# Article 37 of the Constitution of Brazil

- Jurisdiction: Brazil (BR)
- Article: 37
- Chapter (as indexed): Chapter II: – Social
- Source document: Brazil Constitution
- Canonical (HTML): https://www.portablelaw.com/provision/0ff88980-c36c-4beb-9ee6-5382f00ec58e
- This document: https://www.portablelaw.com/provision/0ff88980-c36c-4beb-9ee6-5382f00ec58e/md
- Constitution: https://www.portablelaw.com/countries/561c3433-2160-4ca0-8e5a-8f5e9dbd522c

## Verbatim text

````
t
he d
irecting b
oards of the c
hamber of d
eputies and of the f
ederal s
enate, under
the terms of paragraph 3 of article 60 of the f
ederal c
onstitution, promulgate the
following Amendment to the constitutional text:
a
rticle 1.
s
ubitem c of item XVI of article 37 of the Federal Constitution shall
henceforth read as follows:
“Article 37.  ..............................................................................
..................................................................................................
X
vi
–
......................................................................................
c
) of two positions or jobs which are exclusive for health
professionals, with regulated professions;................................................................................................ ”
a
rticle 2.
t
his c
onstitutional a
mendment shall come into force on the date of its
publication.
b
rasília,
d
ecember 13, 2001.
THE DIRECTING BOARD OF THE CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES: Aécio Neves,
pr
esident – Barbosa Neto , se
cond vi
ce-pr
esident – Nilton Capixaba , se
cond se
cretary
– Paulo Rocha , t
hird
s
ecretary.
THE DIRECTING BOARD OF THE FEDERAL SENATE: Ramez Tebet , pr
esident –
Edison Lobão , fi
rst vi
ce-pr
esident – Antonio Carlos Valadares , se
cond vi
ce-pr
esident
– Carlos Wilson , fi
rst se
cretary – Antero Paes de Barros, se
cond se
cretary – Ronaldo
Cunha Lima, t
hird
s
ecretary – Mozarildo Cavalcanti ,
f
ourth
s
ecretary.
p
ublished in the Official Journal ,
d
ecember 14, 2001.
miolo_constitution_versao_camara.indd   296 17/6/2010   15:01:14
Constitutional Amendments 297
Constitutional  amen D ment  n o. 35, 2001
Gives new wording to article 53 of the Federal
Constitution.
t
he d
irecting b
oards of the c
hamber of d
eputies and of the f
ederal s
enate, under
the terms of paragraph 3 of article 60 of the f
ederal c
onstitution, promulgate the
following Amendment to the constitutional text:
a
rticle 1.
a
rticle 53 of the f
ederal c
onstitution shall henceforth be in force with
the following alterations:
“Article 53.
Deputies
and Senators enjoy civil and criminal
inviolability on account of any of their opinions, words and votes.
pa
ragraph 1.
de
puties and se
nators, from the date of issuance of
the certificate of election victory, shall be tried by the Supreme
f
ederal
c
ourt.
Paragraph 2.  F
rom the date of issuance of the certificate of
election victory, the members of the n
ational co
ngress may not
be arrested, except in flagrante delicto of a non-bailable offense.
i
n such case, the case records shall be sent within twenty-four
hours to the respective House, which, by the vote of the majority of its members, shall decide on the arrest.
p
aragraph 3.
u
pon receiving an accusation against a s
enator
or d
eputy, for an offense committed after the issuance of the
certificate of election victory, the Supreme Federal Court shall inform the respective
ho
use, which, by the initiative of a political
party therein represented and by the vote of the majority of those House members, may, until such time as a final decision is issued, stay consideration of the action.
pa
ragraph 4.
th
e request for stay shall be examined by the
respective House within the unextendable period of forty-five days as from its receipt by the
d
irecting
b
oard.
pa
ragraph 5.
th
e stay of proceedings shall suspend the
limitation for the duration of the term of office.
p
aragraph 6.
d
eputies and s
enators shall not be compelled to
render testimony on information received or given by virtue of the exercise of their mandate, nor  on persons who rendered them
information or received information from them.
