Moving to Spain from Brazil

Brazilians have clear advantages when moving to Spain: visa-free entry, Spanish citizenship after just 2 years of residence and a licence exchange agreement. The difference from the rest of Latin America is language: documents in Portuguese need a translation for many procedures in Spain, and citizenship requires the DELE A2. Here is how people usually make the move and what to prepare.

Key facts

• Entry: Brazilian passport holders can stay in the Schengen area visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180-day period. This does not allow work and does not, on its own, let you settle.
• Citizenship: as a national of an Ibero-American country you can apply after 2 years of legal, continuous residence, without renouncing Brazilian nationality (art. 24 of the Civil Code). Since Constitutional Amendment 131/2023, Brazil no longer withdraws nationality from citizens who acquire another. Besides the CCSE you need the DELE A2, because Spanish is not official in Brazil.
• Documents: Brazil has applied the Hague Convention since 2016; apostilles are issued by cartórios. To use Portuguese documents with the Spanish administration in Spain, a sworn translation into Spanish is usually required.
• Driving: there is an exchange agreement. Once resident you can drive for six months on your CNH and exchange it without a test for cars and motorcycles.
• Social security: the Spain–Brazil agreement lets you combine contributions from both countries for your pension.

How people usually move

• Studies. A master’s, degree, vocational course or Spanish course with a student visa; higher education and vocational training allow work up to 30 hours a week. Time as a student does not count towards the 2 years for citizenship. Study permit
• EU citizenship. Many Brazilians already hold recognised Portuguese or Italian citizenship: with that passport you live and work in Spain as an EU citizen, without a visa. Italy restricted citizenship by descent in 2025 for people not yet recognised. EU citizen registration
• Remote work. The digital nomad visa suits people working remotely for companies or clients outside Spain, with a relationship of at least three months. Digital nomad
• Skilled work. A highly qualified professional permit or EU Blue Card, common in tech and engineering, or a job offer from a Spanish company. Highly qualified professional
• Family. Marriage or registered partnership with a Spanish or EU citizen. Family member of a Spanish or EU citizen
• Spanish parent. If your father or mother is Spanish by origin and born in Spain, you can opt for citizenship with no residence period. The grandchildren route under the Democratic Memory Law closed in October 2025. If you were born outside Spain and your father, mother, grandfather or grandmother was originally Spanish, you can apply for citizenship by residence after just 1 year of legal, continuous residence. Spanish citizenship

Documents and apostille

• Certidão de Antecedentes Criminais from the Polícia Federal, issued online with your CPF. It must show your passport number and be apostilled at a cartório; consulates do not accept state certificates instead. It usually has to be recent.
• Birth and marriage certificates (certidões de nascimento e casamento) from the civil registry cartório, in full-text (inteiro teor) form if requested, apostilled.
• Apostille: issued by cartórios authorised by the National Council of Justice (CNJ), without going through Itamaraty.
• Sworn translation: for procedures in Spain (TIE, arraigo, Civil Registry, citizenship) Portuguese documents must be translated by a sworn translator. For the visa, consulates in Brazil accept documents in Portuguese: check your office’s list.
• Diplomas and transcripts (diploma e histórico escolar), apostilled, if you will study or have your degree recognised.

What to keep in mind

• Spain has a consular section at the Embassy in Brasília and consulates general in São Paulo (São Paulo, Paraná and Mato Grosso do Sul), Porto Alegre (Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina), Rio de Janeiro and Salvador. Your office is the one covering the state where you live; honorary consulates (Belo Horizonte, Curitiba, Recife, Fortaleza and others) do not process national visas.
• National visas are filed by appointment at the consulate itself; check its website for how to book and for each visa’s document list.
• Apply for a student visa early: the São Paulo consulate recommends at least one month before travel.
• In Spain: register at the town hall (padrón) and, if you came with a residence or student visa, apply for your TIE within the first month. If you are aiming for citizenship, book the DELE A2 and CCSE early.

Frequently asked questions

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