Brazil visa requirements for Cuban citizens

Consular section of the Embassy of Brazil in Havana: online form of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and appointment by email (consular.havana@itamaraty.gov.br)

A Cuban travelling to Brazil as a tourist or to visit family needs the visit visa (VIVIS), for stays under 90 days without paid work. It is requested at the Embassy of Brazil in Havana, which charges Cubans 80 USD, cash only, on the day of the appointment. The first step is the Brazilian Foreign Ministry's online form, where all the documents are scanned along with the photo and signature. You then print the submission receipt (RER), sign it and stick the photo on it, and once the file is complete you request an appointment by email at consular.havana@itamaraty.gov.br. The appointment is free. Applications are reviewed in order of arrival and the embassy rejects incomplete ones. The list is written for Cuba: a passport with two blank pages, a 3 × 4 colour photo on a white background, the booking or ticket in and out of Brazil, proof of accommodation (for a private home, a letter with a notarised signature and the host's electricity or internet bill), a letter from the workplace or place of study less than a month old, or the ONAT self-employment document (retirees show the INASS letter or their pension book), and the traveller's own means of support: bank statements for the last six months, a credit card limit or the annual sworn personal income declaration. Cash is not accepted as proof. Someone inviting from Brazil may add a public deed of maintenance undertaking made before a Brazilian notary, but it is supporting evidence and does not replace the traveller's own means. Cuban documents proving a family link must be legalised at MINREX or MINJUS. The fee is not refunded if the visa is refused.

Official application site →

Authorisation system

e-Visa (only for Australian, Canadian and US passports)

Since 10 April 2025, Australian, Canadian and US passport holders need a visitor visa to travel to Brazil for tourism or business, and they apply for it as an e-Visa at brazil.vfsevisa.com, the portal the Brazilian consulates point to. It allows multiple entries and stays of up to 90 days per year. Other nationalities that need a visa cannot use the e-Visa: they apply at the Brazilian embassy or consulate responsible for them, using the Ministry of Foreign Affairs online form.

Apply on the official site →

Fee

80 USD

Amount published by the consular post that handles this corridor; the country page may give another consulate's figure.

Processing time

Each embassy or consulate sets it. The embassy in Dar es Salaam, for example, gives 5 working days for a visitor visa without an interview and 10 days if there is one, counted from when all the documents are submitted. The e-Visa for Australia, Canada and the US takes about 10 working days on average.

Required documents

• Passport valid on the date of entry and for the whole stay, until you leave Brazil. Brazil requires no extra validity, although some consulates ask for more to process a visa.
• At the entry check, the Federal Police may ask for your ticket out of Brazil.
• They may also ask for proof of means of subsistence in line with the length and purpose of the trip.

Health insurance

Not mandatory for this destination.

When travel insurance is mandatory → Travel insurance policies ↓

Transit rules

Under Migration Law 13,445/2017, transit-specific visas ceased to exist: there is no longer one to apply for. You need no visa if you stay in the international transit area of the Brazilian port or airport without clearing migration control, and if you travel on a single ticket, even where it was issued by two or more airlines under a code-sharing agreement. The corollary to be clear about: Brazilian visas are never granted on national territory, so you cannot obtain one at an airport, port or border point. If your connection forces you through immigration and you need a visa, it must be arranged before you leave home.