The General Immigration Coordinator, Ms. Hebe Teixeira, has been dismissed of her post as Coordinator of the Immigration Department inside the Ministry of Labor. Her substitute is Mr. Paulo Sérgio de Almeida, an auditor in Rio de Janeiro. The reasons for such substitution were not released to the public. The visa application processes may experience certain delays during this transition period.
The General Immigration Department is responsible for granting work authorizations for all foreigners coming to Brazil to work, since no foreign employee is allowed to work in Brazil without the authorization issued by the Immigration Coordination of the Ministry of Labor.
It is worth mentioning that there is a noticeable concern of the government regarding the current unemployment rate in Brazil. The governmental policy on foreign work immigration tend to be also an instrument to force the companies to employ Brazilian manpower, except in case of high qualified employees whose skills are not available in the Brazilian market.