Immigrants
How to open a company in Brazil as a foreigner
A foreigner can be a partner in a Brazilian company. You need a CPF; to manage it, you generally must live here. Non-residents act through a proxy.
bairogonzalez.com team, drawing on Bairo's story · Published
Foreigners can open companies in Brazil, as partners or as sole owners. Google's suggestions show the most common doubts: "can a foreigner open a company in Brazil," "on a temporary visa," "non-resident," "with a CPF." The answer depends mainly on two things: whether you live in Brazil, and whether you will manage the company or only hold a stake in it.
The practical path
- Get a CPF. Every individual partner needs a CPF, and foreigners can obtain it from the Federal Revenue Service or, abroad, at Brazilian consulates.
- Understand the difference between partner and manager. Being a partner (owning quotas) is different from managing (signing for the company day to day). The business registration rules of the DREI (the federal department that oversees commercial registries) generally require the manager to reside in Brazil, with a residence authorization. A non-resident can be a partner and appoint a proxy who lives in the country, with powers to receive service of process.
- Choose the type of company. If your business fits the MEI and you live in Brazil, it's the simplest path. Otherwise, the most common formats are the single-member limited company (SLU) and the limited liability company (LTDA). Specific activities may have restrictions on foreign capital (some regulated areas, for example); check yours.
- Hire an accountant who has served foreigners before. They handle registration at the Junta Comercial via Redesim, the CNPJ, the registrations and the tax regime. Foreign documents may need a Hague apostille and a sworn translation.
- Register foreign capital, if any. Money brought from abroad into the company must be declared to the Central Bank under the foreign capital rules in force. Your accountant or bank will advise you.
- Open a bank account. Banks ask for documents from all partners and the manager. Be ready for stricter onboarding requirements.
- Keep your migration status up to date. A company in good standing doesn't replace a valid migration document. Some residence authorizations are tied to investment or work; read the conditions of yours.
This page is general guidance. Always work with an accountant and, in cases of foreign investment, a lawyer.
How Bairo went through it
Bairo Leandro Gonzalez Martinez, a Colombian in Brazil since 2002, knows both ends: that of the immigrant who lost his footing and that of the businessman with registered companies. He says that, when he left the education company that brought him to the country, he found himself without documents in hand, without a network and afraid. It took him years to get back on his feet.
Today, he is the administrator of the Brazilian company that operates the CEASA Bank brand and director of two companies registered in the United Kingdom in 2026. Between one end and the other, there was a salon, a course, a cosmetics brand and many attempts. The immigrant who lost his footing learned, as his story puts it, to walk in the sun of many countries.
The Method step
For a foreigner, step 6 of the Seventh Attempt Method: learn what you don't know starts with the rules of the new country. Three columns: what you need to know (documents, taxes, registration), what you'll learn on your own and what you'll ask an accountant or lawyer for. No one is obliged to know everything alone in a new country.
Discover the Seventh Attempt Method