Move from Panama to Brazil return home with peace of mind

If you stayed abroad for more than 1 year and are effectively transferring residence to Brazil, the used goods that make up your unaccompanied baggage are treated as baggage, exempt from taxes, under the terms of Instrução Normativa RFB nº 1.059/2010. The condition is that the cargo arrives within the legal window and that the documentation proves the transfer of residence. New goods and vehicles are excluded from this exemption.

Yes, and this is not our preference: it is not possible to complete customs clearance before your disembarkation in Brazil. Receita Federal do Brasil (Brazilian Federal Revenue Service) requires, among the documents for the clearance, proof of the traveler's arrival in the country, and the right to exemption is linked to your definitive disembarkation. The cargo can leave Panama 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 from your disembarkation date, not from the date the house is ready to be packed.

Unaccompanied baggage must arrive between three months before and six months after your landing date in Brazil. This window is the most sensitive point of the route. As maritime transit consumes 40 to 60 days, we plan the cargo shipment date based on your flight date, not the other way around. Outside the window, the Receita Federal do Brasil treats the cargo as ordinary importation and charges the taxes.

Yes, but the criterion is the condition of the item. Brazilian exemption covers used items that are part of your baggage. Products still in original packaging, with a recent invoice and no sign of use, tend to be treated as merchandise and taxed, even if legitimately purchased. As Panama concentrates a major commercial hub, this is a specific point of attention for this route, and we review the inventory with this filter before shipment.

You can bring it, but the tax treatment is different. The baggage regime for transfer of residence presumes a stay abroad of more than 1 year. With a shorter period, the operation needs to be structured differently and taxes may be due. We evaluate your specific case before issuing a quote, because the relocation strategy changes considerably in that scenario.

Motor vehicles are not part of the baggage treatment for import into Brazil. Importation is a separate operation, with taxation and its own requirements, including emissions rules and homologation. Our team advises on viability case by case, but in most scenarios the total cost makes the operation disadvantageous.

In most cases, yes. Panama operates on 110 V, with plug types A and B, a voltage close to much of Brazil. This is one of the most favorable routes in this aspect, very different from European routes where appliances come at 230 V. The plug standard is different and there are Brazilian regions at 220 V, so we evaluate item by item in the inventory, with special attention to motorized equipment.

Yes. The return of animals to Brazil requires an international veterinary certificate issued by an official veterinarian, valid rabies vaccination and compliance with the requirements of the Ministério da Agricultura e Pecuária. The return protocol is much simpler than the one for entry into Panama, which requires expanded vaccination, an apostilled certificate and prior notification to MINSA and MIDA. The transport of the animal is a process separate from the move of the goods and runs in parallel, conducted by our pet department. We have already transported more than 1,000 animals.

Proof is provided by a set of documents, and the hierarchy among them matters. The two pieces of evidence that effectively support the clearance are the Declaration of Residence issued by the Brazilian Consulate of the city where you live and utility bills in your name, such as water, electricity, gas and internet: these demonstrate effective residence at the address. Documents such as the Panamanian residence card, the employment contract and the lease agreement or property deed are included in the dossier as supporting evidence, together with the passport showing entries and exits, but they do not prove residence on their own, because they attest to authorization to reside and not to the fact of having lived there. A document proving the termination of that residence is also required. We assemble this dossier with you before shipment, because gathering documents abroad after you are already in Brazil is much more difficult.

In Panama, collection, packing and exit documentation are performed by accredited agents of our international network, under supervision of our team. In Brazil, customs clearance, final delivery and assembly are executed by One Moving's own team, without intermediaries. As Brazilian customs clearance is the critical point of this route, it remains entirely under our direct management.