Home.International Trade Division (ITD).Brazil
Brazil
- Labeling Requirements
- Required Documents
- Licensing/Import Procedures
- Tobacco Products
- Taxes/Tariffs
- Contacts
Brazilian law requires that labels of alcohol beverages include the following information.
On front label:
- Brand name of product
- Type of product (e.g., wine; malt beverage; distilled spirit – vodka, rum, etc.)
- Net contents (in metric units)
The size of the product type designation must comply with the following requirements:
Content in milliliters |
Minimum height of letters (mm) |
Up to 600 |
15 |
Greater than 600 to 1,000 |
20 |
Greater than 1,000 to 2,500 |
30 |
Greater than 2,500 to 4,000 |
40 |
Greater than 4,000 |
60 |
The size of the net contents must comply with the following requirements:
Net content in milliliters |
Minimum height of letters (mm) |
Less than or equal to 50 |
20 |
Greater than 50 and less than or equal to 200 |
30 |
Greater than 200 and less than or equal to 1,000 |
40 |
Greater than 1,000 |
60 |
On front or back label:
- Importer’s name, address and corporate ID number
- Producer or Manufacturer’s name and address
- MAPA Registration number of importer
- Country of origin
- Alcohol content (expressed in percentage of alcohol by volume)
- List of ingredients
- Lot identification code
- Period of validity (if applicable)
- Gluten declaration: "Contém Glúten" (Contains Gluten) or "Não contém Glúten" (Does not contain Gluten)
- Warning statement: "Evite o consumo excessivo de álcool" (Avoid excessive consumption of alcohol) must be declared in bold letters on labels for beverages with an alcohol content above 13% alcohol by volume
For products which contain labels in a language other than Portuguese, a sticker may be used, which contains all required information in Portuguese.
GM (Genetically Modified) Food Labeling:
Brazil has established the limit of one percent for food and food ingredients destined for human or animal consumption containing or being produced with genetically modified organisms, and has stated that consumers need to be informed of the transgenic nature of the product. Products containing biotech content above one percent are required to include the use of a transgenic logo on the label. For additional information on labeling of biotech products, please refer to the 2009 USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) report on biotechnology in Brazil.
REQUIRED DOCUMENTS
The following is a list of the documents that are required when importing into Brazil:
- Pro forma invoice (including product information, form of payment, method of transportation, etc.)
- Commercial invoice (this is required to clear the products through Brazilian Customs. The commercial invoice should include U.S. exporter and Brazilian importer information, quantities, brands, net and gross weights of the package, country of origin, destination country, payment conditions, etc.)
- Air Waybill or Bill of Lading
Wine, malt beverage, and distilled spirits products are also required to be accompanied by a combined Certificate of Origin and Analysis. Prior to exportation, the U.S. exporter is required to have each shipment of the product analyzed by a TTB-certified laboratory (a list of TTB-certified laboratories can be found here). The laboratory will need to include the results of the analysis on the bottom "analysis" portion of the certificate. The exporter or laboratory should then forward the certificate for TTB to complete the top "origin" portion of the form. TTB provides a Portuguese/English template of the certificate for wine and malt beverage and distilled spirits products. The analyses that Brazil requires for each type of product are specified within the templates above.
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The Brazilian importer is responsible for filing an application for an import license (Licença de Importação) accompanied by a pro forma invoice from the foreign supplier (e.g., U.S. exporter) for the products to be imported. This import license is required for all shipments, and must be obtained through an electronic system referred to as SISCOMEX.
Once the application is approved, the Brazilian importer must notify the U.S. exporter to ship the products and to transmit all shipment documents (indicated in the Required Documents section above) to the importer.
The importer must also file an Import Declaration once the merchandise arrives at the final port and present all required documentation.
Importers must also pay Customs duties and other taxes (e.g., Industrial Products Tax (IPI), Merchandise Circulation Tax (ICMS)) prior to the shipment being released.
Tobacco products imported to Brazil must be registered by the importer. The registration must be accompanied by:
- Proof of payment of Fiscal Tax for Sanitary Vigilance (available through ANVISA’s Electronic Request System)
- A CD-ROM including an electronic file of the label to be used, including all sides of the packaging and proof of submission for approval through ANVISA’s Electronic Request System
- Copy of the label
- Copy of ADE (Ato Declaratório Executivo) for the registration of the importer with the Receita Federal – only for cigarettes
- Copy of ADE for the registration of the brand with the Receita Federal
- Copy of analysis completed by an accredited laboratory
- Proof that particulars of the product were submitted through ANVISA’s Electronic Request System.
The particular that need to be transmitted to ANVISA through the Electronic Request System include, among others:
- Characteristics of the brand (e.g. brand name, type of product, origin, destination, and types of labels)
- Types of tobacco used for the product
- Additives used
- Specifications and physical characteristics of the filter and casing (for cigarettes only)
Importers are required to register their products on an annual basis. For further information, visit the ANVISA Tobacco Legislation website (in Portuguese).
Tobacco Labeling:
The packaging on tobacco products must include one of 10 warning images established by the Ministry of Health, in a rotating fashion. Each warning may be used for a period of no more than 5 months at a time. The warning is to be preceded by the statement "The Ministry of Health warns:" ("O Ministério da Saúde adverte"). The images and language must cover 100% of either the front or back surfaces of the package.
In addition, one of the sides of the package must contain the following wording, in Portuguese: "This product contains more than 4,700 toxic substances, and nicotine which causes physical and mental dependence. There are no safe levels for the consumption of these substances." This wording must cover ¾ of one of the sides.
The following wording must also appear on one of the sides of the package, covering ¼ of the sides: "Sale prohibited to those under the age of 18".
For further information and applicable regulations on labeling, including samples of the images that must be used on the packaging of tobacco products, please visit the ANVISA Tobacco Labeling website (in Portuguese).
As of September 5, 2008, the import duty for malt beverages, spirits, and denatured alcohol was 20%, with a duty of 27% for wines. Tobacco products (cigarettes, cigars, etc.) maintain an import duty of 20%. For further information, please contact the Export.Gov Trade Information Center at 1-800-USA-TRAD(E).
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Embassy of Brazil in the U.S. |
Receita Federal (Customs agency) |
Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Food Supply (MAPA)/Department of Plant Health and Inspection Services (DDIV) |
Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), U.S. Embassy, Brasilia |
Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Food Supply (MAPA)/ Office of Agricultural Protection (SDA) |
Agencia Nacional de Vigilancia Sanitaria (ANVISA)/Ministry of Health |
The information in this guide was obtained from external sources, including the websites of various governmental agencies and organizations, direct contact with those agencies and organizations, and from Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) Attaché reports. Consequently, the accuracy of this information depends upon the accuracy of the sources.
TTB is not responsible for the content of external websites.
This page was last updated on March 2, 2010.
| Page last reviewed/updated: 09/04/2012 |
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