Lisbon — Never before have so many Brazilians decided to leave Brazil to live and work abroad. Data consolidated by Fragomen, the largest and oldest immigration company in the world, point out that the total number of applications for employment and residence visas in another country already exceeds that registered before the new coronavirus pandemic. Between January and November of this year, requests for Portugal alone increased by 200% compared to the same period in 2021. For the United States, the growth was 114% and, for Australia and New Zealand, it reached 544%. “We have been in Brazil for 10 years and whatever the data analyzed, it is a record”, says Diana Quintas, CEO of Fragomen and vice president of the Brazilian Association of Specialists in Migration and International Mobility (Abemmi).
There is, in Diana's understanding, a combination of factors encouraging Brazilians to emigrate, the strongest of which is the possibility of having salaries in euros and dollars. “At this point, Brazilian companies cannot compete”, he says. Another factor is the opportunity for career internationalization, which has attracted, above all, younger people. They also count on better living conditions, especially in terms of safety, and the prospect of quality education for their children. More recently, the political issue began to weigh in decisions to move abroad, given the polarization that is seen in the country. “Everything ends up adding up and, when a good opportunity appears, many do not give up”, he points out.
For the Fragomem CEO, young people are the most anxious, but also executives with very high positions, such as company presidents, have surrendered to proposals to leave Brazil. “Young people have a timing that they cannot lose. If they don't see incentives in their country, they go to where they believe there are more opportunities”, she stresses, rightly so. The unemployment rate among this public touches 20%, more than double the national average of 8.3%. When looking only at the most vulnerable population, living in poverty, three out of 10 are between 15 and 29 years old. It's a huge waste of talent and a commitment to the future.
“We are losing our most qualified young people abroad. The result of this is that we are left with an even greater shortage of manpower, especially in strategic sectors such as information technology (IT). In other words, what little we have here is attracted by other countries”, points out Diana. For her, a way of compensating for part of this exodus, in addition to improving education and the consistent resumption of economic growth, is for Brazil to attract back Brazilians who are abroad and encourage foreigners to come to the country to work and to train their workforce. of local work. This requires, in her view, better handling of immigration policy and, of course, better living conditions here.
science and math
According to Fragomen records, the greatest demand for Brazilian professionals abroad is in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. “There is demand all over the world for workers in these segments”, he reinforces, based on the migratory trends report prepared by the company. She believes, however, that Brazil ends up at a disadvantage in the face of the competition because of the difficulties in training the workforce that it has available. “Without a doubt, Brazil is capable of training and training excellent scientists, engineers, mathematicians, specialists in information technology. But it doesn't. Thus, when these professionals do not find an environment that welcomes them in their country of origin, they flee to other nations with projects and investments in the areas in which they work”, he explains. “We can say that we are seeing a brain drain from Brazil”, he emphasizes.
Fragomen's ownership numbers are impressive. The company's CEO says that there are currently more than 3 million Brazilians living abroad on a regular basis — most of them working. A record. “This represents three times the total number of foreigners with formal registration in Brazil”, he adds. This information, it should be noted, does not include those who are in an irregular situation. The largest share of Brazilians who formally left the country is in the United States. Between 2010 and 2019, this population increased by almost 50%, from 340,000 to 502,000. Today, it already touches 600 thousand. In Portugal, there are almost 300,000 Brazilians, one third of all foreigners living in Portuguese territory.
One of them is Daniel Cupertino, 39, who works in the information technology area at France's Airbus. He lives in Almada, in the Lisbon metropolitan area. The aircraft manufacturer opened three units in Portugal, one for parts, two for professionals from all areas. Daniel arrived in the European country in early 2021, at the height of the new coronavirus pandemic, without any employment relationship. He only had a two-month contract with Nissan to transition the job to his successor. He was convinced that it would be worth giving up a certain job in Brazil to try his luck abroad.
Everything conspired in Daniel's favor. His husband, Fernando, had been selected for a doctorate at a university in Lisbon. Thus, even without work, he could stay in Portugal to find a job. Even before his contract with Nissan expired, he had already been selected by a local technology company. “Employability is very high in the sector in which I work,” he says. From there to Airbus it was a jump. “I made the right choice. Before moving to Portugal, I used to say that if nothing happened from a professional point of view, it would already be a gain for the experience of living outside Brazil. But it all happened.”
global competition
In the evaluation of the president of Fragomen, there is no doubt: “Brazilians are competing with global talents for vacancies in multinationals. We could be taking advantage of these brains, which are being used for the benefit of other countries”. Renata Lima de Barros, 45, has lived in Portugal for three years. She, who works for the technology company Everedge, has just been selected by the German automaker Volkswagen. The new venture will begin next January. The Brazilian says she is ready for the challenge.
