a timely manner, is a medical student (i.e. has a good career in front of him) and his parents own property in Brazil to which he is heir. The U.S. consular official apparently thought he would want to stay in the U.S. to work in the now non-existent construction industry or as a restaurant dishwasher for minimum wage, in lieu of using his years of specialized training to make a good living in economically booming Brazil. He was refused the visa. Once a person is refused, it is usually impossible to apply again with success, possibly only unless life circumstances change drastically (like maybe in several years when he has held a job for a long period, has a wife and child and owns property of his own); meanwhile, his mother has to leave her job to travel to him.

Until this type of incident stops happening, don't expect the proud Brazilians, who take these senseless refusals to heart, to make things any easier for U.S. passport holders.

[vickie_bernie]

Visa issues between the U.S. and Brasil are based on the idea of "reciprocation".

However, just the other day I noticed that the U.S. government site regarding visas for Brazilians wanting to visit the U.S. is now reading that those tourist visas don't cost a fee anymore. Perhaps the Brazilian government will also see fit to move forward in that direction, in the spirit of reciprocation.

The eventual plan is for the U.S. government to cease requiring visas for Brazilians (when the rejection rate reaches 5% or less), and at that point, the Brazilian government might reciprocate.

 

A.

 

 

wish the U.S. did the same to Canadians, we now have to pay $5.50 whenever we enter the United States by air or sea. Canada does not charge this fee. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2011/10/24/pol-us-ticket-tariff.html

 

Sad in Vancouver

[Keith1010]

With all the problems getting the visa is easier than it was just two years ago.

 

Keith

[lgcochran]

Good News...our passports with the Brazilian Visas arrived today - 12 days after mailing to Miami!!!

 

I'd be happy to assist anyone that has issues with the online form or other logistics.

 

Linda

[journeyfan]

Visa issues between the U.S. and Brasil are based on the idea of "reciprocation".

However, just the other day I noticed that the U.S. government site regarding visas for Brazilians wanting to visit the U.S. is now reading that those tourist visas don't cost a fee anymore. Perhaps the Brazilian government will also see fit to move forward in that direction, in the spirit of reciprocation.

 

The visa application fee for Brazilians is still $140. What you found on the U.S. government site is that the U.S. Reciprocity fee is $0 where the Reciprocity fee is what the U.S. charges an applicant from a country whose application fee is greater than $140. The Brazilian fee just matches what we are charging them.

[traveling mama]

I live in Calif and from here the fee is $160. I just applied and they have my paper work now

[Menininha82]

To be accurate.....

This is from the site of the Brazilian Consulate in San Francisco:

"U.S. citizens must pay a non-refundable $140.00 reciprocity fee (as of June 2010)."

And this from the Brazilian Consulate in L.A.:

"Processing fee only for:* U.S.A.: US$140.00 (for reciprocity purposes)"

But:

"a $20.00 processing fee will be charged if the application is not presented in person by the passport holder."

 

[traveling mama]

Ah ha!!! :) :) :)

 

I did chicken out and used a visa service!!

[Bowie MeMe]

Wish me luck -- going tomorrow AM for Brazil visa. Have $140 postal money order and passport and bank statements (retired the same as unemployed? :D)and online form and picture (with no smile) and plane tickets and paid in full cruise. I will let you know how it goes.

[WarEagle76]

We had our appointment this morning (in Atlanta). Our appointment was as 9:00AM, the time the Consulate was scheduled to open. The doors opened at 9:15 AM. We sat in a waiting area for about 10 minutes then were called to the main check in desk. We were given a list of required items we must have before our interview (yes, bank statement was on the list). We were ushered by a guard to another area and met with the representative from the Consulate. She was very nice and asked for all of the documentation listed on the site (application printed from their online site with picture ((got ours done at the local CVS)), passport with at least one visa page available, cruise and airline docs, the bank statement and USPS Money Order for $140). We were then given an assigned number for our visa and told to return between 3 and 4PM. Upon returning at 3:10PM, was told they were having system problems and were working to get the Visas completed. Got our Visas at 4PM. Visa states it is good for 10 years. FYI, they did not question the email address I provided for local contact in Brazil which was the one for the JW Marriott in Rio.

[JB&JLG74]

After reading all of this, I am now concerned. We Fed Ex'ed our applications to ZVS on October 11, at which time the sufficient funds requirement was not on the list of required paperwork. According to the application number we got when we filled out the Brazilian online application form (which was finally up after being down the whole precdeing weekend), the application was received by the Miami consulate on October 17. It's status is still "received." We have not heard from the visa service that they needed anything else. And I did not know about the sufficient funds requirement until I read about it here. Guess it's time to call the visa service and lucky that I read these boards or I still wouldn't know that there was an additional requirement. What unlucky timing.

