Brazil visa requirements for Nigerian citizens

Consulate General of Brazil in Lagos (Plot 257, Kofo Abayomi Street, Victoria Island), with appointments through the e-consular system; Brazil also keeps an embassy in Abuja

Rule out the electronic shortcut first: Brazil's official e-visa portal is reserved for holders of United States, Canadian and Australian passports, so with a Nigerian passport the visa is consular and in person. The appointment is booked in the e-consular system of the Consulate General of Brazil in Lagos, with an account of your own, and this is where the travel plan changes: the consulate itself warns that it operates with reduced capacity and that average processing time for some documents has been running at around 30 to 90 days. This is not a fifteen-day timeframe like a European external centre. Brazil also keeps an embassy in Abuja, on Diplomatic Drive, Garki, useful for those living in the north, but the consular appointment portal it advertises is the Lagos one. For emergencies the consulate gives a separate address, consular.lagos@itamaraty.gov.br.

Authorization system

e-Visa (mandatory for certain nationalities since 2025)

As of 10 April 2025 it is mandatory for passport holders from Australia, Canada, and the US traveling for tourism/business, via the brazil.vfsevisa.com portal. For other nationalities without a visa exemption, the application is filed at gov.br/vistos. Verify which one applies based on the passport's nationality before publishing.

Fee

USD 80.00

Applies at least to nationalities with mandatory e-Visa (AU/CA/US); verify for the rest.

Processing time

Up to 5 business days (applying 2 weeks in advance is recommended).

Required documents

• Passport valid for at least 6 months beyond the planned entry date, with at least 2 blank pages.
• Proof of sufficient funds.
• Onward or return ticket.

Vaccinations

• Yellow fever: NOT mandatory for general entry into Brazil, but recommended when traveling to Acre, Amapá, Amazonas, the Federal District (including Brasília), Espírito Santo, Goiás, Maranhão, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Pará, Paraná, Piauí, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sur, Rondônia, Roraima, Santa Catarina, São Paulo, Tocantins, and specific areas of Bahia. Important: even though Brazil doesn't require it, neighboring countries (Bolivia, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Suriname) may require a yellow fever certificate if you've previously been in Brazil.

Health insurance

Not mandatory for this destination.

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.

Customs limits

Cash

Declare if cash exceeds 10,000 BRL (or 10,000 USD/equivalent).

Alcohol

Up to 24 combined units of alcoholic beverages, with a maximum of 12 units of the same type of drink.

Tobacco

Arriving by air or sea (age 18+): 10 packs of foreign-origin cigarettes (200 units in total), 25 cigars or cigarillos, and 250 g of loose tobacco. Prohibited in minors’ baggage. By land or river the limit drops to 10 units of the same item.

Overstay penalties

Remaining on national territory after your documentation's legal period has expired is an offence under Article 109 of Law 13.445/2017. The fine for an individual runs from BRL 100 to BRL 10,000 per offence, with the specific daily amount set by regulation. Brazil also has a quirk worth knowing: the daily fine can be converted into an equivalent reduction of the authorised period of stay if you enter the country again on a visitor visa. In other words, today's overstay can be deducted from your next trip.

Common reasons for denial

• The real purpose of your trip not matching the visa you hold or the reason given for your visa exemption: it is among the Article 45 grounds most often applied at the border to an ordinary traveller.
• Having demonstrably forged documentation or given false information.
• Being convicted of, or facing proceedings for, an act of terrorism, genocide, a crime against humanity, a war crime or a crime of aggression.
• Being convicted of, or facing proceedings in another country for, an intentional crime subject to extradition.
• Appearing on a restrictions list by court order or under a commitment entered into by Brazil.
• Having had a Brazilian visa refused: you are barred from entering while the conditions behind that refusal persist. The law requires an individual interview and a reasoned decision, and expressly forbids refusing entry on grounds of race, religion, nationality, membership of a social group or political opinion.