RIO DE JANEIRO, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Brazil and Uruguay announced Friday an agreement that will allow their citizens to be granted permanent visas on both sides without a prior period of temporary residency.
The agreement will become effective 30 days after its ratification by both parliaments.
To obtain permanent residency, the applicants are required to present a personal ID and two documents proving they have no criminal history, one domestic, the other international.
In Brazil, the residency permit will be granted by the Justice Ministry and the National Migration Directorate in Uruguay.
The applications will be free and the visas will give the holders the right to work in Brazil or Uruguay under the same conditions as locals.
In 2016, bilateral trade between Brazil and Uruguay reached 4 billion U.S. dollars and has grown 30 percent in the first quarter of 2017.
