How to Apply for a Brazil Visa in San Francisco : visasupply.com

San Francisco, known as the “City by the Bay”, is one of America’s most famous and beautiful cities. Located in Northern California, San Francisco is just one of the many cities that together make up the San Francisco Bay Area, or Bay Area for short. The 14-county combined statistical area (that comprises the Bay Area) has nearly 10 million people, making it the fifth-most populous region in the United States. The Bay Area includes cities such as Oakland, Hayward, Berkeley, Vallejo, Concord, Pleasanton, Fremont, San Jose, San Mateo, Palo Alto, Sausalito, and San Rafael. The economy of the Bay Area is one of the most vigorous and entrepreneurial on the planet. Silicon Valley (in the southern part of the Bay Area) has attracted engineers from all over the world, including those from Brazil like computer scientist Hugo Barra and Instagram co-founder Michel Krieger. There are dozens of successful Brazilian technology entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley, and many of them first came to the Bay Area as students to attend UC Berkeley and Stanford University. Stanford has close connections to Brazil through its Lemann Center, which provides training to Brazilian students and visiting scholars. There are an estimated 40,000 Brazilians living in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Brazil is a huge Portuguese language speaking nation of 215 million people and a land area of 3,287,956 square miles that is bordered by every country in the South American continent except Chile and Ecuador. Brazil is one of the largest economies in the world and is the largest democracy in the Western Hemisphere, after the United States. The country has an abundance of natural resources and a robust manufacturer sector that produces machinery, automobiles, buses, and airplanes. Brazil also has a hot technology sector with many opportunities for San Francisco Bay Area companies dealing in e-commerce, education, financial, and health technology. Although their tourism sector is still developing, Brazil has seen an increase in visitors from the United States ever since relaxing their visa policy in 2017. American tourists love Brazilian culture, especially its great traditions in music and dance. Brazil has many cultural events that tourists from San Francisco will surely enjoy such as Festa Junina, Bauernfest, Boi-Bumba, Festival de Cachaça, and the world-famous Carnival, which is known for its elaborate parades in cities like Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, and Recife. Others may just want to kick back and relax at one of Rio's legendary beaches such as Copacabana or Ipanema.

Obtaining a Brazil Visa from San Francisco

Visas for Brazil are issued by the Brazilian government in the United States. The government of Brazil is represented by their embassy located in Washington, D.C. along with nine consulates located in Houston, Chicago, Boston, Hartford, New York, Atlanta, Miami, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. To apply for a Brazil visa from San Francisco, you will fill out the visa application and mail your original passport and supporting documents to the Brazilian consulate located in San Francisco’s Financial District. Here is their address:

Consulate General of Brazil, Visa Section
300 Montgomery Street, Suite 300
San Francisco, CA 94104

It is important to review the requirements for visas on the Brazil consulate website and ensure your application and all supporting documents are accurate. Here is the link to the consulate website with detailed information: Consulate General of Brazil in San Francisco (itamaraty.gov.br) (Please do not mail any documents to the consulate until you have reviewed the link)

You should include a self-addressed USPS (US Postal Service Express Mail or Priority Mail) prepaid envelope (please make note of the tracking number) so the consulate can return your passport and visa to your home or office.

The government fee for the visa varies depending on the applicant’s country of origin and type of visa required. Please review the visa fees using the same link mentioned above. The consulate only accepts payment by money order from the United States Postal Service and does not accept cash, cards and non-USPS money orders (it is not possible to buy money orders at the consulate—they must be purchased from the post office).

If you cannot appear in person at the consulate to submit your visa application, please contact our company and we can submit your documents to the consulate as a third-party agency.

Other things to consider:

Citizens of the United States no longer require a visa if traveling to Brazil for tourism or business purposes and can stay in the country for 90 days. The stay in Brazil can be extended for an additional 90 days at any federal police station.
If you are a U.S. citizen and are traveling to Brazil for work (i.e., you will be getting paid in Brazil or providing technical assistance) or for any purpose other than tourism or business, you must obtain the appropriate visa before starting your journey.
When completing the visa application form online, please make sure to upload all the necessary supporting documents and write your signature inside the rectangular box after printing out the application receipt.
Applicants under the age of 18 must provide an authorization form that will be signed by both parents, notarized, and apostilled by the Secretary of State. More information can be found using this link: Consulate General of Brazil in San Francisco (itamaraty.gov.br)
If you are not a U.S. citizen, Canadian, Australian, or Japanese, you must provide proof of your immigration status in the United States, such as a green card or valid visa.
It is recommended to purchase travel insurance before any international trip in case of medical emergencies. We advise getting the Geo Blue Voyager Single Trip Plan.

Emergency Assistance for Brazil Citizens in San Francisco

If you are a citizen of Brazil living in the San Francisco Bay Area with an emergency or require urgent assistance, you can reach the consulate in San Francisco by calling 415-596-6926 (this number is only for Brazilian citizens faced with emergency situations such as hospitalization, death, or imprisonment). The consulate’s telephone number for non-emergency inquiries is 415-981-8170. If you need to renew your Brazil passport, you can appear in person at their office (by appointment only) or renew by mail following the instructions on this link: Consulate General of Brazil in San Francisco (itamaraty.gov.br). Here is the link for the full list of contact information, including various email addresses: Consulate General of Brazil in San Francisco (itamaraty.gov.br)

We Can Help if You Need Assistance

If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area or anywhere in Northern California and have difficulty applying for a Brazil visa, or require assistance with any part of the visa process, please give our office a call at 404-682-5445 or schedule an appointment with our company. We are a private agency in Atlanta providing Brazil visa services for Americans and other U.S.-based residents. Our number one goal is to ensure your application documents for a visa are submitted accurately to the Brazilian government. Our services eliminate delays and give you the peace of mind to focus on your travel plans.

We provide the following Brazil visa services for our customers:

Brazil Tourist Visa (VIVIS)
Brazil Business Visa (VIVIS)
Brazil Temporary Work Visa (VITEM V)
Brazil Permanent (Retirement) Visa (VIPER)
Brazil Diplomatic and Official Visa
Brazil Study (Student) Visa
Brazil Religious Activity Visa
Brazil Volunteering Visa
Brazil Family Reunification Visa
Brazil Artistic or Sports Activities Visa
Brazil Hotel Accommodations