Making a Will in Brazil: A Foreigner’s Guide to Last Wills and Testaments

If you own property or hold assets in Brazil, a common and costly assumption is that the will you signed back home already takes care of them. On Brazilian real estate, it generally does not. Brazilian succession law, its forced-heirship rules, and its probate system decide what happens here, and a foreign will does not move a Brazilian asset on its own. This page explains, in plain English, how a will works in Brazil and what a foreigner should actually do.

Reviewed by Luciano Oliveira, Esq., LL.M — licensed in Brazil, Texas, and California. Last reviewed June 2026.

This page is general information, not legal advice. Nothing here tells you what will happen in your own estate; only a consultation with a licensed Brazilian attorney, reviewing your specific facts, can do that.

Does your foreign will even cover your Brazilian assets?

This is the first question, and the answer surprises people. As a general rule, Brazilian law says succession follows the law of the deceased’s last domicile. But there is a powerful exception for assets located in Brazil: where there is a Brazilian spouse or Brazilian children, the Constitution requires Brazilian law to govern Brazilian-situated assets whenever it is more favorable to them. On top of that, only Brazilian courts can decide the fate of Brazilian real estate. The practical result is that your Brazilian property passes through a Brazilian process, under Brazilian rules, whatever your foreign will says, and a foreign will used here must first be apostilled, sworn-translated, and judicially confirmed before anything can be transferred.

The three kinds of Brazilian will

Brazil recognizes three ordinary forms of will, and the choice matters more than most people expect:

• Public will (testamento publico) — made before a notary, recorded in the national registry, and the hardest to challenge. For most foreigners this is the natural choice: it is found automatically after death, needs no post-mortem confirmation hearing, and a non-Portuguese speaker can use an interpreter.
• Sealed will (testamento cerrado) — written privately, then sealed and approved by a notary; the contents stay secret, but the will is void if the seal is defective.
• Private will (testamento particular) — the cheapest, signed before at least three witnesses, but the riskiest: after death it must be judicially confirmed and the witnesses located.

The half you cannot give away: forced heirship

Brazil does not allow complete freedom to distribute your estate. Certain relatives — descendants, ascendants, and, under current law, the surviving spouse — are “necessary heirs,” and the law reserves half of the estate for them (the legitima). You may freely direct only the other half by will. A wish to leave everything to a new spouse, or nothing to a particular child, generally cannot override that reserved half as to Brazilian assets. A well-drafted will works within this: it allocates the disposable half and clarifies the rest to head off conflict. (A Civil Code reform under discussion in 2024 could change the spouse’s position; we work from the law in force and flag anything in motion.)

One will, or two?

For someone with assets in more than one country, we usually suggest a separate Brazilian will covering only the Brazilian assets. Drafted in Portuguese before a Brazilian notary, it avoids the apostille, sworn translation, and recognition steps a foreign will needs, and it lets the Brazilian estate proceed in parallel with the foreign one. The trap to avoid is a blanket “this revokes all prior wills” clause in either document, which can accidentally cancel the other — which is exactly why the two should be coordinated between your counsel in each country.

How we help

We work in fluent English and coordinate with your advisors at home. We assess whether your current arrangements actually reach your Brazilian assets, draft a Brazilian will (usually a public will) that respects the legitima and says what you want it to say, and handle the notary and registration. When the time comes, we can also run the inventario. We do not promise a particular tax result or that every dispute can be avoided; what we do is set the estate up so your wishes are clear and enforceable as far as Brazilian law allows.

Book a consultation with a Brazilian attorney

This article is general information only. It is not legal advice, it creates no attorney-client relationship, and it is not a guarantee of any result. What is right for your estate depends on your facts, which we would review with you directly.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a Brazilian will if I already have one abroad?
Often yes, for your Brazilian assets. A foreign will does not transfer Brazilian property by itself and must be apostilled, translated, and judicially confirmed; a separate Brazilian will usually avoids months of delay.

Can I leave my Brazilian property to whomever I want?
Only partly. Half of the estate is reserved for necessary heirs (descendants, ascendants, and the spouse). You may freely dispose of the other half by will.

Which type of Brazilian will is best for a foreigner?
For most foreigners, the public will (testamento publico): secure, registered, found automatically after death, and no confirmation hearing required.

What happens to my Brazilian assets if I die without a will?
They pass under Brazil’s intestate succession rules through an inventario. A will does not avoid the inventario, but it clarifies your wishes and can reduce conflict and delay.

Related: Estate Planning in Brazil for Foreigners · Financial Power of Attorney in Brazil · Inheritance & Probate in Brazil