Considering a move to Brazil, what do we need?

Lucybelle
He would have to have some sort of permanent visa or else come and go as a tourist. He would not be able to get a permanent visa unless he had an investment visa, married to a Brazilian, had a Brazilian child or some sort of work or student visa.

Jim

jland912 wrote:

Lucybelle
He would have to have some sort of permanent visa or else come and go as a tourist. He would not be able to get a permanent visa unless he had an investment visa, married to a Brazilian, had a Brazilian child or some sort of work or student visa.

Jim

So there's no way for him to come into the country with me?  If it matters he is a dual citizen of both USA and Costa Rica (which does not require tourist visa to enter Brazil).

When we lived abroad before, the person working applied for residency (this is how you were able to work, no "work visa").  Then a spouse, child, etc could apply based on that person.  There's nothing like this in Brazil?  I have a work visa and apply for something for my husband?

lucybelle wrote:

Lucybelle

So there's no way for him to come into the country with me?

Yes, there is, no problem.

You would probably be coming into Brazil under a VITEM V visa, the only class of temporary visa ("VIsto TEMporário") that allows work for pay in Brazil.  Its validity would be coordinated to the period of your employment contract.
A holder of any VITEM visa can apply to bring his/her dependents with them, under the policy of "family unification".  Your husband would be issued a VITEM visa with the same validity as yours, but probably in a class that does not permit working for an employer in Brazil.
When you get your job offer, the nearest Brazilian Consulate will provide details.  If you read Portuguese, you can find them by Googling "Familiares de portadores de VITEM V".
Good luck in your job search!

*ETA*  Googling "Dependents of VITEM V visa holders" brings up a page from the Brazilian Consulate in Houston that says that your husband may receive a full VITEM V based on yours, without an employment restriction.  Check it out.

Yes your husband would benefit from your visa but without the right to work. That's not really an issue if he works remotely from Brazil.
But the real issue is that it very very difficult to find a school which will sponsor your visa. Unless you are someone will particular skills/CV and the company can confirm tthat they did not find a Brazilan matching an english teacher position. (there is this Brazilian law saying that jobs can be given to foreigner only if no Brazilian qualify for the job's description). Adding administration work and time to proceed with visa, you will need to be very special to a company.

Once you have your Visa issues resolved, you will need to think about the fact you will likely be paid in Brasilian Reis and may need a bank account. Unfortunately, Brasilian banks are extremely reluctant to open accounts for non-Brasilian citizens. I am sure there are members here who will be able to offer some valuable suggestions, in my case I simply gave up and opened an account in the US which provided free ATM usage outside the US. That may not be a solution for you, however, as you may well end up being paid by direct deposit and would need a Brasilian bank account.

Yeah the bank situation, I thought it would be difficult but ended up not being hard. Once you are authorized to live here (not tourist visa) go to Bradesco with CPF, utility bill in your name of residence where you will live, passport and proof of income (I promised to return with but never did). They will open a debit account for you and give you a funky debit card that says “international” on it. I’ve had no problems with it at all. Had to return a week later to pick up the debit card at bank. They do not mail it. I have online banking and pay a small fee each month to have the account. I didn’t want to show my income and luckily they didn’t flag my account for this requirement. You might have to show it. Good luck!

Like so many things in Brazil, once you have your papers straight, opening a bank account, as Craig says, gets a lot easier.
The key thing is that you need a RNE, a National Foreigner Registry Number, (now, I guess, a RNM, National Migrant Registry Number under the new immigration law) and you can't get it with a Tourist Visa.  You certainly can with a Permanent Visa, and as I read the new law, you should be able to get it with at least some Temporary Visas.  You get it from the Federal Police, who will tell you whether your visa qualifies.  Brazilian banks are hypervigilant about money laundering -- not only does Brazil live in a tough neighborhood (see "Colombia", "Bolivia", "Venezuela"), but it's had some massive corruption scandals of its own in recent years.  So, unless you're properly registered with the Federal Police, no bank will touch you. 
You can get a CPF, a Brazilian taxpayer ID, from the Receita Federal.  you don't technically need a RNE for that, but it helps.
Any utility bill will do for proof of residence.  If the bills are in your spouse's name (as mine are), bring your Brazilian marriage certificate, too.  Don't worry about authenticated copies:  the bank will scan your original documents and return them to you.
You don't need proof of income to open a savings account ("conta de poupança"); you do need it to open a current account ("conta corrente"), similar to a checking account in the US, although checks are almost entirely obsolete in Brazil.  If you open your current account as a "Profissional Liberal" -- basically, a freelance knowledge worker -- your proof of income is just a declaration you sign in front of the banker.  Up to a limit (R$3,000/month, I think), no further documentation is required, so just sign it for the highest amount that doesn't require documentation, because this does not limit the amount you can actually have in the account.
Bank charges are high generally in Brazil, but they're lower on savings accounts than on current accounts.  Old habits die hard, so I opened a current account, but my husband opened a savings account, and I have yet to see anything -- withdraw, deposit, pay bills, make transfers, use ATMs, etc. -- that I can do and he can't.  Something to consider.
As Craig said, you need to pick your debit card up at the bank in person.  Bank lines being what they are, you want to do as much of your banking online and on ATMs as possible.  When you're opening your account, you can set the transaction levels for online, ATM, and mobile banking at the same time.  Set them at the levels that strike the right balance between convenience and security for you, remembering that you can always go back and change them, if you need to. 
Once your accounts are in place, the first time you use an ATM (true at Banco do Brasil, but I imagine with the others, too), you'll need to record your biometric data; this is a security measure, but it will also speed the ATM process for you from then on.  Any phone that you plan to use for mobile banking will need to be registered by you at an ATM first, and any computer you'll use for online banking will download a security token from the bank; for some transactions on the computer, you'll need to read a code with your authorized phone, too.

