Visa for Foreign Providing Technology Services in Brazil
Work permits and visas are mandatory for any foreigner aiming to develop any type of work activity in Brazil. Find out where and how to acquire both for foreign service providers with a contract of service provision related to technical assistance and/or technology transfer.
To realize any work activities in Brazilian soil, foreigners must present a work permit and visa. The Brazilian organisms responsible for the issuance of these documents are the Ministry of Labor and Employment and the Ministry of Foreign Relations. Both provide general standards and guidelines to the legal status of a foreign individual, established in Brazil with a contract of service provision linked to technical assistance and/or technology transfer.
Work Visas Information
Work visas are granted by the Ministry of Labour and Employment, and most of them have the option to be temporary or permanent, and may last up to two years. For individual established in Brazil with a contract of service provision linked to technical assistance and/or technology transference, the work visa are granted in two forms:
- temporary work visa in the regular modality: up to 1 year, or
- temporary work visa in the emergency modality: up to 30 days.
The regular temporary visa refers to situations which involves the provision of services of technical assistance and/or technology transfer. The emergency situation visa refers to the situations that place life, environment, or heritage at risk, or situations that has interrupted the production or service. Usually, the documents needed in all work permits and visas are standard, however, a few cases need more documentation than the average.
Getting a Work Permit
The work permit for the ones which provide services of technical assistance and/or transfer of technology, from a foreign company to a company established in Brazil, doesn't apply for foreigners that perform administrative, financial, or management functions in the company. If the foreigner is not a substitute for the local labor worker, and is only a temporary assistant, a non-employment bond between the company and the foreigner must be signed and/or established.
The work permits are granted by CGIg (the Coordenação-Geral de Imigração do Ministério do Trabalho e Emprego), a Ministry of Labour and Employment organization responsible for foreigners' work permits.
Necessary Documentation for Work Permit and Visa Issuance
- Work permit application form, in Portuguese named Formulário de Requerimento de Autorização de Trabalho.
- Legal registration of the company, duly registered in a board of trade or in a notary office. In case of presenting copies, they must be notarized.
- Document of election or nomination of the legal representative of the applicant institutions, duly registered in a board of trade, or in a office of the civil clerk or in the Federal Official Gazette.
- Copy of the CNPJ's card.
- Power of attorney by a public instrument, or with a notarized signature in case of a private document, when the applicant is represented by an attorney. In case you are presenting a copy, it must be a notarized copy.
- GRU - proof of payment of the individual tax of immigration for the foreigners and for each legal dependent (in the cost of BRL 16.93 per person).
- Copy of the identification page of the foreign passport. It must contain the number, name, birth date, nationality, and photo; it doesn't need to be notarized.
- Proof of professional experience, of at least three years, in the activity related to the service provision hired.
- Notarized copy of the following:
- A document issued by the Federal Revenue, in case of purchase and sale of equipment with technical assistance, or;
- A document that identifies the technical cooperation between companies of the same economic group, with the proper proof of associative bond, or;
- A document in foreign currency established between the Brazilian Central Bank and the foreign legal entity, or;
- A contract or agreement which objective is the provision of service or the technical assistance.
- Proof of legal competence of the foreign company's representative that signed the contract or agreement. The proof must be presented together with a document which ensures the competency of the representative according to the country of origin's laws.
- Detailed plan of training, according to the contract or agreement, informing the professional qualifications of the foreigner, the scope of the training, the way the training will be executed, the place where the training will occur, the duration of the training, and the expected results.