Brazil visa for US citizen - Duration

[anjuna11]

Hello-

I just got a visa from the Brazilian consulate on Pelligrini and was wondering if anyone has had success extending to 5 or 10 years.

I'm not sure exactly what I got. The details are:

Entries: Multiple
Type: VITUR
Duration of stay: 90 days

At the bottom it says visa valid for 90 days from first entry in Brazil. Maximum 180 days per year. Not sure how those two statements make sense together.

I tried asking at the consulate but the employee walked away while I was asking the question. After 10 minutes waiting at the window for her to return, I left.

I'd read differing reports on how long validity people are able to get (haven't read 5 years more recently than 2010) and even heard of one guy who said he was able to go back to the Consulate and get a longer validity.

To clarify, I am a US citizen without Arg residency.

Previous threads:

http://baexpats.org/expat-life/6044-info-traveling-brazil.html
http://baexpats.org/expat-life/15801-brazilian-visa.html
http://baexpats.org/travellers-stories/8664-brazil-visa-problem.html

 

[sesamosinsal]

The Brazilian Consulate on Pellegrini only gives 10-year visas to U.S. citizens with residency in Argentina. If you're not a resident, you will only get 90 days. Your visa is only valid for 90 days. You can extend it for up to six months at the Brazilian Federal Police. Even with an extension, you can only stay 180 days as a non-resident in Brazil.

Google "Wikitravel Brazil" for more information about fines and whatnot for overstaying.

 

[sesamosinsal]

180-days per year*

 

[citygirl]

It should say on there the length of time the visa is valid for.

Example - my visa states it is valid for 5 years (which I obtained here in Argentina) but I can only stay 90 days at a time in Brasil, no more than 180 days in 1 year.

 

[Bajo_cero2]

becoming an AR you can get BR permanent residency easily. Regards

 

[earlyretirement]

I know a few American expats (that don't have residency or DNI's in Argentina) that got 10 year visas earlier this year. Because of the World Cup and Olympics coming up in the next few years I heard Brazil was easing up and giving longer visas.

Even with having residency a few years ago that consulate office was a nightmare and only giving 90 day visas. But my last renewal last year they gave me a 10 year Visa. I have at least 4 friends that all got 10 year visas.

 

[sesamosinsal]

I know a few American expats (that don't have residency or DNI's in Argentina) that got 10 year visas earlier this year. Because of the World Cup and Olympics coming up in the next few years I heard Brazil was easing up and giving longer visas.

Even with having residency a few years ago that consulate office was a nightmare and only giving 90 day visas. But my last renewal last year they gave me a 10 year Visa. I have at least 4 friends that all got 10 year visas.

I'm married to Argentine, but I don't have residency yet. I am a U.S. citizen, and I applied for the visa in March to travel to Brazil in April. This was my fourth visa, and I've never violated any Brazilian laws on immigration. In other words, I've never overstayed the visa, and in cases where I stayed longer than the permitted time, I pursued the applicable extension.

When I applied for the visa, the woman that adjudicated the visa was the same woman that has been there since 2008. She was also the same woman there in 2009. I have three visas in total from the Brazilian Consulate here in Buenos Aires.

I asked her if I would be receiving a 90-day visa or a 10-year visa. As a non-resident, she told me that I could not receive a 10-year visa, or anything longer than 90-days. I then told her that I was married here, and "tramitando" the DNI. I showed her my marriage certificate as well. She then went back into the office--supposedly to speak with the Consul General--and came back with a smile saying that she would be able to grant me the 10-year visa. I was thrilled.

Well, I come back two days later, and the same woman hands me the passport. I look at it, check to make sure everything is correct, but I don't see the number 10 anywhere. So, I ask her, "Is this a 10-year visa?" She looks at it, and says, "Oh, well, I guess the consul general changed her mind." From what she said, it was impossible for me to receive a 10-year/5-year/whatever visa being a non-resident, despite the fact that she told me two days ago that it was. I walked out with a 90-day visa.

I'm not saying that a 10-year visa isn't possible for U.S. citizens who are non-residents. The decision is up to the individual heading up the consulate. I think I can say with relative certainty that the Consulate General of Brazil in Buenos Aires will not give 10-year visas to Americans who are not residents of Argentina. I have three visas from the same consulate, interviewed by the same woman, and I've never received a 10-year visa, even after explicitly requesting one. It might be different in other cities, such as Mendoza. I think a friend of mine in Mendoza told me that they gave her a 6-month visa. The one and only visa that I have issued in a U.S.-based Brazilian Consulate is from Chicago. That visa, from 2008, was only valid for a year.

The U.S. has relaxed the visa process for Brazilians a bit, which has prompted Brazil to do the same. Brazil implements policies based on reciprocity. It's the two-wrongs-make-a-right foreign policy that so many countries in Latin America are pursuing right now, while at the same time talking about "transcending political paradigms." And then they call the U.S. hypocritical. Yawn.

To answer the OP's question directly: There is no way to extend the visa for 5 or 10 years now that it is already issued. You could re-apply when it expires, and try your luck. Your only option is an extension with the Federal Police, which is only up to 6 months, if I'm not mistaken.

 

[Ceviche]

becoming an AR you can get BR permanent residency easily. Regards

Mr Bajo, with due respect for your expertise, for once, you are WRONG.

To get BR permanent residency as a newly naturalized Argentine, you need to be a Argentine for 5 years, before you can apply for Brazil temporary residency ( valid for 2 years).

 

[Crema Americana]

So forgetting about Argentine residency... if one were to apply for a visa in the US, they only do 90 day visas? (Or 1 year, or 5 years, or 10 years, apparently according to how lucky you are!) If it's only good for 3 months, you'd need to get a new visa practically every time you go, which seems ridiculous.

If a Brazilian gets a US tourist visa, isn't it the same one Argentines get that's valid for 10 years?


That's not exactly reciprocity...

 

[Ceviche]

If a Brazilian gets a US tourist visa, isn't it the same one Argentines get that's valid for 10 years?

You are wrong. USA also issues 3 months / 1 year visas to Argentines and Brazilians some times. Its case to case.

Its reciprocity.