Brazil
Cultural and trading ties have been bringing Brazil and Europe closer and closer for years now. With a long history of reciprocal migration both ways across the Atlantic Ocean, EU and Brazil are solid economic and diplomatic partners.
ETIAS for Brazilians: basic facts
Brazilian Citizens will be able to obtain ETIAS starting from 2025
Each traveler must have a valid passport issued by the Federative Republic of Brazil whose validity exceeds the stay in ETIAS countries by a minimum of 3 months
Application only enabled through digital devices
ETIAS to be used exclusively for commerce and trade, leisure, transit or medical care trips to thirty-four European Destinations
Overall duration of stay in the ETIAS Member Countries must never exceed 90 days within 6 months.
ETIAS for Brazilian and Brazil residents
Cultural and trading ties have been bringing Brazil and Europe closer and closer for years now. With a long history of reciprocal migration both ways across the Atlantic Ocean, EU and Brazil are solid economic and diplomatic partners. As a part of this ongoing partnership, it is therefore no wonder that Brazilian National have been granted years ago Visa Waiver rights that already allow them to travel towards EU / Schengen Area Countries every year both for business and tourism purposes without the requirement to obtain a Consular Visa.
Beginning from 2025 the current situation will though come to a change since Brazilian Nationals will also become eligible to apply for an ETIAS Visa Waiver that will then be necessary for them in order to travel to the Schengen Area Nations and de facto Members.
Holders of Brazilian temporary or permanent Residence Permit must always check if their Passport Nationality is among those eligible to apply for an ETIAS Visa Waiver. Those who do not have a valid passport issued from one of the 60 Visa Waiver Countries will not be able to apply for ETIAS even if they do have a valid residence status in Brazil.
ETIAS eligibility therefore is connected to the nationality of the candidates and not to their place of residence and or to the point of origin of the journey (as long as such places are outside Europe’s Schengen Area or one of its 4 de facto member countries).
In the same way the possibility to apply for ETIAS is by no means connected to the mean of transportation used to reach the EU/Schengen Area’s External Borders and can hence be used to cross such borders via land, air and sea alternatively.
Finally, the two other key factor to determine ETIAS eligibility are duration and purpose of stay since a Visa Waiver visitor cannot enter the Schengen Area for longer than 3 out of every 6 months and can only access the program participating countries when the aim of the journey is either leisure, business, medical therapy or observation and transit.
Short term unpaid training or study, with a stay always below the aforementioned threshold, can also be allowed just like family and friends visit since they are considered part of the accepted leisure motives.To create an ETIAS application
As for other ETIAS Eligible Countries, Citizens of Brazil will have to input their data in a simple electronic form to forward the candidacy. Such data mainly include the following categories: personal information, contact details, travel schedule, background survey, eligibility questions concerning potential criminal, healthcare and immigrations risks.
After its finalization through digital payment, the actual ETIAS request will be cross-checked by the destination country authorities and through international security databases that will quickly, usually not more than three days, allow for a decision on the Visa Waiver Issuance.
The outcome, which will in most cases be positive, will than swiftly be sent directly to each traveler’s personal e-mail and it is therefore important for all candidates to input a valid and working e-mail account when they fill out the required form.
Once issued, the ETIAS Visa Waiver issued to Brazil passport holders is valid for 3 years and allows for multiple entries across all the thirty-four countries that are current, future or de facto Members of the Schengen Area.ETIAS practical use and notes
Being electronically linked to the passport of the traveler’s, the ETIAS granting documents does not necessarily have to be printed out to perform a journey.
Despite being necessary for short term tourism, business, transit and medical treatment trips, ETIAS Visa Waiver itself does not automatically give a certainty that the Brazil Passport holder will be allowed to enter the destination countries since the decision making on this topic is always and only responsibility of the Border Control Officers.Additional requirements
As a matter of fact, visitors reaching EU/Schengen Area from abroad and travelling on a Brazilian passport might still be required to provide further documents like:
- return ticket to origin country
- onwards ticket to a non-ETIAS Member Country
- proof of sufficient funds
To avoid problems during the Border Control Procedures it is of paramount importance that all data inputted in the ETIAS Application form are correct and truthful.
An health insurance is not mandatory to travel on an ETIAS while it is strictly required for holders of Schengen Visa. Albeit being always recommended its necessity is therefore linked to duration and purpose of the journey, together with the passport nationality of the visitor.
Exceptions and exemptions
In relation to this, it must also be highlighted those citizens of Brazil already holding a valid Schengen Visa or Residence Permit issued by any of its current or de facto Members (therefore excluding the future members Nations) will not need to apply for ETIAS.
On the other hand, it is important to remember that ETIAS is required regardless of the country of origin of the trip as long as such origin country does not belong to the ETIAS Area.
Finally, all Brazilian ETIAS holders are to remind that their Visa Waiver is only valid for journeys to the 34 European Countries that are to some extent affiliated with the Schengen Area. Despite being active member of EU, the Republic of Ireland is not linked to such border free travel area and therefore enforces its own National immigration rules that might differ from the ETIAS Area one’s.