The United States government has granted permanent residency to former Brazilian federal deputy Eduardo Bolsonaro, according to Brazilian media reports published today.
The green card status grants foreign nationals the legal right to reside, work, and study indefinitely in the United States without requiring temporary visa authorizations.
The approval comes during a period of heightened diplomatic tension between Washington and Brasília, following a 25% tariff increase imposed by the U.S. administration on Brazilian imports.
The former lawmaker was sentenced by Brazil’s Federal Supreme Court to four years and two months in prison for coercion during judicial proceedings, following the conviction of his father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, related to an attempted coup d’état.
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Residing in the U.S. since February of last year, Eduardo Bolsonaro has actively engaged with American political figures and lobbied for measures targeting Brazilian officials.
These political efforts previously contributed to the application of U.S. Magnitsky Act sanctions against Brazilian public figures, including Federal Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.
Commenting to Brazilian news outlets, political commentator and Bolsonaro family ally Paulo Figueiredo noted that the green card application had been submitted over a year ago and argued that permanent resident status provides Eduardo Bolsonaro with constitutional protections under U.S. law.