Moving from Austria to Brazil
A long haul from landlocked Austria to a North Sea port and across the Atlantic to Santos in Brazil. Here is the honest brief on shipping costs, how Brazil treats used effects as unaccompanied baggage, the residence routes, and a timeline you can plan around.
Get your CPF early, and clear used goods as unaccompanied baggage.
A move from Austria to Brazil is one of the longest on the index. Austria is landlocked, so your goods first travel by road to a North Sea port such as Hamburg or Antwerp, then cross the Atlantic by sea to Santos, the largest port in Brazil and the gateway to Sao Paulo and the southeast. A realistic door to door window is nine to thirteen weeks once the inland leg, the ocean crossing, customs and delivery are counted.
Brazil clears household goods through Receita Federal, and clearance runs through a despachante aduaneiro, a licensed customs broker whose involvement is effectively mandatory. Used effects can come in under the bagagem desacompanhada, the unaccompanied baggage regime, with relief for someone taking up residence, provided you hold a residence visa valid for more than one hundred and eighty days and a CPF, the taxpayer number, before the goods clear.
Prices below are in euros and indicative for 2026. Your real number turns on volume, whether you share a container or take a full one, the inland leg to the port, the season, and delivery within Brazil. Note that Brazil uses the real, while your moving costs from Austria are billed in euros.
We refresh corridor guides as rules and prices change.
What it costs in 2026, by home size.
Your bill is driven by volume and whether you share or take a full load, plus the inland leg to a port, the long ocean route and delivery within Brazil. The figures below are indicative ranges for 2026, door to door.
Indicative 2026 ranges in euros, door to door by road and sea from Austria to Santos. Volume, season, the inland leg and final delivery to Sao Paulo move the figure. Summer is the peak and pushes prices up.
- +Best value for a studio or a partial home
- +You pay only for the space you use
- −Slower, because your goods wait for the consolidated load
- +Faster and sealed to your home only
- +The sensible choice for a full home
- −You pay for the whole box even if you do not fill it
- +Fastest way to get essentials over
- +Useful while your container is at sea
- −Rarely sensible for a full household
Get moving quotes for Austria to Brazil.
Tell us your size and timing. We pass your request to vetted movers who run the route from Austria into Brazil, and you compare them on your own terms.
A realistic schedule for this route.
Working back from the day your goods leave Austria, here is a realistic schedule for this move to Brazil.
Sort your visa and CPF
Confirm the residence visa that lets you import goods under relief, and apply for your CPF, the Brazilian taxpayer number, which you need before your shipment clears.
Get surveys and quotes
Have movers run a video or in home survey for a binding price. Confirm they route the inland leg from Austria to a North Sea port and work with a despachante aduaneiro for Receita Federal clearance at Santos.
Prepare the inventory
Lock your sailing date and prepare a Portuguese inventory and your visa and CPF papers, the documents Brazilian customs require for the relief.
Land and register
Enter Brazil on your visa, register with the Federal Police for your RNM within the deadline, and keep your CPF and address details to hand.
Clear customs and deliver
Your despachante aduaneiro lodges the unaccompanied baggage file with Receita Federal at Santos, and your mover delivers onward to Sao Paulo or beyond.
Clearing your goods into Brazil.
Brazil clears household goods through Receita Federal, the federal revenue and customs service, and clearance is handled by a despachante aduaneiro, a licensed customs broker whose involvement is effectively mandatory. Because Brazil is outside any customs union with Austria, your move is an import, and most shipments arrive by sea at the port of Santos, the largest in the country, serving Sao Paulo and the southeast.
Used personal and household effects can come in under the bagagem desacompanhada, or unaccompanied baggage, regime with relief for a person taking up residence. The conditions are exacting. You need a detailed inventory in Portuguese, a residence visa valid for more than one hundred and eighty days, and a CPF, the Brazilian taxpayer number, which must be in hand before the goods clear. Your shipment is expected within a set window of your arrival.
New goods, anything still under warranty or bought for the move, and vehicles are treated separately and usually attract duty and tax. Declare everything accurately, because Receita Federal checks the inventory against the shipment and a mismatch can hold the container and run up storage at Santos.
The routes in for this corridor.
A Austria citizen needs a residence visa to settle in Brazil, and a visa valid for more than one hundred and eighty days underpins the customs relief on your goods. After arrival you register with the Federal Police for an RNM, the national migration registration. These are the realistic paths for this corridor.
Residence tied to a Brazilian employer or an authorised work arrangement, a common route for skilled movers from Austria.
For spouses, partners and dependants of Brazilian citizens or residents, granted on the family relationship.
The retirement route for those with a qualifying pension or steady income who want to settle in Brazil long term.
Residence through a qualifying investment in a Brazilian business or property, leading toward permanent residence.
How to pick a mover for this route, without the guesswork.
We do not rank or recommend individual companies. We teach you the criteria that separate a safe international move from an expensive mistake, then put your request in front of vetted movers who run this lane.
Check the trade affiliation. Membership of FIDI or IAM is the clearest signal a mover is financially screened and bound to industry standards for international household goods. For this route, ask whether the mover routes the inland leg from Austria to a North Sea port and works with a despachante aduaneiro for Receita Federal clearance at Santos.
Insist on a binding pre move survey. A real video or in home survey of your volume is the only honest basis for a price on a haul this long. A quote given without one is a guess that tends to grow on moving day.
Compare like for like. Read what each quote includes: packing, materials, the inland leg to the port, the ocean freight, customs clearance and the broker fee, delivery to Sao Paulo, and insurance. The cheapest headline number is rarely the cheapest move.
Understand the insurance terms. Ask whether cover is full replacement value or depreciated, what the excess is, and how claims are handled across an inland leg and a long ocean crossing. Read the valuation clause before you sign.
Read recent reviews for this corridor. A mover can be strong at home and weak on a Brazilian clearance. Look for verified reviews that mention the Austria to Brazil route and a smooth unaccompanied baggage clearance at Santos.
Questions people ask about this move.
How much does it cost to move from Austria to Brazil?
For a two to three bedroom household by sea, plan on roughly 5,800 to 17,000 euros door to door in 2026, depending on volume, shared or full container, the inland leg, and delivery to Sao Paulo. A studio is less and a four bedroom home more. These are indicative ranges, not a quote.
How long does shipping take from Austria to Brazil?
Door to door is usually about nine to thirteen weeks. The road leg from Austria to a North Sea port and the ocean crossing to Santos take the bulk of it, with customs clearance and delivery to Sao Paulo adding the rest.
Do I pay duty on my household goods moving to Brazil?
Used personal effects can come in under the bagagem desacompanhada, or unaccompanied baggage, relief through Receita Federal, provided you have a residence visa valid more than one hundred and eighty days and a CPF. New goods and vehicles are treated separately. Verify the current rules.
Do I need a visa to move from Austria to Brazil?
To settle long term, yes, and a visa valid for more than one hundred and eighty days underpins the customs relief. Work, family, retirement and investor routes are the common paths. Confirm your route with the Brazilian authorities before you move.
Which port do my goods arrive at in Brazil?
Santos, the largest port in Brazil, handles most household shipments for Sao Paulo and the southeast, and your despachante aduaneiro clears the goods there before onward delivery.
What currency does Brazil use?
Brazil uses the real. Your shipping costs from Austria are billed in euros, while day to day prices once you arrive are in reais.
Last reviewed: 27 January 2026. We refresh this guide as costs, customs, and visa rules change.