Living in Brazil with Kids: Regions, Visas, Real Costs and the Honest Trade-offs (2026)

🌺 Why Brazil Is on Our List

I’ll be upfront: none of us has been to Brazil yet. Not me, not Marty, and not Louie, who could still tell you that Ronaldinho and Neymar both played for Barcelona. ⚽

So this page is research, not memories. We’re writing it from Vietnam, where we’re currently based. We’ve looked at Brazil the way we’d look at any possible base for our family: visas, money, school, health and what a normal Tuesday might feel like.

Brazil pulls at all four of us for different reasons. Marty and I love markets, cycling and a good glass of something sparkling. Louie wants football and beaches. Leo, at two, mostly wants sand. 🏖️

It also comes with real questions. Some are big: dengue, safety, a homeschooling law that isn’t settled, and long, expensive flights. Others are more personal, like a time zone that would put Marty’s Dutch working day before sunrise. This guide covers both sides, so you can decide whether Brazil could work for your family.

Quick answer: Brazil can suit families who want a long stay with nature, culture and a proper city nearby. Florianópolis is the easiest landing spot. Salvador is the cheapest of the four cities we compared. The hardest parts are the homeschooling law, the time zone for Europe-based work, and choosing your neighbourhood carefully.

🗺️ Where to Base Yourself in Brazil

Brazil is huge. It’s bigger than mainland Australia, and flying from Florianópolis to Salvador takes over two hours. Picking a base is less about “Brazil” and more about which slice of it fits your family.

We’ve focused on six places that come up again and again with nomad families. They suit very different families, so we’ve been honest about who each one suits and what to watch for.

🌊 Florianópolis

Florianópolis, or “Floripa”, is a city that’s mostly on an island in Santa Catarina state, in Brazil’s south. It mixes a real city with beaches, lagoons and green hills, and it has a well-known tech and remote-work scene.

For our family, it ticks a lot of boxes on paper:

• Surf beaches and calmer bays.
• Trails close by.
• A cooler winter, roughly 15 to 22°C between May and September.
• The shortest time gap to Europe in this guide.

Neighbourhoods often mentioned by families include Lagoa da Conceição, Campeche and Santo Antônio de Lisboa.

Good for: families wanting an easy first base, outdoor kids and reliable internet.

Watch out for:

• Florianópolis is one of the pricier places in Brazil. Numbeo also ranks its monthly transport pass as the most expensive in South America.
• Most families rely on a car, because getting around the island by bus is slow.
• December to February is peak season, with higher prices and heavy traffic.
• Yellow fever vaccination is recommended for Santa Catarina.

🏙️ São Paulo

São Paulo is Brazil’s biggest city, with a metropolitan population of over 20 million. It’s not where most nomad families picture themselves. It does, however, have the strongest schools, hospitals and flight connections in the country.

Families tend to look at leafy neighbourhoods like Pinheiros, Vila Madalena, Moema and Jardins. Ibirapuera Park is the big weekend escape. On Sundays, Avenida Paulista closes to cars, which sounds like our kind of Sunday bike ride. 🚲

International schools in São Paulo include Graded (American curriculum, with the IB Diploma) and St. Paul’s (British, with the IB Diploma). Check current fees and enrolment directly with each school. Our international schools directory has more on what to ask.

Good for: families who want school, structure and big-city culture.

Watch out for:

• São Paulo is the most expensive city in our cost comparison.
• Traffic can turn school runs into an hour each way.
• Safety varies street by street.
• It’s a long way from the beach.

🏖️ Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro is the Brazil most people picture: beaches, mountains and the Christ the Redeemer statue. A seafront cycle path runs along Copacabana, Ipanema and Leblon. For Louie, a Maracanã stadium tour would come before anything else.

Families usually look at South Zone (Zona Sul) neighbourhoods like Botafogo, Laranjeiras, Leblon and Gávea, or at Barra da Tijuca further west. Barra is newer, more spread out and car-based.

Good for: families who want a big city with the beach on the doorstep.

Watch out for:

• Safety varies sharply between neighbourhoods. Check current official advice and talk to people living there before you sign anything.
• Rent in the most sought-after areas is well above the Numbeo averages.
• Yellow fever vaccination is recommended for the whole state.

🥁 Salvador

Salvador, in Bahia, was Brazil’s first capital. It’s the heart of Afro-Brazilian culture: drumming, capoeira, Bahian food and the colourful Pelourinho old town, which is UNESCO World Heritage listed.

