The latest reports reveal that Brazil has introduced stricter visa rules for the citizens of Asia following a surge in asylum requests. Brazil’s new visa rules have now tightened policies for certain Asian nationals in the midst of a rise in asylum requests, the country is receiving these days. According to the new visa rules set by Brazil, passengers from Asian countries arriving in the country will be required to apply for a visa if they would like to remain in Brazil for a certain period of time or continue their journey elsewhere. A similar kind of situation has recently been witnessed in Spain, which also has introduced transit visas to a few African and Asian nationals (according to online reports).
More Details on Brazil’s New Visa Rules
The Government of Brazil has made an announcement that the nationals of Asian countries who arrive at the airports in Brazil will now be required to apply for visas if they would like to continue their journey elsewhere or want to remain in Brazil. Those passengers, who refuse to apply for a visa while they are in Brazil, will have to return to their country of origin.
This step has been taken into effect due to the surge in asylum applications submitted by the nationals of Asian countries. The measure has now been in force since 24th August 2024.
Preventing Asylum Seekers from Migrating to the U.S. and Canada
Brazil has introduced visas for nationals of Asian countries because the Brazilian government wants to reduce the number of asylum-seeker applications and prevent them (asylum seekers) from migrating to Canada and the United States which appears to be the pivotal reason behind coming to Brazil in the first place.
The online reports reveal that most of these migrants make use of the popular and extremely dangerous route that goes from Brazil’s financial hub Sao Paulo to the western state of Acre so that they can reach Peru and go toward Central America and then eventually reach the United States from its southern border.
More Than 70% of Asylum Seekers are From Asian Countries
The reports further suggest that over 70% of asylum seekers who arrive at Brazilian airports are from Asian countries. These migrants purchase flights with layovers in Sao Paulo’s international airport and then make their stay in Brazil so that they can later continue their journey toward North America. These 70% of asylum seeker applicants are mostly from Nepal, India, and Vietnam. The remaining 30% are from Cameroon, Somalia, Ethiopia and Ghana. It has also been reported that the nationals of Indonesia and Bangladesh are also found in Brazil with fake documents and they are escaping from the police.
Brazil has reportedly received around 9082 refugee requests between the period of January to July 2024 which is why Brazil’s new visa rules have been introduced to stop asylum-seekers. Since 24th August 2024, now the strict visa rules have been in force for Asian citizens.