Brazilian order of precedence

The order of precedence in Brazil is a symbolic hierarchy of officials used to direct protocol. It is regulated by Presidential Decree number 70.274 of March 9, 1972, signed by former President Emilio Medici. The following order applies to ceremonies hosted by the federal government.

This formal order of precedence was established during the military dictatorship, and hasn't been amended after the country's return to democracy in the 1980s. However, changes have informally been introduced to it, so that the de jure precedence no longer corresponds to the de facto arrangements that prevail in current practice. For instance, the head of the military cabinet, the head of the intelligence service and general officers of the Armed Forces no longer enjoy a precedence as high as is assigned to them by the 1972 Decree.

Other modifications of the order of precedence arise from the fact that certain officers, such as the Chief of Staff to the President, the Solicitor-General, etc., have been granted by law the status of Ministers of State, and so the holders of such officers now have a higher rank than they would have otherwise.

The order of precedence is only used to indicate ceremonial protocol; it does not reflect the co-equal status of the branches of government under the Constitution, and is not an actual hierarchy. The ranking of Brazilian officers in the Order of Precedence also does not reflect the place of those officers in the presidential line of succession.

The placement of Roman Catholic Cardinals in the order of precedence in spite of the Separation of Church and State in force in Brazil is justified on the grounds that they are Princes of a foreign power (the Holy See) residing in Brazil and/or holding Brazilian nationality.

Order of precedence according to the Decree in force

  1. The President of the Republic (Dilma Vana Rousseff)
  2. The Vice-President of the Republic (Michel Temer)
  3. The President of the Senate (Renan Calheiros)
  4. The President of the Chamber of Deputies (Henrique Eduardo Alves)
  5. The President of the Supreme Federal Court (Joaquim Barbosa)
  6. Brazilian cardinals (Paulo Evaristo Arns, José Freire Falcão, Serafim Fernandes de Araújo, Cláudio Hummes, Geraldo Majella Agnelo, Eusébio Oscar Scheid, Odilo Pedro Scherer, Raymundo Damasceno Assis, João Braz de Avis)
  7. Ministers of State
  8. The Head of the Military Cabinet (José Elito Carvalho Siqueira)
  9. The Chief of Staff (Aloízio Mercadante)
  10. The Director of the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Wilson Roberto Trezza)
  11. The Commanders of the Armed Forces(Júlio Soares de Moura Neto, Enzo Martins Peri, Juniti Saito)
  12. The Solicitor-General (Luís Inácio Adams)
  13. Foreign envoys
  14. Foreign ambassadors
  15. The President of the Supreme Electoral Court (Carmen Lúcia)
  16. Justices of the Supreme Federal Tribunal
  17. Governors of State, according to creation date.
  18. The Governor of the Federal District (Agnelo Queiroz)
  19. Senators
  20. Federal Deputies
  21. Admirals
  22. Marshals
  23. Air Marshals
  24. Squadron Admirals
  25. Army Generals
  26. Lieutenant-Brigadiers
  27. The President of the Superior Justice Tribunal
  28. The President of the Superior Military Tribunal
  29. The President of the Superior Labor Tribunal
  30. Justices of the Supreme Electoral Court
  31. Chargé d'affaires of foreign countries
  32. Justices of the Superior Justice Tribunal
  33. Justices of the Superior Military Tribunal
  34. Justices of the Superior Labor Tribunal
  35. Vice Admirals
  36. Divisional Generals
  37. Major-Brigadiers
  38. Archbishops or equivalent in other religions
  39. The President of the Tribunal of Justice of the Federal District
  40. Secretaries-General of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies
  41. Federal Prosecutors
  42. Directors of the Ministries of State
  43. Chancellors of Federal Universities
  44. The Director of the Brazilian Federal Police
  45. The President of the Central Bank of Brazil
  46. The President of the Bank of Brazil
  47. The President of the Brazilian Development Bank
  48. The Secretary of the Federal Revenue Service
  49. Mayors