abthree's last paragraph is true and if you get a new phone that will require a trip back to the bank to get it authorized for use. I like the convenience of withdrawing money from my American account at Bradesco and immediately depositing it back into my account there. Once home I pay all bills online.

When I first got here I would roll around town carrying cash to pay bills at other banks and lottery places for the smaller utilities.  I put myself into some unnecessary danger. 

I do prefer the ease of paying bills here by scanning a barcode and then pushing submit to pay. So easy!

I like that convenience, too.
I  make a monthly wire transfer from my US account to my Banco do Brasil account.   I do have to go to BB once a month to free the funds, but I prefer that to juggling daily ATM maximums.
To each his/her own. ;-)

Yeah the wire transfer costs money. My ATM fee is reimbursed from my American bank. I can withdrawal a lot with approval through my American bank online application. I don’t mind the two trips to liberate the money each month. I only deposit enough to pay bills here and I usually use my American debit and credit cards for everything else.

Thanks for all the great info!  I've lived in Latin America before so I know the hassle and catch 22's of opening a bank account (need one to get paid, but can't get paid without one!)

Unfortunately the five jobs I've applied for I've heard nothing back  I guess there's still a small chance, but it's getting smaller by the day.  Oh well?

CraigF wrote:

I only deposit enough to pay bills here and I usually use my American debit and credit cards for everything else.

Different approaches to budgeting.  I want to pay all my Brazil-originated expenses in reais, so the monthly transfer is designed to cover everything, plus a cushion, and serve as a ceiling at the same time.  US debit and credit cards are strictly for emergencies, and for US dollar purchases, like international travel and Cigna.  Whatever works, works.

lucybelle wrote:

Thanks for all the great info!  I've lived in Latin America before so I know the hassle and catch 22's of opening a bank account (need one to get paid, but can't get paid without one!)

Unfortunately the five jobs I've applied for I've heard nothing back  I guess there's still a small chance, but it's getting smaller by the day.  Oh well?

You really want to follow the progress on the new Migration Law carefully before you give up.  It looks to me, reading the law itself, that it's going to be possible to obtain a temporary visa that allows you to register with the Federal Police on the basis of your university degree(s), without having a job offer in hand.  However, the enabling regulations don't seem to have been published yet, so the situation is far from clear. 
In your place, I would contact the nearest Brazilian Consulate and ask about your eligibility for a temporary work visa under:

"Lei de Migração, Capítulo II, Seção II, Subseção IV, Artigo 14,III, para. 5º:
§ 5o  Observadas as hipóteses previstas em regulamento, o visto temporário para trabalho poderá ser concedido ao imigrante que venha exercer atividade laboral, com ou sem vínculo empregatício no Brasil, desde que comprove oferta de trabalho formalizada por pessoa jurídica em atividade no País, dispensada esta exigência se o imigrante comprovar titulação em curso de ensino superior ou equivalente."

That's your invitation to Brazil without a job offer in hand, if the regulations don't take away what the law seems to offer.

Has having a Brasilian bank account triggered other bureaucratic headaches for anyone, such as having to report earned interest and file an income tax return? I have no earned income in Brasil, and no bank account here. But I am wary of traps for the unwary.

None that I am aware of. I just deposit what I need for each month and keep very little in the account after the bills are paid. Now, if you start dumping a ton of money into an account you may run into this type of thing. For me it saves me from running around town with large sums of cash paying bills. Saves time too, because I’m not waiting it lines to pay bills at the lottery or other banks.