It’s also the cheapest of the four cities we compared. On Numbeo figures, a three-bedroom outside the centre averages around €380 a month. That’s less than half of Florianópolis. Families tend to look at Barra, Rio Vermelho and the beach suburbs further north.

Good for: families focused on culture and budget, and kids who learn best through music and movement.

Watch out for:

• Safety in Salvador needs more care than in Florianópolis.
• The international school offering is limited.
• The nomad community is smaller.
• Numbeo’s Salvador data is thinner, from 27 contributors, so treat its costs as rough.

🌴 Itacaré and the Bahia Coast

Itacaré is a small surf town on Bahia’s cocoa coast, where rainforest runs down to the beaches. Nearby Serra Grande is quieter still. Life here is about tides, trails and cacao farms.

Good for: adventurous families on a slower season who don’t need much from schools or hospitals.

Watch out for:

• Internet is unreliable outside town.
• Medical care is basic, and serious cases go to Ilhéus or Salvador.
• Getting there means a flight plus a long drive.
• April to July is the wetter season.

⛰️ Chapada Diamantina

Chapada Diamantina is a national park region in inland Bahia, with waterfalls, caves, swimming holes and table-top mountains. The base town is Lençóis.

This is a place for a few weeks of hiking and swimming, not a work base. We’d see it as a trip from Salvador rather than somewhere to live.

Watch out for:

• Internet outside Lençóis is limited.
• Healthcare is basic.
• It’s very hot in summer.
• It’s about a six-hour drive from Salvador.

💰 What It Might Cost Our Family

These are estimates, not our spending. We built them from Numbeo’s family-of-four figures, which are crowdsourced averages, plus Numbeo’s average rent for a three-bedroom apartment. We checked them on 08-10-2026 at €1 = R$5.94 = A$1.62.

On these numbers, Salvador comes out cheapest at around €2,150 to €2,600 a month. São Paulo is the most expensive at around €3,100 to €3,500. Rio and Florianópolis sit in between.

What the totals leave out: school fees, health insurance, flights, visas and a car. Furnished short-term rentals usually cost more than the averages, and popular beach areas in peak season can cost a lot more.

Flights matter more than you’d think. Long-haul fares for four people from Europe or Australia can wipe out a month or more of living costs, and that’s before luggage.

For how this compares with other bases, see our cost of living comparison and what it really costs to live abroad with kids.

🛖 Finding a Home

Most nomad families start with a furnished rental for the first month, then look for something longer once they know the area. Monthly rates are often negotiable when you deal with the owner directly.

Before you book, check these:

• A speed test from the actual property, not the building lobby.
• Screens on windows, fans or air conditioning, which matter for mosquitoes as much as heat.
• Signs of damp or mould, especially in humid coastal areas.
• Security in apartment buildings, and whether the street feels comfortable at night.
• Whether a car is needed for school runs and shopping.

Our full guide to accommodation for nomad families covers how we search and what we ask hosts.

🛂 Visas for a Mixed-Passport Family

This is where our family gets more complicated, and yours might too.

On Dutch and other EU passports, tourist visits are visa-free for up to 90 days. Brazil’s Federal Police (Polícia Federal) can extend a visit, up to a maximum of 180 days in any 12 months. Check whether you qualify before you rely on it.

On an Australian passport, which is what I have, you need an eVisa before boarding. It costs US$80.90 (about €70) and is valid for five years with multiple entries. It allows stays of up to 90 days. Processing normally takes 2 to 5 business days. Apply only through the official eVisa portal linked from Brazil’s Foreign Ministry.

What that means for us: Louie and Leo would enter on whichever passport gives them the best deal, which is likely their Dutch ones. In practice, though, our family’s stay is limited by whoever has the tightest rules. That’s me. If my eVisa allows 90 days, that’s our trip, unless we go the digital nomad route. Our post on visas for mixed-passport families explains how we think this through.

The Digital Nomad Visa (VITEM XIV)

Brazil’s digital nomad visa is for people working remotely for employers or clients outside Brazil. It’s set out in Resolution CNIg 45/2021.

• Money: at least US$1,500 a month from a foreign source, or US$18,000 in the bank.
• Length: up to one year, extendable once for the same period.
• Where to apply: at a Brazilian consulate before you go, or as a residence authorisation once you’re in Brazil.
• After arrival: register with the Federal Police within 90 days to receive a CRNM, Brazil’s foreigner ID card.
• Work limits: you can’t work for Brazilian companies on this visa.

Family members apply separately, usually through Brazil’s family reunion route. You’ll need apostilled, translated marriage and birth certificates. Check the exact process with the consulate you’ll apply through.

