Brazil’s statutory minimum wage rose to R$ 1,621 per month on 1 January 2026 under Decree 12.797/2025—a 6.7 % increase that ripples straight into immigration. Many visa classes peg their eligibility thresholds to multiples of the minimum wage, meaning salary offers that satisfied immigration rules in December are already out of date.
Labour-Ministry guidelines released on 5 January now require VITEM V local-hire visa applicants to earn at least twice the new minimum (R$ 3,242) unless a higher prevailing-wage test applies. Short-term technical-services and trainee visas have moved to 1.5 × the new figure. Employers must upload amended salary data into the eSocial payroll portal; the system will not auto-correct legacy contracts.
For companies seeking a fast way to confirm whether their wage offers still meet Brazil’s visa rules, VisaHQ’s Brazil portal (https://www.visahq.com/brazil/) provides an instant threshold calculator and document checklist. The service guides HR teams through each step, flags minimum-salary gaps in real time, and can courier the full application to the Ministry once data are aligned.
![Brazil’s 6.7 % Minimum-Wage Hike Raises Salary Floors for Work-Permit Applicants]()
Fragomen reports a 15 % jump in “salary-compliance” requests for information (RFIs) during the first week of January as auditors reject petitions referencing 2025 wage levels. Multinationals with January start dates are racing to issue contract addenda and recalculate total assignment costs, especially under “local-plus” arrangements where allowances top up a Brazilian base salary.
Failure to adjust paperwork can delay work permits, derail production schedules and breach duty-of-care obligations if assignees are left in legal limbo. Experts recommend an immediate audit of all pending VITEM V, trainee and technical-services cases, followed by proactive communication with inbound employees.
Visa-processing platforms such as VisaHQ have updated their automatic salary-check tools to reflect the new thresholds and can re-generate employment letters within minutes, helping HR teams keep January placements on track.
Labour-Ministry guidelines released on 5 January now require VITEM V local-hire visa applicants to earn at least twice the new minimum (R$ 3,242) unless a higher prevailing-wage test applies. Short-term technical-services and trainee visas have moved to 1.5 × the new figure. Employers must upload amended salary data into the eSocial payroll portal; the system will not auto-correct legacy contracts.
For companies seeking a fast way to confirm whether their wage offers still meet Brazil’s visa rules, VisaHQ’s Brazil portal (https://www.visahq.com/brazil/) provides an instant threshold calculator and document checklist. The service guides HR teams through each step, flags minimum-salary gaps in real time, and can courier the full application to the Ministry once data are aligned.
Fragomen reports a 15 % jump in “salary-compliance” requests for information (RFIs) during the first week of January as auditors reject petitions referencing 2025 wage levels. Multinationals with January start dates are racing to issue contract addenda and recalculate total assignment costs, especially under “local-plus” arrangements where allowances top up a Brazilian base salary.
Failure to adjust paperwork can delay work permits, derail production schedules and breach duty-of-care obligations if assignees are left in legal limbo. Experts recommend an immediate audit of all pending VITEM V, trainee and technical-services cases, followed by proactive communication with inbound employees.
Visa-processing platforms such as VisaHQ have updated their automatic salary-check tools to reflect the new thresholds and can re-generate employment letters within minutes, helping HR teams keep January placements on track.
