Brazil CPF Guide: Get a Brazilian Tax ID Free with a Chinese Passport

What this covers

CPF is Brazil's 11-digit individual taxpayer number, often needed for Brazilian bank accounts, SIM cards, local online services or investments. Foreigners can apply for free with a Chinese passport and a Chinese address. Until January 2026 it could be done fully online; now, after online approval, you must collect the number in person at a Brazilian consulate. This guide covers the document list and three steps: generate the FCPF form, upload on e-consular, and collect at the consulate.

Before you start

• Required: original valid Chinese passport; a clear photo or scan of the passport data page (JPG/PDF); an email that receives overseas mail; a Chinese phone number; your Chinese home address in pinyin or English (don't invent a Brazilian address); your mother's full name in pinyin; the FCPF form PDF.
• Recommended: birth certificate or hukou booklet (some consulates check parents' names; almost always needed for minors); the printed and signed FCPF; your appointment confirmation.
• Cost: free from the government; you only pay travel and time.
• Name, date of birth and passport number must match exactly across the passport, the FCPF and e-consular. One wrong letter can get you rejected.
• Fill everything in truthfully and answer honestly if asked why you need it.

Steps

1. Generate the FCPF from your passport

Turn off your browser's pop-up blocker (Edge recommended) and open the Receita Federal foreign CPF page: FCPF (English).

For a Chinese passport:

1. Nationality: CHINA, REPUBLICA POPULAR, then click Ficha;
2. Motivo: Inscrição (new registration);
3. Leave the CPF and Título de Eleitor fields empty;
4. Nome completo: your passport name in pinyin, given name first, surname last;
5. Date of birth as day/month/year;
6. Nome da mãe: your mother's name in pinyin, not Chinese characters;
7. Address: your Chinese address in pinyin or English;
8. Phone with the 86 country code, and a working email;
9. Leave the departure date empty;
10. Submit, save the PDF, print and sign it.

The form is only valid for a limited time, so move on quickly.

2. Upload your passport and FCPF on e-consular

Open e-consular (some consulates such as Shanghai may redirect to their own page):

1. Register with your email and verify it;
2. Choose China as the country, then your nearest consulate;
3. Create a new service: CPF - não brasileiros / CPF para estrangeiros;

1. Upload your passport data page and the FCPF PDF from step 1;
2. Enter the passport details again: number, issue date, expiry; issuing authority National Immigration Administration, PRC; for the second ID, usually choose foreign passport again and repeat the passport details;
3. Submit and wait for the review email, typically a few days to two weeks.

3. Collect your number at the consulate

Once approved, book an appointment and bring:

• your original Chinese passport;
• the printed, signed FCPF;
• the appointment confirmation;
• a birth certificate or hukou booklet if the system or email asks for it.

If asked why you need a CPF, tell the truth, for example a SIM card for travel, signing up for online services, or preparing to invest or buy property. Most people get the 11-digit CPF the same day; there is no physical card.

Carddoger summary

Even with the consulate visit, Brazil's CPF is one of the easiest foreign tax IDs to get: Chinese passport and address throughout, no government fee, and usually issued on the day. The keys are matching details in all three places, submitting the FCPF promptly, and bringing what your consulate asks for. Check your consulate's latest instructions before you go, as requirements can change.