Getting samples and trial orders from Brazil

This page does not give minimum order quantities, since these are commercial terms each supplier sets on its own, and does not list destination-country import rules for samples, since those are set by your own country, not Brazil's. Check your own market's import rules for samples before asking a supplier to send any.

The short answer

A sample shipment from Brazil is declared differently from a commercial export, mainly by value. Below roughly USD 1,000, postal shipments use a simplified declaration; above it, or through most couriers regardless of value, a full export declaration (DU-E) applies, and the carrier typically prepares it. Tax non-incidence for exports covers samples the same as commercial goods in principle, though the detail for zero-value shipments carries some genuine gaps, named below rather than glossed over. Plant- and animal-origin samples carry their own certification questions, which this page covers with both of the government sources found, since they do not fully agree.

Declaring a sample export

By post (Correios, Exporta Fácil). Correios's own service description covers shipments up to 30 kg. Below USD 1,000, a simplified Lista de Remessa is used; above that value, and for temporary exports, a full DU-E is required, which Correios prepares on the sender's behalf. Correios states plainly that "amostras são remessas sem cobertura cambial," samples are shipments with no foreign-exchange cover. Its published guide gives weight and size limits (up to 30 kg for Econômico and Standard service, up to 2 kg for Expresso merchandise; maximum dimensions 50 x 150 x 80 cm and 280 cm total) and optional declared-value insurance up to USD 5,000 for Standard service and USD 10,000 for Expresso. An upper value limit sometimes quoted for postal exports, around USD 50,000, was not confirmed in a primary source.

By courier. Courier practice, described by FedEx's own Brazil export FAQ as an example rather than a universal rule, uses a simplified declaration (DRE) for shipments generally under USD 1,000 declared value, typically samples or exports by individuals, citing the underlying customs rule (IN RFB 1.737/2017) as current. A full DU-E can be issued for any declared value. Every courier export needs an air waybill, an invoice, and either a nota fiscal or an exemption letter for shipments by individuals. Confirm your specific courier's current thresholds directly, since this detail comes from one courier's own published FAQ, not a government source.

Classification code. A sample export is generally classified under enquadramento code 99101, "export without expectation of payment, for commercial promotion and sample purposes." Check this code against the current Portal Único table before relying on it, since it comes from a customs-consultancy reference rather than a primary government table read directly.

Tax treatment

Brazil's general export tax exemptions, as described on Siscomex's own page for export trading companies, apply to exports broadly: IPI does not apply to industrialized products sent abroad, under a constitutional immunity (Constituição Federal article 153, paragraph 3, item III); ICMS does not apply to goods leaving the country, under Lei Complementar 87/1996 article 3, item II; and PIS/COFINS do not apply to revenue from exports, under Leis 10.637/2002 and 10.833/2003.

A free sample produces no export revenue, so the PIS/COFINS exemption, which is about revenue, is largely academic for it. How the ICMS and IPI non-incidence rules apply specifically to a shipment sent with no foreign-exchange cover behind it, which is what Correios's own description of a sample means, was not confirmed against a primary source while preparing this page. Whether any of the commodities covered on this site carries a non-zero export duty (Imposto de Exportação, which applies only to specific products) was not checked here either; raw hides and skins are a candidate worth asking about specifically if that applies to your shipment.

Plant-origin samples

MAPA's own page on phytosanitary certification describes the Certificado Fitossanitário as the document that attests a plant product's compliance with the destination country's requirements, issued through the SIGVIG 3.0 system or, where the destination uses electronic certificates, through SHIVA (ePhyto). MAPA's separate page on export phytosanitary requirements is explicit that requirements are set by the destination country's own authorities and that MAPA's own T-Rex reference table can change at any time.

No MAPA rule was found in this pass that specifically exempts plant samples from the normal certification process, or that specifically requires it for samples where it would not otherwise apply. The honest position: whether your specific sample needs a phytosanitary certificate depends on your destination country's own requirement, not on the fact that the shipment is a sample. Confirm with your import authority rather than assume either way.

For green coffee specifically, the International Coffee Organization's own 2011 Rules on Certificates of Origin exempt "samples and consignments up to a net weight of 60 kilograms of green coffee or its equivalent" from the certificate-of-origin requirement. Whether Brazilian coffee exporters still apply this exemption in 2026 was not confirmed while preparing this page.

