You can apply for Brazilian citizenship only in Brazil. The application standards are established by the Minister of Justice's Order No. 703 of June 13, 1995, issued by the DIÁRIO OFICIAL DA UNIÃO.

Options for obtaining citizenship:

• Legal residence in Brazil for four years.
• Legal residence in Brazil for three years if you own real estate in Brazil.
• Legal residence in Brazil for two years if you have a good reputation as a qualified professional, scientist or cultural figure.
• Legal residence in Brazil for one year if you are one of the parents of a child, a Brazilian citizen. 
• Children born in Brazil acquire Brazilian citizenship automatically.

You can apply online

Documents required: 

• Application form;
• Birth certificate;
• Certificate of no criminal record;
• Passport;
• Certificate of family composition;
• Certificate of residence issued by the administration of the place of residence;
• Proof of good integration;
• Certificate of employment, proof of real estate or financial independence;
• Proof of Portuguese language proficiency.

The documents for obtaining Brazilian citizenship should be prepared and submitted to the Department of Registration (Divisão de Nacionalidade e Naturalização do Ministério da Justiça). Minor children who are included in the application are automatically granted citizenship. After a positive decision is made, you will receive a certificate of citizenship, which allows you to obtain a Brazilian passport.

Citizenship if you have a work visa

You can obtain citizenship if you have a work visa. The visa is issued for two years, and after two years, if the employee has not changed his/her position or committed a crime, the visa is extended for another two years. At the end of the fourth year, the employee can convert this visa into a permanent one. Under the terms of a work visa, foreigners can bring their spouses and children to Brazil, but family members are not allowed to work until the foreigner's visa is converted into a permanent visa.

A work visa is a long process for obtaining citizenship, you will have to wait four years to get a permanent residence permit, and then another four years before you can naturalize and obtain Brazilian citizenship.

Citizenship by marriage

It is possible to obtain citizenship by marriage to a Brazilian citizen. You will first need to obtain a tourist visa, then register your marriage in Brazil and start the process of obtaining permanent residence on the basis of marriage.

Once the marriage is registered, you can apply for permanent residence at the local Federal Police station. The process of verification and data processing can take from several months to two years, although in small towns it is much faster. During the paperwork process, the local police may visit you once or twice to make sure that the marriage is not a sham.

If you need to travel abroad for a short time or will be away from your place of permanent residence for some time, this is possible, but you must notify the Federal Police.

After one year of residence in Brazil after obtaining permanent residence by marriage, you can apply for naturalization. You may not be absent from the country for more than 30 days at a time or a total of 90 days in several trips. In this case, the naturalization period will not be counted and you will have to wait another year to apply for citizenship again.

Foreign nationals who have lived in Brazil for more than 15 years

According to the Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil (Article 12, II, b), foreign nationals without a criminal record who have lived in Brazil for more than fifteen consecutive years can obtain Brazilian citizenship if they request it. No other conditions are required.

Brazil does not prohibit dual citizenship.