SUS for foreigners: what the law says, how to get in and what it does not promise

The law establishes for migrants who live in the country access to the public health system SUS (Sistema Único de Saúde) without discrimination by citizenship or migration status (Lei 13.445/2017, art. 4, VIII), and care for the patient requires no payment. This is a right to care, not to a place in a particular maternity hospital: the order of care, the admission procedure and the terms for tourists are set by the city and the facility.

What does the law say?

The Constitution calls health “a right of all and a duty of the state” with “universal and equal access” to services (art. 196). The SUS law names universal access at all levels of care as its first principle (Lei 8.080/1990, art. 7, I).

The migration law adds that migrants who live in the country have access to public health services “in the manner established by law, without discrimination by citizenship or migration status” (Lei 13.445/2017, art. 4, VIII). The Ministry of Health describes SUS the same way: the system ensures universal, comprehensive access at no cost to the user to health services. For short-term visitors (tourists), the terms of routine prenatal care and birth are set by the municipality and the facility, so they need to be checked in advance.

The absence of a charge to the patient does not mean the system costs nothing: SUS is funded from the social security budgets of the federation, the states, the Federal District and the municipalities, and from other sources (Constitution, art. 198, § 1).

How do you get into SUS in practice?

Care begins at the primary-care level: at a UBS (Unidade Básica de Saúde, the basic health clinic), which in Florianópolis is called a Centro de Saúde, for your address. The rules for registration in SUS are these:

• The Ministry of Health’s rules (Portaria 1/2017, art. 265, as amended in 2021) do not treat the absence of a CPF (Cadastro de Pessoas Físicas, the tax number) or of a SUS card number as an obstacle to care if the person can be identified by another valid document; registration is completed later.
• For foreigners who do not live in the country, the country of residence is recorded and, if possible, the address and contacts where the person is staying (art. 272, § 2).
• The Ministry of Health is moving the SUS card to the CPF (the schedule was announced on September 16, 2025). Foreigners who do not use a CPF keep the CNS number: this is the number of the SUS card (Cartão Nacional de Saúde), which the Ministry now calls the Cadastro Nacional de Saúde (the Ministry’s announcement as retold by CONASEMS).

For a birth, the maternity hospital itself names the list of documents. For example, Maternidade Carmela Dutra asks for a photo ID, a SUS card, a prenatal care card or booklet and test results. HU-UFSC’s service charter names a document and a CPF for admission, but under Portaria 1/2017 (art. 265) the absence of a CPF should not in itself prevent care if the person can be identified by another document; confirm the procedure with the maternity hospital.

The obstetric emergency unit of HU-UFSC admits by referral or by assigned territory. In HU-UFSC’s emergency care, the admission team assesses patients by risk classification so that those who need it most receive help first.

What does SUS pay for, and what stays with you?

Maternidade Carmela Dutra writes that its services are provided by SUS and that there are no fees or charges for care (Lei 8.080/1990). HU-UFSC stresses the same in its norms for doulas and adds separately that the facility bears no responsibility for settlements between a doula and a woman in labor. That means the care of doctors and the maternity hospital in SUS requires no payment from the patient, while the services you choose separately (a doula, an interpreter, housing, flights, insurance) remain your responsibility.

The private route works differently: the terms are set by a contract with the clinic and the doctor, and the clinic names the final amount.

What the law and SUS do not promise

• A place in a particular maternity hospital. The law establishes access to care, but the maternity hospital is determined by assignment by address, a referral and the risk level of the pregnancy.
• The mode of birth. At Carmela Dutra the mode of birth is decided after a doctor’s assessment; cesareans there are not done by prior appointment.
• Speed and comforts. The queue, the availability of an interpreter and the conditions of the ward depend on the facility.
• The outcome. Care in SUS does not promise a particular course of birth.

The laws and Ministry of Health rules this article relies on contain no separate restrictions for foreigners who do not live in Brazil, but they do not establish a separate right for short-term visitors either: the rules only describe how to register them. The procedure on the ground is set by the city and the facility, so check it in advance at your Centro de Saúde or maternity hospital.

And entering the country?

The right to care in SUS does not answer the question of whether you will be let into the country: border control decides that separately. What is known about this today is on the page “What to know in 2026”. For an overview of the options for giving birth in the country, see the section “Giving birth in Brazil”.

What we don’t guarantee

• that you will be admitted to a particular facility or on a particular day;
• that the rules in question will not change: the data are given as of October 3, 2026.

When you need a doctor or a lawyer

With worrying symptoms, go to a Centro de Saúde or a maternity hospital, and if life is at risk, call SAMU at 192: the call costs nothing, and the service works around the clock. Questions about entry, status and documents are decided by government bodies, and for a review of your own situation, turn to a lawyer.

If you need help with the language at appointments and in labor, you can write to Katerina.