What Must Foreign Nationals Arrange When Leaving Brazil?
Moving to another country requires checking when tax residence in Brazil ends and what will happen to the residence authorization held with the Federal Police (PF). These steps also apply to foreign nationals who have lived in Brazil and are returning to their home country.
Ending tax residence and terminating immigration residence are separate procedures. The permanent departure notification submitted to the Brazilian Federal Revenue Service does not replace the steps required with the PF. Likewise, surrendering the National Immigration Registration Card (CRNM) does not resolve tax return obligations or taxes due.
Anyone retaining property, investments or family ties, or planning to return, should take those connections into account when preparing to leave. Permanent departure for tax purposes does not mean selling all Brazilian assets or being barred from visiting the country.
When Does Tax Residence in Brazil End?
The first step is to confirm whether the foreign national became a tax resident during their stay. Having a Brazilian individual taxpayer registration number (CPF) or owning a property does not, on its own, answer that question. The guide Tax Residence in Brazil for Foreign Nationals: When It Begins and What Changes explains the criteria for entering this tax regime.
On departure, two situations must be distinguished:
- A permanent move: nonresident status may begin on the departure date if the departure is formalized as required by the Federal Revenue Service. The notification must be submitted within its own deadline.
- An initially temporary absence: nonresident status begins on the day after twelve consecutive months outside Brazil have elapsed. During the first twelve months, the person continues to be taxed as a resident. Federal Revenue Service — Residents and nonresidents.
According to Federal Revenue Service guidance, someone who leaves permanently without submitting the notification also remains subject to the resident tax regime during the first twelve consecutive months of absence. This may preserve obligations relating to foreign income. A departure that was not formalized must be examined alongside the relevant dates and tax returns; the person cannot simply choose the most convenient date retrospectively. Federal Revenue Service — Taxation of nonresidents.
The nature of the move must correspond to the facts. Vacations, temporary stays and an actual relocation of the person’s home do not automatically receive the same treatment.
Are the Departure Notification and Departure Tax Return the Same?
No. The Permanent Departure Notification (Comunicação de Saída Definitiva do País — CSDP) informs the Federal Revenue Service of the change in status. The Permanent Departure Tax Return (Declaração de Saída Definitiva do País — DSDP) is the income tax return covering the period during which the person was still resident in the year of departure or of becoming a nonresident. Neither replaces the other. Federal Revenue Service — Permanent Departure Tax Return.
| Step | Purpose and Timing |
|---|---|
| Notification to the Federal Revenue Service (CSDP) | Notify the departure: from the permanent departure date or the date nonresident status begins until the last day of February of the following year. Federal Revenue Service — Notify permanent departure. |
| Tax return to the Federal Revenue Service (DSDP) | Report the period of tax residence in the relevant year. File in the following year, within the prescribed Individual Income Tax (IRPF) deadline for that filing year. Federal Revenue Service — Notify permanent departure. |
| Notices to payers and banks | Notify nonresident status so that registration details and the treatment of payments can be adjusted from the relevant date. Federal Revenue Service — Guidance on permanent departure. |
| Immigration steps with the PF | Review whether to maintain or terminate the authorization, according to the legal basis and conditions of residence. These steps are separate from the tax deadlines. Decree No. 9,199/2017, Articles 135 to 139. Federal Police — Permanent departure and CRNM. |
The DSDP requires organizing Brazilian and foreign income, assets, rights, debts and other information relevant to the period covered. The tax calculated must be paid in a single installment by the tax return deadline. Departure does not remove the requirement to file earlier mandatory returns or settle outstanding tax debts. IRPF Questions and Answers 2026, Questions 113 to 129.
The DSDP deadline must be checked for the relevant filing year. A fixed date in April or May should not be assumed for every year: the Federal Revenue Service may set or extend the filing schedule. The notification, in turn, has its own deadline: the last day of February of the year following permanent departure or the start of nonresident status. Federal Revenue Service — Notify permanent departure.
What If You Retain Income, Property or Investments in Brazil?
