After a three-week suspension that paralysed new passport processing nationwide, Brazil’s Federal Police (PF) confirmed late on 8 December that issuance will resume thanks to an emergency credit of R$ 37.4 million authorised in an extra edition of the Official Gazette.
Context: The PF had exhausted its 2025 budget for the ‘Passport & Traffic-Control System’ on 19 November, forcing it to pull appointment slots and creating a backlog estimated at 25 000 applications per day. Business groups warned that stalled renewals were starting to disrupt outbound assignments and critical trips, especially for oil-and-gas contractors in Macaé and IT consultants rotating to the U.S. and Europe.
Need help making sense of next steps? VisaHQ’s specialists monitor Brazil’s shifting entry-document policies in real time and can secure visa and passport services, fast-track appointments, and document legalization for both corporate and individual travelers. Explore tailored assistance at https://www.visahq.com/brazil/.
![Passport Backlog Eases as Government Releases R$ 37 Million to Restart Printing]()
What the credit covers: The supplementary funds will pay the state-owned Casa da Moeda to restart blank-booklet production and cover overtime for PF clerks through year-end. Officials say online booking will reopen in phases, prioritising travellers with documented humanitarian or medical need, followed by first-time applicants.
Implications for global mobility:
• Expect queue-jumping rules—Corporate letters explaining business necessity may secure earlier slots; mobility teams should prepare supporting evidence.
• Delivery timelines—The PF targets a 10-day print cycle; relocation advisers suggest planning for 3-4 weeks until the backlog is cleared.
• Contingency planning—Assignees with urgent departures should explore consular laissez-passer documents or travel on national-ID cards within Mercosur where possible.
Strategic take: The episode highlights structural under-funding of Brazil’s travel-document infrastructure just as demand rebounds post-pandemic. Companies with large expatriate populations are lobbying for a multi-year passport budget to avoid repeat shutdowns.
Context: The PF had exhausted its 2025 budget for the ‘Passport & Traffic-Control System’ on 19 November, forcing it to pull appointment slots and creating a backlog estimated at 25 000 applications per day. Business groups warned that stalled renewals were starting to disrupt outbound assignments and critical trips, especially for oil-and-gas contractors in Macaé and IT consultants rotating to the U.S. and Europe.
Need help making sense of next steps? VisaHQ’s specialists monitor Brazil’s shifting entry-document policies in real time and can secure visa and passport services, fast-track appointments, and document legalization for both corporate and individual travelers. Explore tailored assistance at https://www.visahq.com/brazil/.
What the credit covers: The supplementary funds will pay the state-owned Casa da Moeda to restart blank-booklet production and cover overtime for PF clerks through year-end. Officials say online booking will reopen in phases, prioritising travellers with documented humanitarian or medical need, followed by first-time applicants.
Implications for global mobility:
• Expect queue-jumping rules—Corporate letters explaining business necessity may secure earlier slots; mobility teams should prepare supporting evidence.
• Delivery timelines—The PF targets a 10-day print cycle; relocation advisers suggest planning for 3-4 weeks until the backlog is cleared.
• Contingency planning—Assignees with urgent departures should explore consular laissez-passer documents or travel on national-ID cards within Mercosur where possible.
Strategic take: The episode highlights structural under-funding of Brazil’s travel-document infrastructure just as demand rebounds post-pandemic. Companies with large expatriate populations are lobbying for a multi-year passport budget to avoid repeat shutdowns.