Paragraph 7.
Incorporation
into the Armed Forces of Deputies
and Senators, even if they hold military rank and even in time of war shall depend upon the prior granting of permission by the respective
h
ouse.
miolo_constitution_versao_camara.indd   297 17/6/2010   15:01:14
Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil 298
paragraph 8.  the immunities of d eputies and s enators shall be
maintained during a state of siege and may only be suspended
by the vote of two-thirds of the members of the respective
h
ouse, in the case of acts committed outside the premises of
c
ongress, which are not compatible with the implementation
of such measure.”
a
rticle 2.
t
his c
onstitutional a
mendment shall come into force on the date of its
publication.
b
rasília,
d
ecember 20, 2001.
THE DIRECTING BOARD OF THE CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES: Aécio Neves,
pr
esident – Efraim Morais , fi
rst vi
ce-pr
esident – Barbosa Neto , se
cond vi
ce-
pr
esident – Severino Cavalcanti , fi
rst se
cretary – Nilton Capixaba , se
cond se
cretary
– Paulo Rocha , t
hird
s
ecretary – Ciro Nogueira,
f
ourth
s
ecretary.
THE DIRECTING BOARD OF THE FEDERAL SENATE: Ramez Tebet , pr
esident –
Edison Lobão , fi
rst vi
ce-pr
esident – Antonio Carlos Valadares , se
cond vi
ce-pr
esident
– Carlos Wilson , fi
rst se
cretary – Antero Paes de Barros, se
cond se
cretary – Ronaldo
Cunha Lima, t
hird
s
ecretary – Mozarildo Cavalcanti ,
f
ourth
s
ecretary.
p
ublished in the Official Journal ,
d
ecember 21, 2001.
miolo_constitution_versao_camara.indd   298 17/6/2010   15:01:14
Constitutional Amendments 299
Constitutional  amen D ment  n o. 36, 2002
Gives new wording to article 222 of the Federal
Constitution, to allow the participation of legal entities in the capital stock of newspaper companies, sound broadcasting companies, and sound and image broadcasting companies, under the conditions herein stipulated.
t
he d
irecting b
oards of the c
hamber of d
eputies and of the f
ederal s
enate, under
the terms of paragraph 3 of article 60 of the f
ederal c
onstitution, promulgate the
following Amendment to the constitutional text:
ar
ticle 1.  A
rticle 222 of the Federal Constitution shall henceforth read as follows:
“ar
ticle 222.
ne
wspaper companies, sound broadcasting
companies, or sound and image broadcasting companies, shall be owned exclusively by native Brazilians or those naturalized for more than ten years, or by legal entities incorporated under Brazilian laws and headquartered in Brazil.
p
aragraph 1.
i
n all circumstances, at least seventy per cent of
the total capital stock and of the voting capital of newspaper
companies, sound broadcasting companies, or sound and image broadcasting companies, shall be owned directly or indirectly by native Brazilians or those naturalized for more than ten years, who shall mandatorily exercise the management of activities and shall define the content of programming.
pa
ragraph 2.
ed
itorial responsibility and the activities
regarding selection and management of the programming to be disseminated shall be carried out exclusively by native Brazilians or those naturalized for more than ten years, in any social communication medium.
pa
ragraph 3.
el
ectronic social communication media, regardless
of the technology used to deliver the service, shall comply with the principles stipulated in article 221, as provided by specific legislation, which shall also ensure priority to Brazilian professionals in the production of Brazilian programs.
Paragraph 4.
S
pecific legislation shall regulate the participation
of foreign capital in the companies mentioned in paragraph 1.
pa
ragraph 5.
an
y alterations in the corporate control of the
companies mentioned in paragraph 1 must be communicated
to the
n
ational
c
ongress.”
a
rticle 2.
t
his c
onstitutional a
mendment shall come into force on the date of its
publication.
miolo_constitution_versao_camara.indd   299 17/6/2010   15:01:14
Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil 300
brasília, May 28, 2002.
