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Certified Brazilian Property Deed Translation
Certified translation of the documents that record the ownership of land and buildings in Brazil, including the registry annotations and endorsements that carry the legal effect and that a reader unfamiliar with the system will otherwise skip.
$24.95/page
Flat rate per page, up to 250 words. No hidden fees.
100% USCIS acceptance
Every certified translation is guaranteed to be accepted by USCIS.
24-hour delivery
Most 1-3 page documents are delivered within 24 hours. Same-day available.
Two offices, and only one of them transfers title
Brazil separates the tabelionato de notas, which draws the escritura pública, from the cartório de registro de imóveis, which registers it. Title passes on registration, not on the deed.
So an escritura alone does not make you the owner, and clients routinely present one believing it does. The document that proves ownership is the matrícula.
The matrícula, which is the real document
Every Brazilian property has a matrícula — a numbered running record at its registry office listing every transfer, mortgage, lien and judicial restriction in order since the record opened.
A certidão de matrícula is a dated extract of it, and it is the document a buyer, a bank or a US court actually needs. We translate the full chain of entries rather than only the current owner.
The ITBI, and the encumbrances
Transfer requires the municipal ITBI tax to be paid and proven, and the matrícula carries averbações noting construction, marital regime changes, usufruct and penhora — judicial attachment.
An attachment buried in the averbações is the finding that matters, and a summary that gives only the owner hides it. We translate every entry.
The CPF, and the marital regime
Parties are identified by CPF for individuals and CNPJ for companies, and the deed states the marital regime, because under Brazilian community-property rules a spouse's consent may be required for a valid sale.
That clause looks like boilerplate and decides validity. See our Portuguese page.
Ordering, and what the certification covers
Upload the document, choose certified translation at $24.95 per page of up to 250 words, and it comes back typically within 24 hours as a PDF formatted to mirror the original, with a signed certificate of translation accuracy on letterhead. Marginal annotations are translated in place, in the margin, and every seal, stamp and registry endorsement is translated with the text. See how we translate and certified versus standard.
Frequently asked questions
Is the escritura the title?
No. Title passes on registration. The matrícula is the document that proves ownership.
What is a matrícula?
The property's running registry record, listing every transfer, mortgage and restriction in order.
What is a penhora?
A judicial attachment noted on the matrícula. It is the kind of entry a summary would hide.
Why does the deed state the marital regime?
Brazilian community-property rules can require a spouse's consent for a valid sale.
Ready to get started?
Upload the document and receive the certified translation, typically within 24 hours.