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09/28/23 @Xiaozhuli.  I think that you'll be ok, and not have to go to Argentina. 

• You've spent 85 days in Brazil so far in 2023 (day of arrival and day of departure each count as a full day);
• When you come back on December 17, you'll have 95 days left, and will get an initial 90 days;
• On February 1, you'll get back the 21 days you used in January 2023
• On March 1, you'll get back the 28 days you used in February 2023;
• If you request an extension in mid-March, you should get an extension of at least 54 days (5+21+28); chances are that they'll just give you another 90 days.  Either way, that will carry you through April.

If you want to take a break outside Brazil anyway, keep an eye on the schedule for re-imposing the advance visa requirement in Canada.  it's already been postponed twice, and now is scheduled for January 2024.  It may be postponed again, you might check with the Brazilian Consulate about getting it early, or you might get one at the Consulate in Buenos Aires.

Ah, the member I was praising earlier! I found your explanations particularly clear :-)

Yes, I was following the new visa requirement. As far as I know, it's now supposed to be in effect as of January 10. I also heard that it will be an online platform. Worst-case scenario, I will re-enter with my French passport (i.e. no visa required).

The thing is, I believe that it's no longer an option for Canadians to ask for an extension once the visa requirement is in effect. Basically, I was told visa = no extension.

I also have to plan the trip a bit and buy a return ticket so it seems risky to chance an extension. Can you confirm that time spent outside the country is deducted from the 90 days? For instance, if I spent 30 days in Brazil then 20 days in Argentina, I still have 40 days to spend in Brazil when I re-enter the country?

    09/29/23 Ah, the member I was praising earlier! I found your explanations particularly clear :-)

Thanks!  Answering these questions is what I'm here for -- that's what the little teal-colored Lightbulb badge on my Avatar means. 😉

Yes, I was following the new visa requirement. As far as I know, it's now supposed to be in effect as of January 10. I also heard that it will be an online platform. Worst-case scenario, I will re-enter with my French passport (i.e. no visa required).The thing is, I believe that it's no longer an option for Canadians to ask for an extension once the visa requirement is in effect. Basically, I was told visa = no extension.

Unless it was the Consulate that told you that, I strongly doubt that it is the case.  A visa from the Foreign Ministry only gives a visitor permission to request admission to Brazil at a port of entry.  Once the Justice Ministry, through the Federal Police, grants entry, the visitor falls under Justice Ministry jurisdiction, which is supposed to base length of stay on the QGRV, the General Framework for Visas (issued by the Foreign Ministry -- it's a little circular).  The QGRV isn't changing, and under it a Canadian legally in Brazil can stay for 90 days, plus one 90 day extension.  So if you're in Brazil legally under the visa waiver program and the visa waiver program ends during your stay, that should not affect  a legal stay already in progress.  If you leave Brazil then yes, you will need a new visa to return.

The clock on your stay does stop running if you leave Brazil, but only if you leave through a passport control checkpoint so you're "checked out" of the country.  So be sure to do that.

I also have to plan the trip a bit and buy a return ticket so it seems risky to chance an extension. Can you confirm that time spent outside the country is deducted from the 90 days? For instance, if I spent 30 days in Brazil then 20 days in Argentina, I still have 40 days to spend in Brazil when I re-enter the country?  -@Xiaozhuli

I can't advise you on entering and leaving Brazil legally on one passport, then entering legally again on a different passport.  It's not technically illegal, but it would create the suspicion of trying to evade the visit stay limits if you're detected.  At any rate, a visa waiver is still a visa, and a French citizen, like most Schengen Area citizens, can only stay for 90 days out of every 180, with no extensions allowed.  Your plans seem to fall within the limits for both Canadian and French citizens.

Hi @Xiaozhuli, I agree with everything that @abthree said. Just a few points I want to emphasize.

In your first question you said, "...so I have 96 days left to spend in Brazil until it resets on January 11." Just to be clear, the days spent in Brazil does not "reset" to zero. Rather, it is a rolling 180 day calendar as @abthree was describing.

