Surge of Brazilians Coming to America

SF News – The United States State Department says that the number of Brazilians who requested travel visa’s to the US rose 42 percent comparing to the year 2010.  The department processed a record number of 820,000 visa applications at its Mission to Brazil last year, says a statement posted on State Department’s website.

To deal with the surge the department has had to deploy temporary employees to US Embassy in Brasilia and to US Consulates in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Recife cities until permanent ones can be sent in. 

American malls the main attraction in US for Brazilians travelers.  Wall Street Journal in an article on December 21, described Brazilians as the big spenders in the US during this shopping season.  “. Armed with a strong currency, easier access to credit and abundant enthusiasm for shopping, Brazilians have quietly ousted richer nations, such as the UK,” wrote WSJ.  A major target city for shopping travelers is New York City the paper reports.

The reason for such enthusiasm in shopping in America among Brazilians is that everything here cost half as much it does in Brazil.  They have very high taxes, inflation and a closed economy.  All that make it very cheap to shop in the US rather than Brazil.   The difference for big shoppers can even cover airfare and hotel expenses.

The US is also experiencing growth in visa requests in China with over one million applications in 2011.