20 MAR 2019: American, Australian, Canadian, and Japanese citizens who wish to disembark in Brazil, for tourism or business, will be exempt from visas as of June 17, this year. The end of the requirement is part of a decree published by the Brazilian government on Monday. The measure intends to increase the number of visitors in the country.

According to the text, the benefit includes visitors who have valid passports traveling for leisure and business tourism, artistic or sporting activities or in exceptional situations for national interest. The initiative is valid also for tourists in transit in Brazil.

The stay can last up to 90 days, extendable for the same period if it does not exceed 180 days, every 12 months, counted from the date of the first entry in the Country. If the time limit is exceeded, the visitor will be illegal and subject to measures of the Brazilian government.

The four countries benefiting from the visa waiver were part of a pilot project started in 2017 that implemented the electronic visa for anyone from these countries wishing to visit Brazil. According to the World Tourism Organization (WTO), visa facilitation measures can increase the flow of tourists by 25% in countries that adopt the practice.

In Brazil, the results were even better. In just one year of operation of the electronic visa, there was a 35.23% increase in visa emissions (electronic and traditional), considering the flow of the four countries contemplated. If these visas become a trip, the expectation is a total impact of US $ 1 billion on the Brazilian economy.

The expectation of the Ministry of Tourism is that the measure will help the country reach the mark of 12 million foreign visitors by 2022 compared to the current 6, 6 million. The goal established by the National Tourism Plan 2018-2022 aims to reduce the exchange rate deficit of the sector, which back in 2017 only stood at the US $ 13.2 billion.