Regard your comments about the visa. I suspect that the visa will be similar to the one they had previously. The visa authorized the visitor to be able to visit Brazil as many times as they want until the visa expiration date (at least that was the case for USA. I would think it would be the same for Canada). The visa itself isn't the 90/180 day restrictor. It is my understanding that it is the customs official at port of entry who tries to determine your length of stay and whether you will be within the 180 day limit. On one of my previous visits, the official noted that my return flight was going to be past the initial 90 days. I acknowledged that was the case and that it was my intention to request my tourist visa extension from the Policia Federal. He advised me to do it about 30 days before my 90 days expires. (I didn't actually have the occasion to make my visa extension because I had to return to the USA early. However, when I returned to Brazil a few months later, the customs official reminded me that I could not exceed 180 days within 365 days.)

Another side note: our next visit will be in January for just under 90 days (TBD). We already bought one way tickets to Brasilia, but since we plan to  visit BA and Uruguay, I want to buy the Brasilia to BA tickets before going to Brazil in January to assure the customs official that I am not planning to overstay my visit in Brazil. (We plan to fly back to USA from BA.)

Regarding the visa process now online, I  suspect that it will be bumpy the first few weeks, but will settle down like the launch of most other online programs. Admittedly one silver lining of the covid pandemic was that Brazilian pushed so many of the services online that previously required multiple office visits and long waits. So hopefully this will not be too painful.

Boa sorte!

Thank you both so much @abthree and @EricPau!

While I completely understand there's no absolute yes/no answer when it comes to travelling and borders (everything can change fast and remains up to the officials, after all), it's very refreshing to post on a forum where members don't blame each other, call each other names or just plainly tell you to "Google it FFS".

You're right, @abthree, my information regarding a potential no extension for Canadian passport holders is purely speculative. I think EU passport holders (most countries, anyway) can no longer ask for an extension and I probably wrongly assumed it would be the same for Canadians.

Nonetheless, for this trip, I think it will be easier for me to just leave the country (and yes, I'll make sure to get a stamp, not always a straightforward process at Chuy or Foz!). But it's good to know that potentially, asking for an extension is also an option in January. I have to plan the trip a bit since I'm leaving with husband/son but then travelling alone so I'm considering options right now, hence all the questions.

I wish there was an easy way to calculate these 180 days! This is still rather confusing to me. I think I get it but I'm afraid to calculate it wrong :-D Typically, I don't spend *that* much time in Brazil, just over 90 days or just under 90 days between Dec/Jan-March/April.

Very good point regarding using two passports. I rarely (if ever) do, actually. It did come it handy during the pandemic when I was in Brazil and Canada cancelled ALL flights. I still left with my Canadian passport but entered France with my French one. Felt very Jason Bourne ;-)

I had a Canadian visa before, the multi-entry one. We applied at the Brazil Embassy in Ottawa back then. This is an option if the program is launched before we leave in Sept. but I doubt it. And hopefully this time it will be an online process. I agree, I love the pandemic online processes, I somehow got my own CPF very easily!

@EricPau, I understand why you're buying your onward ticket from Brasilia, do you also have your return booked from BA? Just curious.

09/29/23  @Xiaozhuli.  Here's the QGRV.  This is the (authoritative) Portuguese version, because the English version has (at least one) typo.  Most but not all EU members are on the 90/180 plan, the countries with "*".  Some are not:

The easiest way to count is to look at the twelve months preceding your planned arrival and count the number of days during that period you were in Brazil, including your arrival and departure days.  The number of days that a Canadian has available is 180 minus that number.  As @Eric Pau said and I forgot to mention (probably because I've typed it about 100 times!), it's a rolling twelve months, so each month the oldest month in that twelve month period drops off, and you get back any days during that month that you spent in Brazil. 

Thank you for the reference document! Great to have and it makes sense to me.

Again, thank you so much for your time.

I think I'll be back with questions in the next few days/weeks because let's face it, I *always* have questions.

Abthree has pointed out,the days are adjusted on the 1st of the month,eg,if u entered Brazil on 11/15/22 and left 5/15/23,with extension,180 days,your allowance will take effect 12/1/23,not 11/16/23.i think.