Case Study: Foreign Heir Claims Brazilian Inheritance from Abroad

Client Profile

Jennifer, 38, American living in Chicago. Works as a senior product manager at a tech company. Speaks no Portuguese. Had visited Brazil twice — both times as a tourist to visit her father.

Jennifer’s father, Mark, 71, American who retired to Florianópolis, Santa Catarina in 2016. Mark fell in love with the beach lifestyle and the lower cost of living. He obtained permanent residency through a retirement visa (visto de aposentadoria). Mark was divorced (Jennifer’s mother predeceased him in 2018). Jennifer is his only child.

Mark’s Brazilian assets at death:

• Apartment in Jurerê Internacional, Florianópolis: R$1.9M (purchased 2017 for R$1.2M)
• Bank accounts at Banco do Brasil: R$640,000 (checking R$140K, CDB R$500K)
• Car (Toyota Corolla Cross): R$185,000
• Personal property (furniture, electronics, art): ~R$75,000

Mark’s US assets:

• Social Security benefits (terminated at death)
• Small checking account at Chase: $12,000
• No US real estate, no retirement accounts (spent down during early retirement)

Total Brazilian estate: approximately R$2.8M.

Mark died in March 2026 of complications from pneumonia. He had done one thing right: in 2019, he visited a tabelião (notary) in Florianópolis and executed a Brazilian testamento público naming Jennifer as his sole heir and inventariante (estate administrator). This single document — which cost him R$2,500 — changed the entire trajectory of what followed.

The Challenge

Jennifer received the call on a Tuesday morning. By Wednesday, she was overwhelmed. Her father’s landlord wanted to know about the condomínio fees. The bank froze Mark’s accounts the moment the death was registered. The IPTU (property tax) was coming due. And Jennifer was 8,000 kilometers away, didn’t speak Portuguese, couldn’t take extended leave from work, and had never interacted with Brazilian bureaucracy.

Specific Legal Hurdles

1. Foreign heir with no CPF. Jennifer had never needed a CPF (Cadastro de Pessoa Física — Brazil’s taxpayer ID). Without a CPF — required under Instrução Normativa RFB 1.548/2015 — she could not: open a Brazilian bank account, receive inherited funds, register property in her name, pay ITCMD, or sign any legal document in Brazil. The CPF is the gateway to every financial and legal transaction in the country.

2. No power of attorney. Jennifer could not physically be in Brazil for the months required to process the inventory. She needed to grant a procuração (power of attorney) to a Brazilian attorney to act on her behalf. But a power of attorney executed abroad must be: (a) executed at a Brazilian consulate, or (b) executed before a foreign notary and then apostilled under the Hague Convention + translated into Portuguese by a sworn translator (tradutor juramentado).

3. Document apostille and translation chain. The following documents needed to be apostilled in the US and translated into Portuguese:

• Mark’s death certificate (issued by the State of South Carolina, where the hospital was located… actually, Mark died in Florianópolis, so the death certificate was Brazilian — issued by the Cartório de Registro Civil in Florianópolis). However, Jennifer’s own identity documents needed apostille:
  • Jennifer’s US passport (certified copy, apostilled)
  • Jennifer’s birth certificate (proving filial relationship to Mark)
  • Mark’s US passport (to establish his identity for US proceedings)
  • Mark’s Brazilian death certificate (already in Portuguese — no translation needed, but needed apostille for any US proceedings)

4. Extrajudicial vs. judicial inventory. Because Jennifer was the sole heir, was an adult, and Mark had a valid will — the inventory could proceed extrajudicialmente (at a cartório, not in court), per Lei 11.441/2007. This was critical: extrajudicial inventory typically takes 2-4 months, while judicial inventory in Florianópolis could take 12-18 months. Mark’s foresight in creating a will made the faster path available.

5. ITCMD in Santa Catarina. SC applies progressive ITCMD rates:

• Up to R$50,000: 1%
• R$50,001 - R$150,000: 3%
• R$150,001 - R$500,000: 5%
• Above R$500,000: 7%

On Mark’s R$2.8M estate, the ITCMD bill would be approximately R$183,000 (blended effective rate ~6.5%). This had to be paid before the inventory could be concluded and assets transferred to Jennifer.

