Brazilian Nationality
GENERAL INFORMATION
Article 12(I) of the Federal Constitution states that natural-born Brazilians are:
- those born in Brazil, even of foreign parents, as long as they are not in the service of their country;
- those born abroad to a Brazilian father or a Brazilian mother, provided that either of them is in the service of Brazil;
- those born abroad to a Brazilian father or mother, provided that they are registered at a Brazilian Consulate or consular section of a Brazilian Embassy or reside in Brazil and choose Brazilian nationality at any time after reaching the age of majority.
It also establishes that naturalized Brazilians are (art. 12, item II) those who acquire Brazilian nationality, in accordance with the law:
- the requirements for those originating from Portuguese-speaking countries are one year of uniterrupted residence and moral suitability;
- the requirements for foreigners of any other nationality are fifteen years of uniterrupted residence without a criminal conviction, provided they apply for Brazilian nationality.
For further information on matters relating to Brazilian nationality, visit the website of the Ministry of Justice, or contact the Ministry's Nationality and Naturalization Division by email at "estrangeiros@mj.gov.br" or "dnn@mj.gov.br".
THE LOSS OF BRAZILIAN NATIONALITY
With the enactment of Constitutional Amendment 131 of 2023, there were changes to the rules on the loss of Brazilian nationality contained in article 12 of the Federal Constitution. According to the new wording of article 12, the mere acquisition of another nationality no longer leads to the loss of Brazilian nationality.
Article 12, paragraph 4, item II of the Federal Constitution, which states that the loss of nationality of a Brazilian who makes an official request for the loss of Brazilian nationality before a competent Brazilian authority, will be declared, except in situations involving statelessness.
If, for any reason, a Brazilian who has another nationality (original or by naturalization) wishes to request the loss of their Brazilian nationality, they must make the request directly on the Ministry of Justice's website, through the Electronic Protocol.
Alternatively, the interested party can send the request for loss of nationality by physical mail to the Ministry of Justice, at the following address:
Ministério da Justiça - Departamento de Migrações,
Esplanada dos Ministérios, Bloco T, anexo II, sala T3, Brasília -DF,
CEP: 70.064-900
To see the list of the required documents, click here. To download the application form, click here.
The application template and the guidelines for sending and monitoring the application are available on the Ministry of Justice's website.
The loss of Brazilian nationality will be the result of an order issued by the National Secretary of Justice, published in the Federal Official Journal, at the end of an administrative process initiated at the request of the person concerned.
Renunciation of nationality, under the terms of item II of § 4 of article 12, does not prevent the person concerned from reacquiring their original Brazilian nationality, under the terms of the law.