Renata recalls that she started thinking about working abroad in 2018. The political issue was bothering her too much. And the worst she expected happened: Jair Bolsonaro was elected president of the Republic. Later that year, he received a proposal to work in Lisbon with IT. “I went through the selection process, I was approved. The company gave me all the support to get a highly qualified professional visa, with a job. I embarked in November 2019”, he recalls. Six months after settling in Lisbon, she bought an apartment. “Within two years, I will be able to get my Portuguese citizenship and I will have all the opportunities of the European Union, since I will be able to circulate freely in the common market”, he emphasizes.
Kauê Magno, 29, believes he found himself in Portugal, both professionally and personally. He works in the design area and didn't see good opportunities in São Paulo, where he lived. “It was a hostile place for me, where I didn't fit in, just as I didn't fit in in Santos, where I was born,” he says. “I didn't see in São Paulo an opportunity for what I like, design”, he adds. The young man does not regret the change. “My leaving Brazil abroad is due to the possibility of gaining in quality of life, strengthening security and, at the same time, to overcome a barrier that is very distant, the much talked about abroad, the much talked about Europe. Something that we idealize a lot in Brazil and that you can only understand better when you are here”, he points out.
User Interface employee, Kauê says he has no regrets for leaving Brazil behind. “I think I was very privileged in this transition. I have family in Portugal, the comfort of the language. I was very well received by the Portuguese and by the friends I made here. This is very important for my personal growth, as my bond with Brazil is strengthened and I understand the dimension that the country has in my life”, he highlights. And he adds: “In Portugal, there were many achievements, opportunities for professional, financial and structural improvement. I was able to have achievements that I would not have in Brazil, such as a house and car, family with me, being able to travel. A significant advance in quality of life”.
important tips
Túlio César Rossetti Júnior, 32, moved to Europe on account of a master's degree in administrative law at the University of Lisbon. “At the beginning, I was very happy to move abroad, not only because of the safety — the violence rates are very low — and because of the greater purchasing power, but also because of knowing new things”, he emphasizes. Along the way, however, he noticed that the legal market in which he operated was not what he expected. It was then that he decided to go into the area of information technology, which was very hot. “From there, I gave a new direction to my career”, he says.
Túlio recognizes that he took the right steps, not only when he left Brazil, but because he requalified himself professionally for a new world. “I say that, today, I have what I always expected from a life abroad. When you move from one country to another, I like to think that we are born again, because we have to learn a lot. It's the price you pay, but it makes sense and it's valid”, he emphasizes, who still has the advantage of having his mother close by. She had already moved to Portugal well before.
Despite so many success stories and the demand for good Brazilian professionals, Fragomen's CEO warns that changing countries is not a panacea. It requires a lot of care. First, it is necessary to have all the document situation regularized, which opens doors. “If you arrive irregularly, for sure, the experience of living in another country will be doomed to be frustrated”, he says. She points out that several countries, due to the rapid aging of the population and the shortage of labor, have facilitated the granting of work visas. “Therefore, it is much more democratic, there is a visa to call your own”, he warns.
Within this context, the executive advises, for example, IT professionals to prioritize nations that created tech visas. Remember that Portugal opened the possibility for people to stay up to 180 days in its territory looking for a job, as long as they can sustain themselves during this period. Germany, with what they call the German green card, is also giving this freedom, but those interested must master the local language. There are also visas for businessmen, entrepreneurs and investors in the real estate market. “Therefore, there are several options, but everything must be done safely”, he reinforces.
Another important point: mastering the language of the country you are moving to. This prevents workers from falling into traps when signing employment contracts. “Often, when there is no understanding of the language, it is difficult to understand the work contracts, and the risk of being left in a vulnerable situation exists”, he explains. More: you need to have savings to support yourself. “Financial planning is fundamental, as it provides security until everything fits into what was thought”, he recommends.
Text: Vicente Nunes, correspondent in Europe
Foreigners occupy space in Brazil
Lisbon — If the number of Brazilians willing to live and work abroad continues to grow, the number of foreigners who have decided to work in Brazil is also a record. According to Fragomen, a company specializing in migration and international mobility, authorizations for workers from abroad granted by the government increased by 81% between January and November of this year, when compared to the same period in 2021. “There is an important flow of foreign workers to Brazil . In 10 years of operations in the country, we have never seen so much demand”, says the company's CEO, Diana Quintas.
