Move from the Netherlands to Brazil return home with peace of mind

Yes, and this is not our preference: it is not possible to conclude customs clearance before your arrival in Brazil. Receita Federal do Brasil (Brazilian Federal Revenue Service) requires, among the documents for clearance, proof of the traveler’s arrival in the country, and the right to the exemption is linked to your definitive arrival. The cargo can leave the Netherlands and arrive before you — the legal window allows up to 3 months in advance — but it will remain waiting at the port or airport until you arrive, with storage and demurrage accruing during that interval. That is why we schedule based on your arrival date, and not on the date when the house is ready to be packed.

Unaccompanied baggage must arrive within the window of 3 months before to 6 months after your arrival in Brazil. It is a strict deadline: outside it, the exemption is lost and the cargo is treated as a regular import, with taxes. As the crossing takes 45 to 60 days door-to-door, shipment must be planned before you set your flight date, and that is what we do at the start of the process.

The DSI is the Simplified Import Declaration, registered in Siscomex, the Receita Federal system, by an authorized customs broker. It is through the DSI that the move is declared and the exemption is requested. On this route, the DSI registration and all monitoring of the customs clearance are conducted by One Moving's own team in Brazil, without intermediaries, which is precisely the most sensitive end of a return move.

Proof is provided by a set of documents, and the hierarchy among them matters. The two pieces of evidence that actually support the customs clearance are the Residence Declaration issued by the Brazilian Consulate in the city where you live and utility bills in your name, such as water, electricity, gas and internet: these demonstrate actual residence at the address. Documents such as the municipal personal records registration, employment contracts, the rental contract or property deed, income tax returns filed in the Netherlands and health insurance documents are included in the dossier as supporting evidence, together with the passport showing entries and exits, but they do not, by themselves, prove residence, because they attest to authorization to reside and not the fact of having lived there. We assemble this dossier with you before shipment, because gathering documents abroad after you are already in Brazil is much more difficult.

They are two distinct consequences. On the Brazilian side, the tax exemption requires residence abroad for more than 1 year, so it does not apply: the move can arrive, but will be taxed. On the Dutch side, if you entered the country with customs duty relief for a move, the goods are subject to a transfer restriction for the 12 months following importation, and the departure must be handled with the Douane before shipment. We assess both ends before structuring the operation.

Not within the move exemption. Brazilian legislation excludes motor vehicles from the unaccompanied baggage exemption, unlike the Dutch rule, which admits the vehicle in the move and even allows requesting BPM exemption on entry. Bringing the car back is possible, but it constitutes a separate import operation, with its own taxes and requirements, and must be quoted independently from the household move.

It depends on the equipment. The Netherlands operates on 230 V with Type C and F plugs, while in Brazil the voltage varies between 127 V and 220 V depending on the region and the national plug standard is the Brazilian one. Equipment with a dual-voltage power supply, such as laptops and chargers, works without issue. Motorized appliances, such as washing machines and refrigerators, usually require a permanent transformer. We analyze item by item in the pre-move survey, because in many cases the freight is not cost-effective.

Yes. Animal transport is a process separate from the move of the goods, with its own requirements of microchip, rabies vaccination, international veterinary certificate and compliance with Brazil’s entry rules. Our pet department conducts this process in parallel with the move, with the documentation synchronized to your flight dates. We have already transported more than 1,000 animals.

The exemption covers used household goods and personal effects. Excluded are motor vehicles, new goods in original packaging, items in quantities suggesting commercial destination, as well as perishable foods, plants and animal-origin products subject to sanitary control. We review the inventory before shipment to separate these cases, because a single poorly declared item can detain the entire cargo at the port.

In the Netherlands we work with accredited agents from our international network for collection, packing and export documentation. In Brazil we have our own team: we are the ones who register the DSI in Siscomex, conduct the customs clearance with Receita Federal and perform delivery and assembly at your final address. On this route, the critical end is the Brazilian one, and it is precisely where we do not depend on third parties.