Ending tax residence does not end all Brazilian taxation. Income from sources in Brazil and gains on sales of Brazilian assets may remain taxable, now under the rules applicable to nonresidents. Rent, remuneration, retirement pensions and financial investments must be examined by category, including under any applicable treaty. There is no single tax rate for permanent departure. Federal Revenue Service — Taxation of nonresidents.
Payers must be formally notified of nonresident status and the date on which it begins. Depending on the circumstances, these include employers, banks, brokerage firms, tenants and property managers. It is prudent to keep the notices and acknowledgments of receipt. Waiting until the following year’s DSDP may result in incorrect tax treatment of payments made in the meantime. Federal Revenue Service — Guidance on permanent departure.
Anyone retaining a rental property must also arrange responsibility for withholding or paying the tax and appoint a representative under a power of attorney where necessary. Changing the address in the contract does not, on its own, resolve these obligations.
For someone holding an interest in a Brazilian company, the move also requires a corporate and tax review. Simples Nacional, Brazil’s simplified small-business tax regime, for example, excludes companies with a shareholder or member domiciled abroad. This requires assessing removal from that regime and the steps the company must take; it does not mean every company must be closed. Complementary Law No. 123/2006, Article 17, II.
How Does This Work for Someone Returning to France?
A French national who leaves Brazil and returns to live in France may keep an apartment rented out in São Paulo. The move requires establishing the date Brazilian nonresident status begins and arranging the tax treatment of the rent. Article VI of the France–Brazil convention allows Brazil to tax income from real estate located here; the treaty’s existence does not automatically exempt the rent. France–Brazil Convention, Decree No. 70,506/1972.
If both countries treat the person as a resident, Article IV establishes criteria to resolve dual residence for treaty purposes. The French tax treatment and the applicable mechanism for avoiding double taxation must be coordinated with the Brazilian tax calculation. The guide to Brazil’s double taxation treaties explores these issues in greater depth. France–Brazil Convention, Decree No. 70,506/1972.
Must You Cancel Your CPF and Close Your Bank Accounts?
Permanent departure does not cancel the CPF. The number is unique and permanent, and the register covers Brazilian and foreign nationals residing in Brazil or abroad. It remains necessary for various asset-related and tax matters. Registration details must reflect the current situation. Federal Revenue Service — My CPF.
Financial institutions must be informed of the change and must indicate how registration details, accounts, investments and tax treatment must be adjusted for a nonresident customer. Keeping a Brazilian address or leaving an account inactive should not be assumed to be enough.
Nor is there a general rule requiring all investments to be liquidated solely because of a change in residence. Joint regulations issued by the Central Bank of Brazil (BCB) and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Brazil (CVM) allow positions to be retained under the prescribed conditions, without requiring redemption or closure for that reason alone. The specific procedure and available products must be checked with the institution. Central Bank — Investments by nonresidents.
Does Ending Tax Residence Cause Loss of the Residence Authorization?
The notification and tax return submitted to the Federal Revenue Service are not requests to terminate the residence authorization held with the PF. Immigration status requires its own analysis: the authorization’s legal basis, duration, conditions for maintaining it and length of absence.
This also means that retaining a valid CRNM does not, by itself, guarantee continued residence. Decree No. 9,199/2017 provides for loss of residence when the legal basis for the authorization ceases to exist and requires immigrants to notify the PF when they no longer meet the conditions that justified it. Decree No. 9,199/2017, Articles 135 to 139.
If the Person Wishes to Terminate Immigration Residence
The PF instructs foreign nationals wishing to leave permanently and terminate their authorization to attend a PF office with their CRNM, submit a written departure statement and voluntarily surrender the card. It is advisable to arrange the appointment before moving and keep the filing receipt. Federal Police — Permanent departure and CRNM.
The decision to follow this procedure should take into account the implications for a future return to Brazil and, where family members’ residence is linked to the person’s authorization, their status as well. Terminating an authorization should not be treated as a simple address update.
If the Person Intends to Maintain Residence
The conditions of the particular residence category must be checked. Authorizations based on work, investment or family reunification may require different checks, and the authorization’s period of validity continues to run during the absence.
