Did you find an internship position in Brazil and have no idea how to come legally? We will explain to you what is the right internship visa in Brazil and help you understand what are the visa possibilities that you have to come to Brazil as an intern.
What is the Right Brazilian Internship Visa as a Foreigner?
If you are a foreigner and want to do an internship in Brazil, you should be looking at the Student Visa VITEM IV. There are a few other cases in which you can come with different visas and we will cover them in the article. So don’t worry and pay attention on the tips on how to get an internship visa in Brazil.
All you Need to Know About the Student Visa VITEM IV for Brazil
First, we need to understand the purpose of this visa. As the name says, a student can apply for this visa. It is a temporary visa, which means that the visa is valid only for the purpose of the trip, in this case, the time that the applicant will be considered a student.
Student visas are granted for anyone who wants to study in Brazil. That means that if you are coming to study at University for a semester abroad, or if you want to study Portuguese in Brazil, you can come with this kind of visa. Also, as an internship is considered an extended act of the university, where the student can apply the knowledge (s)he learns at the university, an internship should be done by A STUDENT. Hence, this is the right visa for interning in Brazil.
If you have earned an internship position at a Brazilian Company and you are not currently an undergraduate or graduate student, you can enroll at a local university in Brazil and do the internship as well. If you have no idea on how to do it, Intern Brazil can help you out! Fill in this form and we will contact you to offer our services.
What are the documents needed to apply for an internship visa in Brazil?
We have a lot of experience helping students applying for internship visas in Brazil. However, all the documents asked by a Brazilian Consulate or Embassy may change from consulate to consulate. That being said, we will list below the most common documents required to apply for this kind of visa.
- Application form
- Affidavit of commitment (it is the internship contract between university, company and student)
- Invitation Letter (a formal letter inviting the student to do an internship at the Brazilian host company)
- Criminal Background Check – Police Check (a FBI check or Police Check stating that you have no criminal records is necessary as Brazil wants to certify that you are not a criminal)
- Birth Certificate
- Passport
Note: if you are applying for a student visa and you are not a student, you may be asked for the university registration (enrollment). If you are married, you may be asked for the certificate of marriage. The first 2 documents and the university enrollment must be notarized in Brazil.
To verify all the documents needed in your case you have to search for the Brazilian Consulate or Embassy nearest your home town. Just type in Google “Brazilian Consulate in Chicago”, for example, or you can type something like “Brazilian Consulate near NAME-OF-THE-CITY/NAME-OF-THE-STATE”. You should find an embassy or consulate. Go to the consular services and check for the documents that are actually needed.
In which cases I can come without a Visa or with a Tourist Visa? Is it legal?
This is pretty new and (best of all) LEGAL. Yes, it is legal. So, if you come to Brazil for a period of less than 90 days, including the internship, you can come as a tourist. All you have to do is to formalize the internship, so that you have a proof of the internship and so does the company.
Where do I apply for a Brazilian Visa?
You have to apply for a Brazilian Visa at a Brazilian Consulate or Embassy. Usually the consulate is the most appropriate place for you to apply as it is a consular service that you are applying for. However, in some places, there is no consulates or the embassy is closest to you than the consulate, and for your luck, they might have a consular services area that processes visas. Since you can be from any country you can type in Google “Brazilian Consulate in “NAME-OF-THE-CITY/STATE/COUNTRY”” and voilà, you probably have found the right consulate to go to.
I have a Mercosul Citizenship. Can I apply for a different visa? What are the requirements?
Well, if you have a citizenship from Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay or Ecuador, you are very lucky and you can apply for the Mercosul Visa, the VRT Visa de Residencia Temporal. That means that you can apply for a visa that allows you to become temporarily live in Brazil. This also means that you can have the same legal rights of a Brazilian in Brazil.
You will need a certificate of birth, fill in an electronic form, police check and other documents that are needed. Visit the Brazilian Consulate page to check all the documents necessary.
What are the advantages of a Mercosul Visa?
Usually the Mercosul Visa gets approved by the same time that the student visa. However, it grants more rights, allowing you to be hired full time, for example, for a Brazilian Company. It is also easier to enter and exit the country if you don’t have a multiple entry visa.
I have the Brazilian citizenship. What are the documents needed to formalize my internship relationship?
If you are Brazilian or have the Brazilian citizenship, you shouldn’t be looking for a visa. Rather than the visa, you should be looking for documents to formalize the internship. Why? Because the company needs to prove that your internship is legal in case the ministry of labor audits the firm, they have a proof that you are legally interning at the company. It is also important to you, so that you can confirm that you actually interned at a Brazilian Company.
The document that formalizes everything is called Affidavit of Commitment and it is a contract between university, company and intern. This document is also mandatory in case of the Mercosul Visa. The bond can be signed by any university in the world.
How can Intern Brazil help you obtain a Brazilian internship Visa?
Intern Brazil usually takes care of the whole process as an internship agency for foreigners in Brazil. Our services are paid and if you are self-driven, independent and have already found an internship position, we can help you legalize everything by supporting you and the host company. We will accompany the whole process and provide the documents necessary for you to apply for the visa. We will also help the company, making sure that everything goes by the book. If the company also needs help paying your stipend, Intern Brazil have solutions that makes everything easier for you. If you want our help with the whole process, please fill in this form. If you need help ONLY WITH THE VISA AID, please fill in the form below.
Do you need help with finding the position? Please fill in our application form.
If you need help with the whole process from finding an internship to actually applying for the visa, you can count on our services and apply now by filling in our application form.