How to Export to Brazil - Sprint Lazio

INTRODUCTION
Brazil – Ministry of External Relations
Due to the size of its population and its high consumer potential, Brazil is a naturally
attractive market for any international company and it is comparable to some major
world markets. At the same time, the Brazilian market is highly complex and diversified.
It covers a great number of large urban centers and still faces some restrictions on the
import of products. Its economy has been closed to the world, specifically between
1930 and 1990, when the country adopted an import substitution policy. As a
consequence of its short experience as a market open to imports, there is still a need
to develop an “import culture”. Furthermore, its productive sector is highly dense
and diversified, with a relatively small number of goods for which there is no national
production.
In this context, there are several challenges facing a foreign company wishing to sell
goods to Brazil. Even when companies are located in South American countries,
which are close both geographically and culturally, they still need to have an
understanding of all the procedures involved in exporting to Brazil. The main purpose
of this guide is to overcome the “information barriers” that still may exist, thus reversing
the low participation of South American products in the whole of Brazilian imports,
even though those countries enjoy a clear comparative advantage.
A recent study conducted by Fundação Centro de Estudos do Comércio Exterior –
Funcex (Foreign Trade Studies Center Foundation) - and backed by the Trade
Promotion Department of the Brazilian Ministry of External Relations, sought to identify
which products from the Andean countries (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and
Venezuela) could potentially increase their exports to Brazil. Based on interviews with
Brazilian importers and exports-related institutions in Andean countries, the survey
identified some problems that may limit the access of Andean products to Brazil.
Among these problems, it is worth noting the issue of market access. Contribute to
this question the lack of knowledge about the rules and procedures that regulate
import operations in Brazil as well as the lack of basic information about the Brazilian
market and about the institutions and public and private bodies existing in the country
that may be used to facilitate and assist trade operations. These problems become
even more relevant for small businesses, as it is the case of most South American
exporters. Such companies find it hard to bear the costs of collecting the information
needed in order to sell in Brazil as well as to adjust to Brazilian requirements.
With a view to broadening the level of information available, the Ministry of External
Relations, through its Department of Trade Promotion, produced the present
publication – How to Export to Brazil – as one of the many initiatives of the Program
on Competitive Substitution of Imports (PSCI), whose general goal is to promote the
products and services of South American countries in Brazil. This publication aims to
support the efforts of South American exporters in the process of selling goods to the
Brazilian market by supplying relevant information about the structure of the Brazilian
economy, the rules and procedures that must be followed for a foreign product to
enter the country, the trade behaviors and practices normally adopted in the country
as well as a wealth of other useful information to facilitate exporting activities.
How to export to Brazil 7