According to Fragomen's consolidated data, in the first six months of 2022 alone, more than 10,000 foreign workers entered Brazil, with 25% of visas given to crew members of vessels serving the oil and gas industry. This number, points out Diana, does not include technicians who also work in the sector. “In Brazil, the oil and gas segment is the second that most issues temporary work visas for foreigners to work in the country, behind only technicians in general”, he says. “We are talking about an industry that has a high degree of technical cooperation between countries and, therefore, has a large volume of global mobility of professionals”, he adds.
Despite the growing flow of foreign labor to Brazil, the president of Fragomen recalls that the total number of workers coming from abroad still represents very little of the market as a whole. “It shouldn't be like this, quite the contrary. Specialized foreign labor adds knowledge to the country and trains many people. Not by chance, several countries encourage the immigration of these workers”, emphasizes the executive. In total, according to surveys by the Ministry of Justice, there are just over 1 million foreigners living regularly in Brazil, including refugees. They represent only 0.47% of the country's current population. The peak of foreigners living in Brazilian territory occurred in the early 1900s — they reached almost 7% of the population.
Diversified demand
For Renato Martins, CEO of Martins Castro, based in Lisbon, the greater the participation of foreign workers in a country, the more dynamic and innovative the economy. “We live in a process of labor globalization. People no longer identify with the nation they were born into. In addition, there is a dematerialization movement, with a telephone or a computer you can work from anywhere in the world”, he says. In his view, language is no longer a barrier, as it was 10 years ago. “There are courses and apps that allow for quick learning,” he points out.
He also recalls that there is a worldwide demand for all types of labor. In the United States, the demand is for information technology (IT) professionals. In the United Kingdom, where the world's largest contractor is located, the public health system, doctors and nurses are very welcome. Portugal is eager for workers in the service sector, especially for tourism, with a strong participation in the local economy. In the Middle East, you need everything. Australia, in turn, is looking for manual workers, especially for civil construction. “Brazil, therefore, cannot be left out of this network”, he believes.
CEO of Humanare and specialist in human and organizational development, Adriana Schneider believes that the labor internationalization movement is irreversible. “This is true both for Brazilians who are venturing out into the world, and for foreigners looking for opportunities in Brazil,” he says. She recognizes, however, that the most qualified professionals end up standing out within this process. “In these cases, migratory movements are calmer”, he believes. This group even includes digital nomads, who have been disputed by many countries. At least 30 of them, including Brazil, have specific legislation with incentives to attract them.
Failures in the legislation
In the opinion of Diana Quintas, from Frogomen, Brazil has prepared itself to enter this world of competition for qualified workers through the new Immigration Law, enacted in 2017. However, she points out, it is necessary to advance in the standardization of specific points in order to make it more attractive for foreigners to come to the country. “Brazil, intelligently, thought about this opening with the new Immigration Law. The problem is that, five years after its sanction and regulation, there is no rule, there is no article or paragraph creating a facilitation for specialized labor. We haven't been able to define any need so far, while the world is doing this”, he points out.
For her, who is vice-president of the Brazilian Association of Immigration Specialists (Abemmi), it is important for the government to expand the alternatives and tell the market what the current shortage is, what specialists the country needs. “In these cases, the market reserve is waived. You can also follow the model adopted by Portugal: people come to the country for a certain period, look for work and then regulate their stay. This opening has not yet been standardized”, he explains. She believes that it is possible to advance on several points through the National Immigration Council, which meets every two months.
Both Diana and Renato and Adriana believe that Brazil loses out by remaining so closed to the entry of qualified foreign labor. There are several studies that show that countries with higher immigration rates have the most heated economy. “It's a virtuous cycle. People want to emigrate to countries with stronger economies. As they migrate, productive activity is strengthened, attracting more investment”, emphasizes the CEO of Fragomen. “There are countries that, if they limited the entry of foreign workers, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) would be 10% smaller”, he adds.
Unemployment
One of the arguments used by those who see the entry of foreign workers in the country with reservation is the high unemployment rate — more than 9 million Brazilians are without a job. For specialists, the unemployment rate is not affected by specialized immigrants. “We don't see that impact”, stresses Diana. “When you look for specialized labor abroad, it's because you need to develop skills that the locals generally don't have”, he adds. There are also ways to shield national workers, defining, for example, a period for foreign workers to remain in the country.