Move from Switzerland 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 the customs clearance before your disembarkation in Brazil. Receita Federal do Brasil (Brazilian Federal Revenue Service) requires, among the despacho documents, proof of the traveler’s arrival in the country, and the right to the exemption is linked to your definitive disembarkation. The cargo may leave Switzerland 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 build the schedule from your disembarkation date, not from the date the house is ready to be packed.

Unaccompanied baggage must arrive between 3 months before and 6 months after your disembarkation in Brazil. This window is the most sensitive point of the route. As the transit takes 45 to 65 days and includes the overland leg to the European port, we plan the collection date based on your flight date, not the other way around. Outside the window, Receita Federal treats the cargo as a regular import and applies duties.

Because Switzerland has no coastline or seaport. The cargo leaves by land to a European port, normally Rotterdam, Antwerp or Genoa, and is shipped from there to Brazil. This leg must be coordinated with the ship’s departure window and can only be cleared during customs operating hours for commercial traffic, Monday to Friday. That is why planning for this route starts earlier than for routes with a port at the origin.

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 included in baggage treatment under Brazilian importation. This is a known asymmetry on this route: Switzerland accepts used vehicles for at least six months under an entry exemption, but Brazil does not admit them under the baggage regime. Importation is a separate operation, with its own taxation and requirements, including homologation. Our team advises on feasibility case by case, almost always unfavourable.

It depends on the appliance and the region. Switzerland operates at 230 V and uses plug type J, exclusive to the country. In Brazil, much of the grid is 127 V, with the plug standard NBR 14136. Electronic devices with a dual-voltage power supply usually work with a plug adapter. Motorized equipment, such as washing machines, dryers and dishwashers, do not operate adequately with simple adapters and require a correctly sized transformer, when feasible. We assess each item in the inventory.

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 Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock. The return protocol is much simpler than entry into Switzerland, which requires antibody titration, a waiting period and a minimum age of seven months for animals from countries with rabies risk. Transport of the animal is a process separate from the shipment of 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 proofs that effectively support the despacho are the Declaration of Residence 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 effective residence at the address. Documents such as the residence permit, municipal registration, employment contract and rental agreement enter 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 authorization to reside and not the fact of having lived there. It is also necessary to have the document that attests to the termination of that residence, normally the confirmation of Abmeldung with the municipality. We assemble this dossier with you before shipment, because gathering documents abroad after you are already in Brazil is much more difficult.

In Switzerland, collection, packing, exit documentation and land transit to the European port of shipment are conducted 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. Since Brazilian customs clearance is the critical point on this route, it is handled entirely under our direct management.