Bolsonaro supporters are relocating to Paraguay in growing numbers, with Brazilians' residence applications there more than doubling over five years and a record 23,500 permits issued to them in 2025, as Brazil's presidential election approaches in October.

A Record Flow Across the Friendship Bridge

In 2025, Paraguay issued a record 40,600 residence permits to foreign nationals, 23,500 of them to Brazilians. The first three months of 2026 alone brought 9,200 more permits for Brazilians.

• •The border region in Brazil's far south sees non-stop movement.
• •Hundreds of cars and lorries cross the Friendship Bridge linking the two countries at all hours.
• •Those making the crossing say they intend to settle in Paraguay permanently.
• •Paraguay is a small country wedged between Argentina and Brazil.

The number of permits issued is expected to climb further in 2026.

Fear of a Lula Win and Rising Taxes Drive the Move

Many of the Brazilians seeking residence in Paraguay support Jair Bolsonaro, and they fear that October's presidential election will hand victory to the incumbent, Lula. With defeat for their camp a prospect they dread, many prefer to take their chances across the border. Some have already chosen exile, convinced the country will only deteriorate if President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva wins another term.

• •They blame Lula for an economic crisis they call unprecedented in Brazil.
• •They say tax rises under his government have become impossible to tolerate.
• •They see Paraguay as a tax haven.

To the new arrivals, the country presents itself as a destination of opportunity.

The Bolsonaro Shadow Over the Vote

The election is shadowed by Jair Bolsonaro's 27-year prison sentence for an attempted coup. His son Flavio Bolsonaro carries the far-right candidacy, and he is facing a corruption probe as the race tightens.

Brazilians vote on October 4 and October 25.