Immigration
Lei de Migração 13.445/2017 replaced the old Foreigner Statute
Lei 13.445/2017 replaced the 1980 Estrangeiro statute and reframed migration around rights and non-criminalisation rather than national security. The Polícia Federal registers migrants and issues the CRNM residence card, while visas are issued by consulates. Mercosur nationals have a dedicated residence route, and humanitarian reception has been used at scale for Venezuelan arrivals.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Federal, administered by the Polícia Federal and Ministério da Justiça
- Deadline — Register with the Polícia Federal within 90 days of entry for residence purposes
- Deadline — Permanent residence: generally after four years, or two on certain family and Mercosur grounds
- Deadline — Naturalisation: four years' residence ordinarily, reduced in defined cases
Governing law
- Lei 13.445/2017 - Lei de Migração
- Decreto 9.199/2017regulation
- Mercosur Residence Agreement
In practice
The 2017 statute expressly prohibits deprivation of liberty for migration-status reasons and guarantees access to public services regardless of status, a marked change from the security-oriented 1980 law. The CRNM (Carteira de Registro Nacional Migratório) is the identity document that follows registration and is required to obtain a CPF tax number, open a bank account and sign an employment contract.