Tax is a separate question. Holding a visa doesn’t settle where you pay tax. Brazil can treat people who spend more than 183 days in the country as tax resident, so get advice before staying long term.

For other countries’ routes, see our nomad visas timeline.

Visa details were checked on 08-10-2026. Rules change, so check the official Brazilian government and consulate sites before you apply. Entering as a visitor doesn’t give you the right to work.

📚 School, Homeschooling and Worldschooling

School in Brazil is compulsory from age 4 to 17. Public schools are free and teach in Portuguese. They could suit a family staying a year or more who want full immersion, but quality varies a lot.

Private bilingual and international schools are mostly in the big cities. The Brazilian school year runs from February to December, which is the opposite of the Northern Hemisphere calendar.

For Leo’s age, private daycare (creche) is common in cities. Numbeo puts full-day preschool at roughly €450 to €650 a month in the cities we checked.

Homeschooling Is the Sticking Point

In 2018, Brazil’s Supreme Court ruled that home education needs a federal law before it can be regulated. That law (PL 1338/2022) passed the lower house in May 2022 and has been stuck in the Senate ever since. Brazilian media expect no progress before 2027.

The national homeschool association estimates that more than 70,000 families home educate anyway. Even so, it isn’t legally protected. We’re not lawyers, and we’d want local legal advice before relying on online school or worldschooling for Louie in Brazil. Our worldschooling legal guide compares how other countries handle this.

For a shorter stay as visitors, many families keep following their home country’s program, like we do with Louie. See homeschooling on the move and our online homeschool programs.

Worldschooling in Brazil

Worldschooling material is everywhere in Brazil:

• Capoeira classes, which mix martial arts, music and dance.
• Cacao farms in Bahia.
• Wildlife in the Pantanal and the Amazon.
• Afro-Brazilian history in Salvador.

Our worldschooling hubs directory lists communities by country.

🩺 Health and Safety

Healthcare. Private hospitals in São Paulo, Rio and Florianópolis have a good reputation. Smaller towns have basic clinics. Brazil’s public system (SUS) treats emergencies, but you’ll still want proper family cover. Our health insurance guide walks through the options.

Dengue. Dengue is a mosquito-borne virus present across Brazil, including in big cities. Brazil recorded about 1.66 million probable cases in 2025, down from a record year in 2024. The main protection is avoiding bites:

• Use repellent with DEET or picaridin.
• Sleep with screens or a fan.
• Get rid of standing water around your home.

Yellow fever. The US CDC recommends the vaccine for anyone 9 months or older travelling to Santa Catarina (Florianópolis), São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and parts of Bahia. Have it at least 10 days before arrival, and ask your travel clinic about your exact plans. Our travel vaccinations guide has the timing we use.

Safety. Safety in Brazil varies by city and even by street. Florianópolis has a calmer reputation than Rio or Salvador, but nowhere is risk-free. Some simple habits help:

• Use ride apps instead of hailing taxis.
• Keep phones out of sight on busy streets.
• Check official advice for your specific city, such as Smartraveller and Nederland Wereldwijd.

Children’s documents. Carry the kids’ birth certificates. If one parent travels without the other, bring a signed consent letter too. Our solo parenting guide covers consent letters.

💻 Remote Work and Time Zones

Brazil runs on Brasília time all year, at UTC-3 with no daylight saving. That puts it:

• 4 hours behind the Netherlands in the Dutch winter, and 5 hours behind in the Dutch summer.
• 13 hours behind Brisbane.

Working Dutch office hours would mean Marty starting at 4 or 5 am. A gentler option is to overlap with the Dutch afternoon, working from about 8 or 9 am until lunchtime in Brazil. We honestly haven’t worked out which we’d choose. It’s very different from Vietnam, where Dutch mornings fall in our afternoon.

For clients in the Americas, Brazil is easy. For Australian clients, it’s tough. Our remote work guide has more on juggling time zones.

Internet is fast in the big cities, and Florianópolis is a well-known remote-work base. Beach towns are another story. Always ask for a speed test and keep a local SIM as backup. Our internet rankings compare cities worldwide.

🧳 Everyday Life: Getting Around, Money and Food

Getting around.

• Domestic flights connect the major cities.
• Long-distance buses are cheap and run overnight on long routes.
• Uber and 99 work in cities.
• In Florianópolis and coastal Bahia, a car makes life much easier. Ask for car seats when you book.

Money. Cards work almost everywhere in cities. Locals pay with Pix, an instant payment system that needs a Brazilian bank account. Long-stayers may be able to set one up once they have their CRNM. Carry some cash for markets and small towns.

