Visa for Brazil?
 

Ok. I feel like an idiot but I am confused about the whole Visa issue. We will be going to Rio for Carnival and we all have valid passports. Do I need to do something else to get a Visa? Why? What is it? How do I get it? Sorry for being so ignorant but I though that a passport was all I needed. I'm freaking out now. Thanks.

call the brazilian consulate in your country

Yes, you need a visa, and you have to get it from the nearest Brazilian embassy or consulate. I live in the LA area, so I paid a visit to the consulate here in the city. Basically, no appointment is needed, you just show up, fill out a few forms which you give to the consular folks along with your passport. You come back in a day or two and pick up your passport, the visa stamp will be in it (assuming they give you the visa... which I assume they don't give to axe murderers or fugitives, etc.)<BR><BR>If you don't have a nearby Brazilian consulate, I think you have to do the process through mail which may be a bit more time consuming.<BR><BR>I know that the Brazilian embassy in US has a webpage where you can find the locations of consular offices. Make sure that they are open for visa processing on a particular day and time you are planning to visit.

Don't leave this to the last minute, start now. If you have no consulate in your city where you can visit personally, it is better to Fedex your passport with your visa app and payment to one of those visa processing services in NYC than do it yourself. My friend from Atlanta almost lost her mind dealing with the Brazilian consulate by phone and mail in Miami. The whole thing will run you about $150 with visa, Fedex, servicing fees, etc.

You're going to need a passport-size picture, too. Better check out the consultate page.<BR><BR>Rosemary

Check with your closest Brazillian embassy or consulate - everyone here is authoritatively saying that you NEED a visa, but most 'western' nationalities do NOT need a visa for Brazil. Unless you are American or Canadian or (I think) Australian, you may be panicking for nothing.

You will need a 2x2 picture, a filled application which you can download from one of their websites. In NYC, it is www.brasilny.org. For a tourist visa, it will cost you $100.00 in money order only (no cash, no check.) They also require a copy of your flight itinerary. Check with the Consulate in your area as to the hours of operation for drop off and pick up. Drop offs are usually in the morning. Pick ups in the afternoon. Processing should take no more than 24 hours.

You can get visa info from this link:<BR><BR>http://www.brasilemb.org/consular1.shtml<BR><BR>If you are a U.S. citizen, note that as previously mentioned, you will be dealing with a consulate serving your state. It is not clear to me that all of these consulates will issue visas by mail, so if you are a long distance from the consulate, you may need to have someone handle this. You can download the forms from the net and complete them. <BR><BR>Keep in mind that you don't want to obtain your visa more than 90 days before your travel or it will be invalid. After you have gone to Brazil within that 90 day window, your visa will be good for five years.<BR><BR>

First, you need to determine whether Brazil requires travelers from your country to have VISAs. U.S. travelers need VISAS.<BR><BR>Second, don't wait until the last moment. At the very least, it will take 3 days to get one.<BR><BR>Third, check with the Brazilian Consulate or Embassy in your area for how it processes the VISA application. In Los Angeles where I obtained my VISA, for example, your are required to submit a 2x2 photo, a photo copy of the plane ticket and the application fee. I don't remember amount of the fee, but I recall it was about $50 and that the exact amount was required (cash or money order only and they do NOT make change. No exceptions). Also the 2x2 photo must be passport quality. <BR>Lastly, if you are planning to apply in person rather than through the mail, I suggest arriving at the consulate or embassy when it opens. It gets busy quickly and the experience is similar to spending time at the DMV. <BR>

You can get your visa on-line for $20 in the USA. Check the Brazilizn Consulate website.

Ooops! The $20 on-line application for visa is for Australia.......sorry

I just went through the visa hassle for Brazil. It took one week and we visited the consulate in person. For the busy times of year (Christmas-New Year's and Carnival) it will take at least a week if you visit the consulate in person and three+ weeks if you choose to go through mail. Start now!!!

I can report on getting a visa in person at the New York consulate---I just got mine there. It's a relatively painless two-day process. You get there between 10 AM and 12 with application, photo, passport, travel document (mine was an e-mail receipt for an e-ticket) and $100 money order. You're assigned a number and you wait (the DMV comparison is apt). My wait was 45 minutes. Then you pick up your passport and visa between 2:30 and 4 the next day. Again, you get a number and wait, but the wait is much shorter.

Re the consulate in LA: can you apply in person and have them mail it back to you (out of state)? Also, if applying in person, can you apply for someone who is not present?<BR>Any info is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

passport services apply for visas for other people all the time. We just got ours from the San Francisco office. Until noon, passport agencies could apply, but anyone could walk in until 3pm. We needed a passport size photo, proof of our itinerary (they just accepted a faxed copy of it), our passport WITH ONE CLEAN PAGE SINCE THE VISA FILLS THE WHOLE PAGE, proof we had a yellow fever shot,and $100. We paid in cash. they take money orders and cash, but no checks. Took 2 days until we could pick it up, and I was able to pick up my husbands at the same time.