Arrested in Brazil: the first 48 hours
A tourist stopped at the airport, a traveler caught in a flagrante — and a family on another continent trying to understand a system it has never seen. The Brazilian clock runs fast, and it does not wait for anyone to learn Portuguese.
Within 24 hours of the arrest, the police report must reach a judge. Within a further 24 hours, a custody hearing is held by real-time videoconference. The decisions that shape the whole case — detention or release, and on what conditions — are taken there.
Criminal defense lawyer · OAB/MG 155.242 · Remote representation, in English
The clock: what the law requires, hour by hour
Immediately. The arrest, and the place where the person is held, must be communicated at once to the competent judge, to the prosecution and to the family or a person indicated by the arrested person (art. 306 of the Code of Criminal Procedure).
Within 24 hours. The written arrest report (auto de prisão em flagrante) must reach the judge; if the arrested person has not named a lawyer, a full copy goes to the Public Defender's Office (art. 306, §1).
Within the next 24 hours. The custody hearing: held by real-time videoconference, with the arrested person, their lawyer or a public defender, and the prosecutor (art. 310, as amended by Law 15.358/2026). The judge must, with reasons: declare an illegal arrest void; convert the flagrante into pre-trial detention if the requirements of art. 312 are met and lighter measures are insufficient; or grant provisional release with precautionary conditions.
That is the whole point of moving quickly: the custody hearing is not a formality — it is the first and best opportunity of the defense, and it happens whether or not the family abroad has found a lawyer yet.
Three rights most foreigners don't know they have
Consular notification — on request. Under article 36.1(b) of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, in force in Brazil through Decree 61.078/1967, the authorities must notify your country's consulate without delay if you ask them to, must transmit any message you address to the consulate, and must immediately inform you of these rights. Consular officers may visit you, correspond with you and arrange for your legal representation (art. 36.1(c)).
An interpreter. If you do not speak Portuguese, your interrogation must be conducted through an interpreter (art. 193). Statements signed without understanding what they say are a defect the defense can and should raise.
Communication to your family. The arrest must be communicated to your family or to a person you indicate (art. 306) — which is usually how a relative abroad first learns what happened, by a phone call that arrives in the middle of the night.
Why an airport case is its own animal
Most arrests of foreign travelers at Brazilian airports involve drugs — and the international element changes everything. Drug trafficking with evidence of transnationality is tried by the federal courts (art. 70 of Law 11.343/2006), and the penalties of arts. 33 to 37 are increased by one sixth to two thirds when the nature or origin of the substance, or the circumstances, show the offense crossed borders (art. 40, I).
An airport flagrante is almost by definition built on that transnational element. Whether it truly applies, whether the person had knowledge of what they carried, and whether the reduced-liability figure of the small, first-time courier fits the case — these are the battlegrounds of this kind of defense, and they open at the custody hearing, not months later.
Released is not the same as free to leave
Provisional release usually comes with precautionary conditions — and for a foreigner the decisive one is the prohibition on leaving the country: the judge communicates it to the border authorities, and the person must surrender their passport within 24 hours (art. 320).
In practice that can mean staying in Brazil, without documents to travel, while the case runs. Housing, means of support, reporting obligations — the family abroad needs to plan for this scenario, and the defense needs to argue conditions the person can actually comply with.
Write rather than call
E-mail leaves a record, crosses time zones and lets you attach what matters — where the person is held, the case or police report number if you have it, and identity documents. It is the channel we prefer for cases coming from abroad.
No outcome can be promised — neither release nor a deadline. What exists are legal procedures with strict deadlines, and they can be demanded.
How you appoint a lawyer without travelling
You do not need to come to Brazil, and you do not need a middleman. The appointment is made remotely and the case runs electronically.
Power of attorney
signed where you are. For use in court it is apostilled (Hague Convention, in force in Brazil) and translated by a sworn translator — we tell you exactly which documents are needed.
Documents
identity papers and whatever you have of the case: case number, court, full name, mother's name and date of birth of the person involved.
How the case runs
filings are electronic (PJe, eproc, e-SAJ, SEEU) and hearings can be held by videoconference. You follow the case through the lawyer, in your language.
Scope in writing
what the firm will do — and what it will not — is set out in writing before the work starts.
Perguntas frequentes
How fast do things move after an arrest in Brazil?
Faster than most foreigners expect. The arrest must be communicated immediately to the judge, the prosecution and the family or a person indicated by the arrested person (art. 306 of the Code of Criminal Procedure). Within 24 hours, the written arrest report reaches the judge — and within a further maximum of 24 hours the custody hearing takes place, held by real-time videoconference (art. 310, as amended by Law 15.358/2026). The decisive moments of the case happen in the first 48 hours.
What is the custody hearing?
It is the first judicial review of the arrest, held within 24 hours of the police report reaching the judge, by real-time videoconference, with the arrested person, their lawyer (or a public defender) and the prosecutor present. The judge has three paths: declare the arrest illegal and release; convert the arrest into pre-trial detention if the legal requirements of art. 312 are met; or grant provisional release, with or without precautionary conditions.
Does the consulate get told about my arrest?
Only if you ask. Under article 36.1(b) of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations — in force in Brazil through Decree 61.078/1967 — the Brazilian authorities must notify your consulate without delay if you request it, must forward any message you address to the consulate, and must immediately inform you of these rights. Consular officers may then visit you, correspond with you and arrange legal representation (art. 36.1(c)).
I don't speak Portuguese. How am I questioned?
Through an interpreter. Article 193 of the Code of Criminal Procedure requires the interrogation of a person who does not speak Portuguese to be conducted by means of an interpreter. Signing statements you cannot read, without an interpreter, is exactly the kind of defect a lawyer raises.
Why is an airport drug case different?
Because the transnational element changes the court and the penalty. Drug trafficking with evidence of transnationality is tried by the FEDERAL courts (art. 70 of Law 11.343/2006), and the penalty for the crimes of arts. 33 to 37 is increased by one sixth to two thirds when the nature, origin of the substance or circumstances show the offense crossed borders (art. 40, I). An airport flagrante is almost by definition built on that element — disputing it is part of the defense.
If I am released, can I go home?
Not necessarily. Provisional release usually comes with precautionary conditions, and for a foreigner the decisive one is the prohibition on leaving the country: the judge communicates it to the border authorities and the person must surrender their passport within 24 hours (art. 320). That can mean remaining in Brazil while the case runs — a scenario the family abroad needs to plan for, and one more reason the defense starts at the custody hearing.
Can the family hire a Brazilian lawyer from abroad?
Yes, and without traveling. The mandate is granted by power of attorney with the Hague Apostille — the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia are all parties to the Convention. Proceedings are electronic, hearings can be remote, and communication is by e-mail, in English.
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