Food. Brazilian food is famously meat-heavy, so as mostly vegetarian cooks we’d lean on the street markets (feiras). There’s plenty more to work with:

• Rice and beans.
• Pão de queijo (cheese bread).
• Tapioca pancakes.
• Açaí bowls.
• Por quilo restaurants, where you pay by the weight of your plate, are an easy family lunch.

The south also makes sparkling wine (espumante) in the Serra Gaúcha region, which Marty and I would happily compare with our beloved cava. 🥂

Language. Portuguese is essential outside tourist areas. A few weeks of basics before you arrive will make shopping, doctors and friendships much easier.

Community. Join our Facebook community and local expat parent groups before you land. Ask about schools and rentals before you commit to an area.

☀️ When to Go

Friends of ours who’ve spent time in Brazil say the weather is what they miss most. They also rate it as an escape from the Dutch winter, and as a family that knows grey Dutch Januaries well, that sounds tempting. 🌞

December to February is Brazil’s summer. It’s hot, busy and pricier on the coast, especially in Florianópolis, and it’s also school holiday season for Brazilian families. Carnaval usually falls in February or early March, so check the dates for your year.

• Florianópolis and the south have real seasons, with a cooler, quieter winter from May to September.
• Salvador and the Bahia coast are warm all year, with the wetter months roughly April to July.
• Mosquito-borne illnesses like dengue tend to peak in the hotter, wetter months, so plan your protection if you go then.

For other warm-weather options, see where we think nomad families can spend the European winter.

⚖️ The Honest Trade-offs

What draws us:

• Nature on the doorstep.
• A warm family culture.
• Real cities with good hospitals.
• Football.
• Warm weather during the Dutch winter.
• Prices well below Western Europe.

What makes us hesitate:

• Homeschooling isn’t protected by law. That matters if you can’t or won’t use local school.
• The time zone suits clients in the Americas, not European or Australian ones.
• Dengue and yellow fever need planning, especially with a toddler.
• Safety depends heavily on neighbourhood choice.
• Visas for mixed-passport families, because the most restricted passport sets the length of your stay.
• Flights for four can cost as much as a month of living there.
• Distance. Brazil isn’t a place you pop out of for a weekend.

❓ FAQs

Do Australians need a visa for Brazil?

Yes. Australian passport holders need an eVisa before boarding. It costs US$80.90 and is valid for five years, with stays of up to 90 days. Dutch and most EU passport holders can visit visa-free.

Can a whole family use Brazil’s digital nomad visa?

The main applicant needs US$1,500 a month in foreign income or US$18,000 in savings. Spouses and children usually apply through the family reunion route. Check the exact process with your Brazilian consulate.

How much does it cost a family to live in Brazil?

Our Numbeo-based estimate is about €2,150 a month in Salvador and up to €3,500 in São Paulo. That’s for a family of four with a three-bedroom rental, and it excludes school, insurance and flights.

Is homeschooling legal in Brazil?

It isn’t regulated by law. The Supreme Court said a federal law is needed, and the bill has been in the Senate since 2022. Get local legal advice before relying on it.

Which Brazilian city is best for families?

It depends what you need. Florianópolis is the easiest start, São Paulo has the best schools and hospitals, and Salvador suits culture lovers on a tighter budget.

What’s the time difference between Brazil and Europe?

Brazil is 4 hours behind the Netherlands in the Dutch winter and 5 hours behind in summer. It’s 13 hours behind Brisbane.

When is the best time to go to Brazil with kids?

December to February is hot summer and peak season. Many families like the shoulder months for lower prices, but Florianópolis is noticeably cooler from May to September.

Do kids need the yellow fever vaccine for Brazil?

The US CDC recommends it for anyone 9 months or older visiting most areas in this guide, including Florianópolis, São Paulo and Rio. Have it at least 10 days before you arrive.

Have you lived in Brazil?

Not yet. This page is our research, and we’ll add real stories if we go.

✈️ Our Takeaways

Brazil is the place on our list that would stretch us the most. Not because of the beaches or the football. Because of the early mornings, the paperwork for my passport, and the question of what Louie’s learning would look like in a country where homeschooling sits in limbo.

If we go, I suspect we’d start in Florianópolis for an easier landing, then head north to Salvador for the culture. And going by our friends, we’d time it for the Dutch winter. Louie would want the Maracanã within the first week. Leo would want the beach before the bags were even unpacked. 🌊

Have you lived in Brazil with kids? Come and tell us in our Facebook group. Real experiences from families who’ve done it are what we’d love to add here.

Thinking about the wider region? Read our guide to Central and South America with kids.