6. Repatriation of funds. After the inventory, Jennifer needed to transfer R$2.8M worth of assets (or their sale proceeds) to the United States. Brazilian foreign exchange regulations (Lei 4.131/1962 and BCB regulations) require documentation proving the legal origin of funds for international transfers exceeding R$10,000. The inheritance inventory formal de partilha (partition deed) serves as this documentation — but the bank’s compliance department needed to review and approve it.

Our Approach

“A foreign heir can claim a Brazilian inheritance entirely remotely. The legal infrastructure exists — consular powers of attorney, extrajudicial inventory, apostille conventions, and international bank transfers. What is needed is a Brazilian attorney who knows how to connect these systems.” — Zachariah Zagol, Founding Partner, OAB/SP 351.356

Step 1: Consular Power of Attorney (Week 1-2)

Jennifer visited the Brazilian Consulate in Chicago. With an appointment (scheduled one week in advance), she executed a procuração pública granting our firm full powers to:

• Represent her in the extrajudicial inventory proceeding
• Access Mark’s bank accounts and financial records (as court-appointed inventariante)
• Pay ITCMD on her behalf
• Sign the escritura de inventário e partilha (inventory and partition deed)
• Sell real estate and personal property
• Transfer funds internationally
• Obtain and manage her CPF

The consular procuração is issued in Portuguese by the consulate itself — no apostille or translation needed. This is significantly faster than the apostille route. Cost: $250 consular fee.

Step 2: CPF Obtainment (Week 2-3)

We applied for Jennifer’s CPF through the Receita Federal’s online system, using the consular power of attorney. The CPF was issued within 5 business days — Jennifer never needed to visit a Brazilian government office.

With the CPF, we could now open a Brazilian bank account in Jennifer’s name (at Banco do Brasil, the same institution holding Mark’s accounts), file ITCMD returns, and register property transfers.

Step 3: Document Collection and Translation (Weeks 2-4, concurrent)

We gathered all required documents:

From Brazil (already in Portuguese):

• Mark’s death certificate (certidão de óbito) from the Florianópolis Cartório de Registro Civil
• Mark’s Brazilian will (testamento público) — certified copy from the Tabelião de Notas where it was registered
• Property deed (matrícula do imóvel) from the Registro de Imóveis in Florianópolis
• Bank account statements from Banco do Brasil
• Vehicle registration (CRLV) from DETRAN-SC
• Mark’s last DIRPF (filed for 2025)

From the US (required apostille + sworn translation):

• Jennifer’s birth certificate (proving she is Mark’s daughter) — apostilled by the Illinois Secretary of State, then translated by a Brazilian tradutor juramentado
• Jennifer’s passport (certified copy, apostilled, translated)

The apostille process took 10 business days. The sworn translation took an additional 5 business days. Total document preparation: approximately 4 weeks, running concurrently with other steps.

Step 4: ITCMD Assessment and Payment (Week 4-6)

We filed the Declaração de ITCMD with the SEFAZ-SC (Santa Catarina state tax authority), declaring all of Mark’s assets and their values:

(Note: The blended rates reflect the progressive application across the total estate value, with each asset’s share calculated proportionally.)

The ITCMD was paid using funds from Mark’s bank accounts — which we accessed through a judicial alvará (authorization) requested from the Florianópolis court specifically for ITCMD payment. This is a common mechanism: the court authorizes release of estate funds for the specific purpose of paying the inheritance tax, even before the inventory is concluded.

Step 5: Extrajudicial Inventory (Weeks 6-16)

With all documents assembled, CPF obtained, ITCMD paid, and power of attorney in hand, we proceeded with the extrajudicial inventory at a Tabelião de Notas in Florianópolis.

The escritura pública de inventário e partilha (public deed of inventory and partition) was drafted and reviewed by:

• Our firm (representing Jennifer as sole heir and inventariante)
• The tabelião (notary)

The deed listed all assets, confirmed Jennifer as sole heir under the will and under Brazilian forced heirship rules (as the only descendant, she is entitled to 100% of the legítima under CC Art. 1.829), declared ITCMD fully paid, and ordered the transfer of all assets to Jennifer.

No Ministério Público review was required (no minor heirs). No judicial approval was required (extrajudicial path). The tabelião signed the deed after verifying all documents and tax payments.