[Keith1010]

JB&JLG74, yes, call the visa service. You are paying a premium using the service and you should get a status from them.

 

keith

[Menininha82]

After reading all of this, I am now concerned. We Fed Ex'ed our applications to ZVS on October 11, at which time the sufficient funds requirement was not on the list of required paperwork. ....And I did not know about the sufficient funds requirement until I read about it here.

 

 

Don't panic quite yet. Not all the Brazilian Consulates have this requirement for the proof of sufficient funds.

 

For example, Boston never mentions it:

http://boston.itamaraty.gov.br/en-us/types_of_visa.xml#Tourist

http://boston.itamaraty.gov.br/en-us/basic_documents_required.xml

Chicago requires proof only for stays over a certain length:

http://www.brazilconsulatechicago.org/en-2-10-9.html

"Individuals applying for a Tourist Visa who will stay over 30 days must include either a bank statement OR a notorized letter of invitation from the individual(s) with whom they will stay or the institution that will coordinate their accommodations while in Brazil."

 

Which Consulate is your visa service using? Or which jurisdiction does your residence fall into? Check that specific Consulate's site for requirements.

[JB&JLG74]

Spoke to the visa service this afternoon; they said that they did not know how Brazil would handle applications that were made before the requirement. They also said that Brazil had not asked for additional paperwork and that they could not supply it unless Brazil asked for it. In our favor was the fact that our cruise does not start or end in Brazil -- it is a RT out of Ft Lauderdale. The visa service seemed to think that the requirement was directed at hotel stays.

This evening I checked the Brazil site again and the status has changed to Ready to Pick Up. So I should have my visa in hand in a couple more days. What a relief.

[JB&JLG74]

Which Consulate is your visa service using? Or which jurisdiction does your residence fall into? Check that specific Consulate's site for requirements.

 

Miami

[Bowie MeMe]

I went today to the Brazilian consulate in Washington, DC. It was a very quick and easy process. The people were professional and the procedure very well thought out and systematic. I saw 6 applicants go through the process and all seemed to follow the same pattern.

 

1. Passport and flights/cruise (ours were paid in full and that showed on paper). Passport checked for blank page.

2. 2 copies of online form and 2 passport pictures. He did some stamping on the form and glued the picture on the form with glue stick.

3. Postal money order of $140. Stamped in the Consulate name on PO.

4. He gave us back one of the forms with picture which we will have to present to get the visa and passport back (after Nov. 18)

 

Whole process took about 8 mins waiting and 5 mins process for 3 people. We had financial records with us but were not asked for them. We are retired so had no employment information on the form.

 

Easy Peasy! Thank Heavens.

[WarEagle76]

Didn’t mean to cause any worries with my update, just reporting that if you visit Atlanta in person (and assume if mailing to Atlanta) what you should expect. Interesting though how requirements vary from city-to-city.

[Bowie MeMe]

It could vary city to city, person to person, day to day and mood to mood. I think we were lucky and only the 2nd client of the day and the moon is full:D

[Palmetto Lady]

We will have several ports in Brazil, but end our cruise in Buenos Aires. Will we need a visa and how much hassel will it be to get one.

[surfsidemary]

We will have several ports in Brazil, but end our cruise in Buenos Aires. Will we need a visa and how much hassel will it be to get one.

 

I can't say if you will need a visa, but if you do.......

 

....it may not be much hassel if you have at least a month to work with. I also live in SC and used Zierer Visa Service. I filled out the on-line application and submitted everything exactly as directed. I mailed the package to their Atlanta office on October 27 and had my passport w/Brasilian visa back on November 25.

[Sunsailor]

We elected to use a visa service rather than go to Miami. I called Zierer but they would not allow us to submit the application until 90 days prior to our cruise. That was not acceptable because we were traveling in November and needed our passports. My TA recommended ProVisa inc. in New York and they were very responsive. They were issued in September (our cruise is January) and are good for 10 years, up to 90 days each visit and 180 days per year.

 

Cost was $140 + 20+ 49 each. One shipping fee of $20 to overnight both of them back to us.

Website is Provisainc.com We had them 7 days after we sent our passports, pictures and forms

 

After paying so much for the visas I know we will go back to Brazil. There's an Amazon river cruise in my future.

[reblenky]

cruiselover----We filled out the Brazilian visa requirements on the computer and took the signed forms to our travel agent. She used the services of ZVS-General /visa and Passport Services. They were quite expensive. I wouldn't give out any of my financial information unless you pay for it with your credit card, which I do all the time anymore.