Shipping Heavy Equipment to Brazil

The four ways to ship machinery to Brazil

Container, flat rack, RoRo and breakbulk, with where each one lands. RoRo availability is by U.S. coast; the other three are booked on the services that run when the cargo is ready.

Published sailings to Brazil

2 carrier services in our trade lane guides call in Brazil. Each row links to the carrier schedule it was read from; transit is from the U.S. load port to the port named.

What the U.S. ships to Brazil

U.S. exports to Brazil by machine class, 2025 against 2024, as reported by the United States to UN Comtrade^[1]. Units are as declared; the average is customs value divided by units.

A dash means the quantity was not reported for that year. Classes the U.S. did not ship here in either year are left out.

Import duty on machinery in Brazil

The most-favoured-nation (MFN) duty applied to each machine class, as a simple average of the national tariff lines under its HS subheading^[4]. Preferential rates under trade agreements can be lower.

The range shows the lowest and highest line within the subheading; a dash means every line has the same rate.

Vehicles and other taxes

New vehicles face a heavy cascading tax stack: roughly 35% Import Duty (II) on CIF, plus IPI (engine/efficiency-based), PIS/COFINS (~9.25%), and state ICMS (17–22%, calculated 'por dentro'). Landed cost can reach 90–120% of the overseas price. Industrial machinery may qualify for Ex-Tarifário, cutting import duty toward 0% where no domestic equivalent exists.

Source: Receita Federal / CAMEX, checked June 2026.

• Import duty: II ≈35% (CIF); machinery 0–14% (Ex-Tarifário may reduce to 0%)
• VAT: ICMS 17–22% (state) + PIS/COFINS ≈9.25%
• Other charges: IPI varies by engine/fuel; AFRMM merchant-marine freight surcharge applies
• Age limits: Import of used vehicles is generally prohibited; only new (never-registered) vehicles or collector cars 30+ years old may be imported, and they must meet Brazilian technical and emissions standards.

Rules for used machinery in Brazil

Used capital goods need a non-automatic import licence (LPCO/LI) from Decex, issued only when no similar Brazilian production exists, which is checked by a 30-day public consultation. MAPA requires an origin phytosanitary certificate, cleaning and port inspection for all used machinery.

• Licence or permit: Used capital goods and their parts listed in Annex V of Portaria SECEX 249/2023 need non-automatic import licensing. Each application must include a technical catalogue or descriptive memo, translated into Portuguese.^[5]
• Licence or permit: Licences are issued only when no identical or substitute good is produced in Brazil. Decex publishes a public consultation, giving domestic industry 30 days to show local production (Art. 30 and 41).^[6]
• Documents: Since December 15, 2025, used-material imports must use an LPCO and a Duimp. Goods not yet through a public consultation need an LPCO first and can proceed only after it is approved for lack of national production.^[6]
• Inspection: Used vehicles, machinery and equipment that contacted soil or plants, agricultural or not, need an origin phytosanitary certificate stating the cleaning and disinfestation treatment. MAPA inspects at entry, and units with soil or plant residue are returned abroad.^[7]
• Documents: Importers must register with SECEX/MDIC through Siscomex. Goods requiring an import licence need approval from the relevant agencies, usually before shipment.^[8]

Documents for Brazil

The papers a machinery shipment to Brazil usually needs at destination. Your consignee and their customs broker confirm the list for the exact cargo.

• Commercial Invoice
• Packing List
• Bill of Lading
• Certificate of Origin
• INMETRO Certificate (if required)
• Import License (if required)
• Equipment Specifications

U.S. export rules

What every shipment from the U.S. has to clear before it sails, whatever the destination.

Electronic Export Information (15 CFR 30)U.S. Census Bureau

Electronic Export Information is filed in AES for each Schedule B number worth more than $2,500 going to one consignee on one conveyance, and for every vehicle whatever its value. For vessel cargo it is due at least 24 hours before loading; the Internal Transaction Number (ITN) goes to the carrier with the booking.^[9][10]

Applies to: Any Schedule B line over $2,500, and every vehicle

Used self-propelled vehicles: 72-hour ruleU.S. Customs and Border Protection

U.S. regulations count self-propelled construction and agricultural machinery as vehicles. A used one must be filed in AES at least 72 hours before export, whatever its value or destination, and the ITN, the VIN or serial number and the ownership documents go to CBP at the port of export. Filing after departure is not allowed.^[11][12][10]

Applies to: Used machines that drive: excavators, loaders, dozers, tractors, trucks

ISPM 15 wood packagingIPPC, administered in the U.S. by USDA APHIS

Wood packaging and dunnage must be heat-treated to a core temperature of 56 °C for at least 30 minutes, or fumigated, and carry the IPPC mark with the US country code, the facility number and HT or MB. Marked wood can be reused; repaired or remanufactured wood must be treated and marked again.^[13]

Applies to: Crates, skids, blocking and dunnage

Export classification under the EAR (ECCN or EAR99)BIS (U.S. Department of Commerce)

An item subject to the EAR is either listed on the Commerce Control List under an Export Control Classification Number (ECCN) or classified EAR99, the basket for items not listed. The ECCN’s reasons for control, read against the Commerce Country Chart, decide whether the destination needs a license. An EAR99 item rarely needs one, but no item, EAR99 included, may go to a person under a denial order or to a prohibited end use or end user without BIS authorization.^[14][15][16]

Applies to: Every export of goods subject to the Export Administration Regulations

Clearance notes for Brazil

Santos congestion and the year-end Brazilian summer/holiday peak (December–February) can extend clearance; plan project cargo accordingly.

• A local importer (CNPJ) with RADAR/Siscomex authorization and IBAMA clearance is required.
• Industrial machinery without a domestic equivalent can apply for Ex-Tarifário to cut import duty.
• The used-vehicle import ban plus cascading 'por dentro' taxes surprise most shippers — landed cost can nearly double the price.
• Clearance (Receita Federal + IBAMA + state ICMS) is bureaucratic; use an experienced broker.

Questions buyers ask

Export checklist (PDF)

A one-page checklist with the facts on this page for shipping Brazil: methods, duty, rules and documents. Give it to your customs broker.

Nearby destinations

• Shipping Heavy Equipment to Argentina
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• Shipping Heavy Equipment to Peru
• Shipping Heavy Equipment to Colombia

All destinations in South America