Article 135, III, of Decree No. 9,199/2017 provides that an absence of more than two years without justification is a ground for loss of residence. Loss is not automatic once that period has elapsed: it requires administrative proceedings, with the right to be heard and to present a full defense. Nor does the rule guarantee that residence will be preserved for any two-year period, since the authorization’s legal basis or validity may end sooner. Decree No. 9,199/2017, Articles 135 to 139.
The twelve months used to determine tax nonresidence after an initially temporary departure and the two years under the immigration rule serve different purposes. The guide More Than Two Years Outside Brazil: Loss of Residence explains prolonged absence and its consequences.
How Should You Prepare for the Move?
Preparation usually starts with the history of entries and departures and identification of the relevant date for each step. It is advisable to gather:
- Passport, CRNM and documents showing the legal basis and duration of the residence authorization.
- Evidence of the move, travel dates and information on the new home and activity abroad.
- Previous tax returns, receipts, income statements and the asset and liability information needed for the DSDP.
- A list of payers, banks, brokerage firms and people responsible for assets retained in Brazil.
- Access to official services, any necessary powers of attorney and evidence of notifications made.
When a family moves, each member’s dates and tax status must be checked. The principal authorization holder’s departure from Brazil does not automatically resolve the tax position of all family members.
Frequently Asked Questions
Must Every Foreign National Leaving Brazil Complete the Permanent Departure Procedures?
No. Whether the person was a tax resident must be checked. Someone who entered as a visitor and did not become a tax resident does not need to submit a CSDP and DSDP merely because the visit has ended. A CPF and immigration authorization, on their own, do not settle that analysis. Federal Revenue Service — Residents and nonresidents.
Are Departure Filings Mandatory Even If No Tax Is Due?
The notification and tax return obligations arise from departure or the start of nonresident status. They should not be disregarded merely because no tax was payable or the person did not reach the usual thresholds for a resident’s annual tax return. Federal Revenue Service — Notify permanent departure.
Can Someone Who Has Already Left Without Giving Notice Bring Their Affairs into Compliance?
Yes, but the person must reconstruct the dates, check the returns already filed and identify the applicable procedure. Bringing their affairs into compliance may involve a late DSDP, corrections and charges. For someone who has been a nonresident for more than six years, the Federal Revenue Service provides a specific channel through its official service. This procedure does not mean outstanding tax debts are automatically forgiven. Federal Revenue Service — Notify permanent departure.
Must You Keep Filing an Annual Tax Return Because You Retain a Property?
While the person remains a nonresident, merely owning a property in Brazil does not reinstate the obligation to file an annual tax return as a resident. Obligations relating to income, a possible sale and the assets themselves remain, including property taxes. The DSDP and outstanding matters from the earlier period must be addressed. Federal Revenue Service — Who must file. Federal Revenue Service — Taxation of nonresidents.
Can You Return to Brazil After Permanent Departure?
Yes. Ending tax residence does not prohibit a return. Entry must comply with the person’s current immigration status. If the foreign national returns to settle in Brazil, the date on which tax residence is reacquired must be reassessed, considering their category, any employment relationship and length of stay. There is no universal 183-day waiting period. IRPF Questions and Answers 2026, Questions 113 to 129.
Can I Retain Residence with the PF and Be a Tax Nonresident?
These statuses are governed by different criteria, and an active CRNM does not automatically make someone a tax resident. Whether the authorization can be maintained depends on its legal basis and the immigration conditions. The information provided to the Federal Revenue Service and the PF must be consistent with the facts. Federal Revenue Service — Residents and nonresidents. Decree No. 9,199/2017, Articles 135 to 139.
How SCCM Can Assist
SCCM advises foreign nationals and families on the legal arrangements for leaving Brazil, taking into account their residence authorization, assets retained in the country and change in tax status.
The work may include reviewing the applicable immigration category, steps with the PF and treaty implications, in coordination with the professionals responsible for tax returns and calculations in Brazil and abroad.