I WANT TO LIVE AND WORK REMOTELY IN BRAZIL. WHERE DO I START?

This is a straightforward guide for anyone who works from anywhere in the world and is considering making Brazil their base — without the headache of working it out alone.

Perhaps you already work this way: laptop open at a café table, your clients' time zone somewhere in the United States or Europe, and the freedom to choose where you live. And perhaps Brazil has made it onto that list – for the cost of living, the climate, the quality of life, or simply because someone mentioned that it's possible to live here legally without needing a Brazilian employer.

It is possible. A few years ago, Brazil created a residency authorisation designed precisely for this: for people who earn their income abroad and want to live here without being employed by a Brazilian company. It's commonly known in the market as the digital nomad visa. The bureaucracy has its own technical name for it, but that matters less right now. What matters is understanding how it actually works and where most people trip up.

What does this visa actually allow?

In simple terms, you can live legally in Brazil for one year, renewable for a further year, provided you can show your income comes from outside the country.

That means you carry on working for your employer or your clients abroad. Brazil doesn't factor into that equation as a source of income.

To obtain this authorisation, the Brazilian government essentially requires three things:

• Income of at least USD 1,500 a month from outside Brazil or, alternatively, available savings of USD 18,000;

• Health insurance with valid cover in Brazil;

• A criminal record certificate from your home or country of residence.

  
  

On paper, it looks simple. And for some people, it genuinely is. But having followed dozens of cases, I can say that most problems don't come from these three requirements; they come from details nobody mentions before you start.

Where people most often get stuck, and why?

1. Proving income when you don't have a fixed salary

If you receive a monthly salary from a foreign company, with payslips and an employment contract, proving income tends to be fairly straightforward.

But a large share of people applying for this visa aren't in that situation: they're freelancers, consultants, business owners, or they're paid in different currencies and amounts each month.

In these cases, the way you prove income changes and a poorly assembled file is a common reason for requests for further documentation, which can delay everything by weeks or months.

2. Not realising there's an important restriction

This is perhaps the most widely misunderstood point: anyone holding this type of residency cannot carry out paid work for a Brazilian company.

The logic is simple: the visa exists to bring money into the country, not to compete with the local job market. Yet it's common to see people discovering this rule too late, after they've already taken on a project or client in Brazil without realising it put their own residency at risk.

3. Treating this visa as the final destination

This residency lasts one year, renewable for a further one. After that?

Many people simply haven't thought about the next step and find themselves caught in a renewal cycle, unsure whether it can lead anywhere more permanent.

The good news is that it can. There are routes to turn this temporary residency into something more stable and long-term, whether through investment, family ties, or other means. But that requires planning from the very first step, not a last-minute decision at the end of year one.

Why it's worth having someone by your side through this process

Technically, you can start this process on your own. But "getting the application submitted" and "having it approved without delay, rework or surprises" are two very different things. Every case has its own structure: how you're paid, which country you're coming from, whether you intend to bring family, whether you've had any immigration issues in the past, and whether you're thinking long-term. All of this shapes the strategy.

That's exactly where our work comes in: understanding your specific situation, putting the documentation together correctly from the outset, and giving you a clear view of the path ahead, not just this first visit but also where it can take you afterwards.

Thinking about making Brazil your base?

We work across the whole of Brazil and with clients anywhere in the world. We assess your specific case — your nationality, how you're paid, your long-term plans — and give you a clear view of the safest and quickest route forward.

Assess your situation at www.inhorizons.com