Animal-origin samples

Two Brazilian government sources address this, from different years, and both are worth showing rather than picking one.

MAPA's own page on exporting products of animal origin (last updated 14 July 2020) states that samples without commercial value of animal-origin products, sent for fairs, congresses, trials, commercial tests and similar purposes, must be accompanied by international certification issued through the Serviço de Inspeção Federal (SIF).

A later regulation, Portaria SDA 431/2021, sets out in more detail which categories of no-commercial-value samples may be exported (laboratory and research samples; samples for fairs, diplomatic events, congresses, exhibitions or commercial evaluation; samples for equipment testing), and states that only establishments registered with DIPOA under SIF may export samples without commercial value at all. It also requires the exporting establishment to present a declaration of responsibility for the shipment. Whether this Portaria is still in force unchanged as of 24 September 2026 was not confirmed while preparing this page.

Taken together: a meat sample, pork included, needs to originate from a SIF-registered plant, the same plant-level starting point as a commercial shipment, and needs whatever international certification the destination requires. Whether the separate plant-by-plant destination-country habilitation required for commercial exports also applies to a no-commercial-value sample was not confirmed either way.

Trial orders: containers, not volumes

This page does not give minimum order quantities, since MOQs are set commercially by each supplier and no general figure would be honest to publish. What can be said, for a first reefer trial order of meat, poultry, pork or juice, is the equipment itself: a 20-foot standard reefer container runs a temperature range of -30°C to +30°C with a maximum payload around 27,490 kg and 27 m³ capacity; a 40-foot high-cube standard reefer runs the same temperature range with roughly 29,480 kg maximum payload and 67.5 m³ capacity; a 40-foot high-cube super freezer runs -60°C to -10°C. These figures describe equipment capacity, not a typical or recommended load, and come from one carrier's published specifications rather than an industry-wide standard. No sourced figures for typical dry-container loads (bags per container for coffee, sugar, soy, cotton or pulp; slabs per container for stone) were found for this page, and none are estimated here.

Paying for a trial order

A letter of credit or a documentary collection can structure payment for a trial order the same way as for a full commercial shipment. The instruments themselves, and how to structure risk around one, are covered on payment terms and instruments; this page does not repeat that detail or add any payment-routing guidance.

What this page does not cover

Import rules on the receiving end, duty-free thresholds for samples, sanitary and phytosanitary import permits, and any restriction a specific country places on receiving meat, seed or plant material by courier or post, are set entirely by your own country. This page does not list them. Check your own customs authority before asking a Brazilian supplier for a sample.

Where this fits

Confirming that a trial shipment matches the contract before it leaves Brazil is the job of pre-shipment inspection. The wider index is the Sourcing from Brazil hub.

Sources

• Postal export thresholds, weight and size limits, and insurance ceilings: Correios (the postal operator), correios.com.br, and its published export e-book, primary.
• Courier practice example, DRE and DU-E thresholds: FedEx Brasil export FAQ, fedex.com, secondary (one courier's own description, citing IN RFB 1.737/2017 as the current customs rule, whose own text was not read directly).
• Sample enquadramento code 99101: FazComex customs consultancy reference, secondary; check against the current Portal Único table before relying on it.
• Export tax non-incidence for IPI, ICMS and PIS/COFINS: Siscomex, gov.br, primary. How this applies to a zero-value sample specifically was not confirmed in a primary source.
• Plant-product phytosanitary certification (SIGVIG 3.0, SHIVA/ePhyto) and destination-driven requirements: MAPA, gov.br/agricultura, primary.
• ICO coffee-sample certificate exemption (up to 60 kg net): International Coffee Organization, ICC 102-9 Rules on Certificates of Origin, 2011, ico.org, primary; current application in 2026 not confirmed.
• Animal-origin sample requirements: MAPA, "Quero exportar produtos de origem animal," updated 14 July 2020, primary; Portaria SDA 431/2021, primary, current force not confirmed.
• Reefer container temperature ranges and capacity: Maersk published FAQ and equipment specification sheet, maersk.com, secondary, carrier.

Facts checked 24 September 2026. Customs classification codes and courier thresholds change; confirm the current requirement with your carrier or with Portal Único Siscomex before shipping.