At the tourism trade-show Festuris, held in Gramado on 8 November, Mexican hospitality giant Grupo Xcaret celebrated the Mexican government’s decision to reinstate the electronic visa (e-Visa) for Brazilian nationals from February 2026. The move reverses the 2022 requirement for a physical visa, which had depressed Brazilian arrivals to Cancun and the Riviera Maya.
Under the restored system, Brazilians will again be able to apply online, pay a US $51 fee and receive a travel authorisation by e-mail within 48 hours. No in-person interview or passport drop-off will be required, slashing lead-times from the current four-to-six weeks to just two days. The e-Visa will permit multiple entries of up to 180 days each within a five-year validity period, aligning Mexico’s policy with those of Colombia and Costa Rica, key competitors for Brazilian leisure and MICE traffic.
![Mexico Confirms Return of Electronic Visa for Brazilians, Boosting Corporate Travel Prospects]()
Grupo Xcaret’s commercial director Lizeth Álvarez told PANROTAS that the company expects Brazilian arrivals to rebound to their pre-pandemic ranking as Mexico’s fourth-largest source market by late 2026. Xcaret plans to double its Brazilian marketing budget, restore Portuguese-language call-centre support and re-negotiate allotments with Azul, Latam and Copa Airlines to secure aggressive seat blocks for school-holiday peaks.
For mobility managers, the change is equally significant. Brazilian corporates in oil-and-gas, agribusiness and tech frequently base project teams in Mexico for Latin-American roll-outs. The e-Visa eliminates costly courier runs for passports and reduces assignment lead-times. Multinationals will, however, need to update internal travel-approval workflows and rebuild traveller profiles in their online booking tools to reflect the new visa-free flag.
Brazilian travel-management companies (TMCs) were quick to welcome the news but cautioned that demand could surge before airline capacity fully returns, putting upward pressure on fares through mid-2026. They advise clients with conference or incentive travel in early 2026 to secure seats now and to update duty-of-care systems so that arrival QR codes and electronic entry receipts are captured automatically.
Under the restored system, Brazilians will again be able to apply online, pay a US $51 fee and receive a travel authorisation by e-mail within 48 hours. No in-person interview or passport drop-off will be required, slashing lead-times from the current four-to-six weeks to just two days. The e-Visa will permit multiple entries of up to 180 days each within a five-year validity period, aligning Mexico’s policy with those of Colombia and Costa Rica, key competitors for Brazilian leisure and MICE traffic.
Grupo Xcaret’s commercial director Lizeth Álvarez told PANROTAS that the company expects Brazilian arrivals to rebound to their pre-pandemic ranking as Mexico’s fourth-largest source market by late 2026. Xcaret plans to double its Brazilian marketing budget, restore Portuguese-language call-centre support and re-negotiate allotments with Azul, Latam and Copa Airlines to secure aggressive seat blocks for school-holiday peaks.
For mobility managers, the change is equally significant. Brazilian corporates in oil-and-gas, agribusiness and tech frequently base project teams in Mexico for Latin-American roll-outs. The e-Visa eliminates costly courier runs for passports and reduces assignment lead-times. Multinationals will, however, need to update internal travel-approval workflows and rebuild traveller profiles in their online booking tools to reflect the new visa-free flag.
Brazilian travel-management companies (TMCs) were quick to welcome the news but cautioned that demand could surge before airline capacity fully returns, putting upward pressure on fares through mid-2026. They advise clients with conference or incentive travel in early 2026 to secure seats now and to update duty-of-care systems so that arrival QR codes and electronic entry receipts are captured automatically.
