Route 01
Real Estate
R$0
R$700,000 in the North and Northeast
Legal basis: Resolução Normativa CNIg nº 36/2018
Last verified 2026-08-01
Route snapshot
- Threshold
- R$1,000,000
- USD
- $184,502
- NGN
- ₦285,714,286
- GHS
- GH₵2,380,952
- Typical timeline
- 4–7 months
- Business plan
- No
- Job creation
- No
- Family included
- Yes
Conversions at rates of 2026-08-01
Overview
This is the shortest line between capital and a residency permit, because the qualifying asset is one the authority can verify in a public register rather than one it has to be persuaded about. The property must be urban and may be residential or commercial. What matters to CNIg is not the character of the building but the entry in the matrícula at the Cartório de Registro de Imóveis: your name, the price, the date.
The threshold may be assembled from more than one property. Two apartments at R$520,000 each satisfy the R$1,000,000 requirement as cleanly as a single house at that figure, provided each transfer is registered and each payment traces to funds you brought into Brazil through the banking system. Buying in stages is common among clients who want rental yield across two cities rather than one large unit.
Ownership in Brazil passes on registration, not on signature. The escritura pública you sign at the notary is an instrument of transfer; until the Cartório de Registro de Imóveis records it against the matrícula, the seller remains the owner in law and the property remains exposed to their creditors. Applications have failed on this point alone — a signed deed submitted as evidence of ownership is not evidence of ownership.
Rural land is a different legal universe. Acquisition by foreign nationals falls under Lei 5.709/1971, with area limits by município, INCRA registration, and in some cases congressional consent. The timeline stops being predictable and the residency application inherits that uncertainty. We do not run this route on rural property.
Where you buy changes what you need by R$300,000.
Property in the North and Northeast qualifies at the reduced threshold. Everywhere else the figure is the full one. Hover a state for its threshold, click to pin it.
Select a state to see its threshold and capital city.
Schematic map; shapes are indicative of position, not of surveyed borders.
Requirements
Cost breakdown
| Line item | Amount |
|---|---|
| ITBI — municipal transfer tax, 3%Rates run 2–4% by município; the base is the higher of declared price and valor venal | R$30,000 |
| Notary — escritura pública | R$5,000 |
| Registry — Cartório de Registro de Imóveis | R$4,000 |
| Due diligence certificatesFederal, state, municipal, labour and title certidões | R$3,500 |
| FX spread, 1–3% | R$10,000–R$30,000 |
| Apostille and sworn translation | R$3,000–R$5,000 |
| Federal application fees | R$1,200–R$2,500 |
| Total | R$56,700–R$80,000 |
Total buyer cost, 6.25–9.25% of the purchase price
Broker commission is customarily paid by the seller in Brazil. Customarily is not the same as contractually — confirm it in writing in the proposta before you sign anything.
Timeline
Assessment
1–2 weeks- Source-of-funds review and route confirmationLu Gold
- Document inventory and apostille schedule issuedLu Gold
- Passport, civil records and financial history suppliedClient
What goes wrong on this route
Every one of these has cost someone a filing. They are set out here because you will find them eventually, and it is cheaper to find them now.
The seller is not the registered owner
A signed deed from a previous purchaser who never registered is worthless to you. We pull the current matrícula ourselves, within thirty days of closing, and reconcile the chain of ownership before any money moves.
Condominium arrears follow the property, not the debtor
Under Art. 1.345 of the Código Civil, unpaid condominium charges attach to the unit and become yours on transfer. We obtain a declaração de quitação from the síndico and hold a retention against the price until it is clean.
ITBI assessed on valor venal above the declared price
Sellers often propose a lower declared price. It saves them nothing you keep, the município assesses on its own valuation anyway, and it puts a discrepancy in front of the immigration analyst. We price the tax on valor venal from the start.
The notary is not acting for you
A tabelião is a neutral public official who authenticates what the parties declare. They do not search for liens, verify solvency or protect the buyer. Independent OAB counsel does that work, and it is not optional on this route.
Capital that entered informally cannot leave
Money moved through informal channels has no RDE record, which means no lawful repatriation of principal or gains, and a source-of-funds file that will not survive scrutiny. Every real is routed through an authorised institution and registered as it arrives.
Documents checklist
Questions we are asked
Start with a straight assessment.
Twenty minutes, no charge, and an honest answer on whether the real estate route fits your capital and your documentation. If it does not, we will say which one does — or that none of them does yet.