Brazil Reinstates Tourist Visa

Image courtesy of: Agustin Diaz Gargiulo

By: Cindy Medina

On March 8, 2023, the Brazilian Foreign Ministry, Itamaraty, announced it would reinstate tourist visa requirements for U.S., Australian, Canadian, and Japanese citizens. A tourist visa will be required to enter Brazil starting October 1, 2023.

This revokes ex-president Jair Bolsonaro's government's decision in June 2019 which required tourists to apply for an e-visa before entering the country. Bolsonaro thought this would incentivize more country tourism, but numbers dropped.

According to tourist numbers released by Itamaraty, 439,000 Americans traveled to Brazil in 2019. That number dropped to 355,000 in 2022. A similar number drop was seen during the same period for Japanese tourists, from 59,000 to 16,800. 

To date, Brazilian citizens require a visa to enter the U.S., Australia, Canada, and Japan, pushing the Brazilian Foreign Ministry to reinstate tourist visas due to a lack of reciprocity.

If you need additional information here is a list of Brazilian Embassies in the U.S. : https://www.visahq.com/brazil/embassy/united-states/