Step 6: Asset Transfers (Weeks 16-24)

Real estate: We registered the formal de partilha at the Registro de Imóveis in Florianópolis, transferring the Jurerê apartment to Jennifer’s name. Registration took 15 business days.

Bank accounts: With the escritura de inventário registered, Banco do Brasil transferred Mark’s account balances to Jennifer’s newly opened account.

Vehicle: We transferred the Toyota to Jennifer’s name via DETRAN-SC and immediately listed it for sale (Jennifer had no use for a car in Florianópolis). Sold within 3 weeks for R$178,000.

Personal property: We engaged a local service to inventory, photograph, and either ship (art pieces, personal mementos) or sell (furniture, electronics) Mark’s personal belongings. Net proceeds from sold items: R$42,000. Shipping to Chicago: R$8,500.

Step 7: Property Sale and Repatriation (Weeks 24-32)

Jennifer decided to sell the Jurerê apartment rather than keep it as a rental. We listed the property at R$1.95M and sold it for R$1.85M after 6 weeks on the market.

Capital gains tax on the sale: The cost basis for Jennifer was the value declared in the inventory (R$1.9M). The sale price was R$1.85M — a loss relative to the declared value, so no capital gains tax was due.

Fund repatriation: We coordinated with Banco do Brasil’s international transfers desk to wire Jennifer’s funds to her US account at Chase. Required documentation:

• Escritura de inventário e partilha (proving inheritance origin)
• ITCMD payment receipts
• Property sale contract
• Jennifer’s CPF and passport
• Banco Central Declaração de Capitais (for amounts exceeding R$100,000)

Total transferred to the US: approximately R$2.47M (after ITCMD, legal fees, property sale, vehicle sale, and all costs).

The Outcome

Timeline

Financial Summary

What Would Have Happened Without a Will

If Mark had not created a Brazilian will:

• Judicial inventory would have been required — even though Jennifer is the sole adult heir. Without a will, Brazilian law requires the court to confirm heirship through a formal proceeding per CPC Art. 610-673. This would have added 8-12 months and approximately R$50,000 in additional legal fees.
• Jennifer would still have needed all the same documents — but the judicial process would have required more court appearances (via power of attorney), more judicial petitions, and more waiting for court scheduling in Florianópolis.
• The apartment would have been frozen for longer — market conditions in Jurerê can shift seasonally, and a delay might have meant a lower sale price.
• Total additional cost of not having a will: approximately R$50,000-R$80,000 in fees + 8-12 months of additional time.

Mark spent R$2,500 on a Brazilian will in 2019. That R$2,500 saved his daughter R$50,000-R$80,000 and roughly a year of her life.

“Mark spent R$2,500 on a Brazilian will. That single afternoon at a cartorio saved his daughter R$50,000-R$80,000 and roughly a year of her life. Every American retiree in Brazil owes their heirs this one document.” — Zachariah Zagol, Founding Partner, OAB/SP 351.356

Key Takeaway

Jennifer’s case demonstrates two things. First: a foreign heir can claim a Brazilian inheritance entirely remotely, without speaking Portuguese, without extended stays in Brazil, and without disrupting their life. The legal infrastructure exists — consular powers of attorney, extrajudicial inventory, apostille conventions, and international bank transfers. What’s needed is a Brazilian attorney who knows how to navigate these systems and communicate in the heir’s language.

Second: the single most impactful thing Mark did was spend one afternoon at a cartório creating a testamento público. Without it, Jennifer would have faced an additional year of proceedings and tens of thousands in costs. Every American, British, and European expat who has retired to Brazil owes their heirs this one document. It costs less than a dinner at D.O.M.

If You’re Facing a Similar Situation

If you are a foreign heir who has just learned about a Brazilian inheritance — or if you are an expat living in Brazil who wants to ensure your heirs don’t face the challenges described above — we can help. For heirs: our international probate service handles the entire process from abroad, including CPF obtainment, document apostille coordination, ITCMD filing, inventory proceedings, property sale, and fund repatriation. For expats: a Brazilian will and estate planning consultation protect your family before the need arises. Contact ZS Advogados today — initial consultations are available in English, and we coordinate all Portuguese-language proceedings on your behalf.