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If I have dual Colombian-US nationality, can I enter Brazil visa-free since they do not require visas for Colombians. Even though they do require visas for US citizens?

In others words, do I have to show both of my passports upon entering Brazil? Can I just show the Colombian passport and enter visa-free? Or will they, upon seeing both passports, require me to have a visa? Anyone have experience with dual citizenship like this?

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    As a general rule, you should only ever show one passport when entering a country
    – Gagravarr
    Commented Dec 16, 2013 at 1:37
  • Yes but where are these general rules written??! lol What if the brazilian customs officer asks you if you have any other nationalities? Does one lie?
    – unknownprotocol
    Commented Dec 16, 2013 at 1:42
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    The Australian government provides lots of advice for dual nationals, most of which will apply if you mentally substitute your own nationalities in when reading!
    – Gagravarr
    Commented Dec 16, 2013 at 2:04
  • @Gagravarr I'd have voted up your answer if you had put this in an answer! +1 for that link! thanks!
    – unknownprotocol
    Commented Dec 18, 2013 at 20:12
  • I am in the same cituartion. How did it work out for you? were you able to travel froem US soil to Brazilo with Colombian passport?
    – Fer
    Commented Feb 12, 2019 at 8:19

2 Answers 2

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If you travel from USA to Brazil, you will need both passports - the US one to leave the USA (source) and the Colombian one to enter Brazil.

Certainly you will have to show the airline your Colombian passport to proof that you're allowed to enter Brazil.

The only thing you must keep in mind about dual citizenship is that, if you go to Brazil on your Colombian passport, in case of an emergency, the US Embassy may not give you diplomatic protection since you are a Colombian citizen in Brazil. From travel.state.gov :

In addition, their dual nationality may hamper efforts to provide U.S. diplomatic and consular protection to them when they are abroad, especially when they are in the country of their second nationality.

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    I seriously doubt your last statement, what makes you think that? The classic case where dual citizenship precludes consular assistance is when you have the nationality of the country itsef but that's something else.
    – Relaxed
    Commented Dec 16, 2013 at 14:13
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    That's very vague and mostly about the case I mentioned above. The Vienna convention has no notion of “entering as a Colombian”, either you are a Colombian national or you are not, period. Note that the text you quote still only mentions the dual nationality itself, nowhere does it say that the passport you use matters. If, for some reason, your dual nationality is an issue, having used your US passport would not save you.
    – Relaxed
    Commented Dec 16, 2013 at 14:43
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    @Annoyed and also from the link that Gagravarr posted in his comment: "A person might not be regarded as being an Australian if that person is not travelling on their Australian passport, which may also limit the consular assistance available. " And btw I don't mean that there always be a problem, but only that it's possible!
    – Dirty-flow
    Commented Dec 16, 2013 at 16:11
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    Well, OK, I guess it's possible if a country wants to make difficulties (but such is international law anyway) and the edit did clarify that it's just a possibly but I am still unconvinced by the notion that you could choose to be “Colombian citizen in Brazil” merely by using your Colombian passport or conversely be sure to receive assistance from the US if you don't. You are a dual national no matter what and that's where the trouble starts, not mainly when you chose to use one passport or the other.
    – Relaxed
    Commented Dec 16, 2013 at 17:30
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    Also a small nuance, the problem is not that the US would typically withhold consular assistance, it's that the receiving country would not let them.
    – Relaxed
    Commented Dec 16, 2013 at 17:35
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I don't know about Brazil specifically but generally speaking there is no reason this should be a problem even if these things are rarely defined explicitly anywhere. In practice, if you are asked about other nationalities (which would be unusual except perhaps if the border guard notices that you are traveling from/to the US without a visa), lying sounds like a bad idea, just tell the truth and nothing much should happen.

Two exceptions come to mind:

  • You are a citizen of the country you are trying to enter. In many countries, it's mandatory to disclose that and use the local passport to enter. In countries that forbid dual-citizenship, you might even get into serious trouble if the authorities find out you have another nationality.
  • Politically sensitive situations like Israel/UAE. Note that even in this case, the UAE did not recognize Israeli passports but dual citizens could still enter, only after the Assassination of Mahmoud Al-Mabhouh did they go to the trouble of actually banning Israeli citizens who also had another nationality. Typically, laws about entry are written with (relatively) simple cases in mind and if you qualify under some rule, other more restrictive rules don't matter.
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  • "you might even get into serious trouble if the authorities find out you have another nationality." Can you give an example of that?
    – user102008
    Commented Dec 16, 2013 at 22:43
  • "did they go to the trouble of actually banning dual citizens." So are you saying they are banning their own nationals from entering?
    – user102008
    Commented Dec 16, 2013 at 22:44
  • @user102008 On the first point, some countries strip double nationals of their nationality.
    – Relaxed
    Commented Dec 17, 2013 at 9:57
  • @user102008 No that's not what I am saying, the people in question have two third-country nationalities, one of which would allow them to enter, the other not, just like the OP. The link provides details.
    – Relaxed
    Commented Dec 17, 2013 at 9:57
  • @user102008 I tried to clarify my answer, thanks for your comments!
    – Relaxed
    Commented Dec 17, 2013 at 10:13

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