THE
DIRECTING BOARD OF THE CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES: Aécio Neves,
pr
esident – Barbosa Neto , se
cond vi
ce-pr
esident – Severino Cavalcanti , fi
rst
s
ecretary – Nilton Capixaba ,
s
econd
s
ecretary – Paulo Rocha , t
hird
s
ecretary.
THE DIRECTING BOARD OF THE FEDERAL SENATE: Ramez Tebet, p
resident
– Edison Lobão , fi
rst vi
ce-pr
esident – Antonio Carlos Valadares , se
cond vi
ce-
pr
esident – Carlos Wilson , fi
rst se
cretary – Antero Paes de Barros, se
cond se
cretary
– Mozarildo Cavalcanti ,
f
ourth
s
ecretary.
p
ublished in the Official Journal , May 29, 2002.
miolo_constitution_versao_camara.indd   300 17/6/2010   15:01:14
Constitutional Amendments 301
Constitutional  amen D ment  n o. 37, 2002
Alters articles 100 and 156 of the Federal
Constitution and adds articles 84, 85, 86, 87, and 88 to the Temporary Constitutional Provisions Act.
t
he d
irecting b
oards of the c
hamber of d
eputies and of the f
ederal s
enate, under
the terms of paragraph 3 of article 60 of the f
ederal c
onstitution, promulgate the
following Amendment to the constitutional text:
a
rticle 1.
a
rticle 100 of the f
ederal c
onstitution shall henceforth be in force with
the addition of the following paragraph 4, and the subsequent paragraphs shall be renumbered:
“
a
rticle 100.  ............................................................................
..................................................................................................
pa
ragraph 4.
th
e issuance of a court order as a supplementation
to or in addition to an amount to be paid, as well as the parceling, apportionment, or reduction of the amount under execution are forbidden, so that payment will not be made, in part, as stipulated in paragraph 3 of this article, and, in part, by means of the issuance of a court order.
................................................................................................ ”
a
rticle 2.
p
aragraph 3 of article 156 of the f
ederal c
onstitution shall henceforth
read as follows:
“
a
rticle 156.  ............................................................................
..................................................................................................
p
aragraph 3.
a
s regards the tax established in item iii
of the
head paragraph of this article, a supplementary law shall:I – establish its maximum and minimum rates;..................................................................................................
iii
– regulate the manner and conditions for the granting and
revocation of fiscal exemptions, incentives, and benefits. ................................................................................................ ”
ar
ticle 3.
th
e te
mporary co
nstitutional pr
ovisions ac
t shall henceforth be in force
with the addition of the following articles 84, 85, 86, 87, and 88:
“
a
rticle 84. t
he provisional contribution on the movement or
transmission of monies and of credits and rights of a financial
nature, set forth in articles 74, 75, and 80, I, of this Temporary
miolo_constitution_versao_camara.indd   301 17/6/2010   15:01:14
Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil 302
co nstitutional pr ovisions ac t, shall be collected through
d
ecember 31, 2004.
p
aragraph 1.
t
he effect of l
aw no. 9,311, of o
ctober 24, 1996,
as well as of its alterations, is hereby extended through the date
mentioned in the head paragraph of this article.
pa
ragraph 2.
of
the proceeds from collection of the social
contribution mentioned in this article, the portion corresponding to the following rates shall be allocated to the purposes herein stated:
i
– twenty hundredths percent to the n
ational h
ealth f
und, for
the financing of health actions and services;
II – ten hundredths percent to the financing of social security;
i
ii
– eight hundredths percent to the fu
nd to fi
ght and er
adicate
po
verty, set forth in articles 80 and 81 of this te
mporary
c
onstitutional
p
rovisions a
ct.
pa
ragraph 3.
th
e rate of the contribution mentioned in this
article shall be equal to:I – thirty-eight hundredths percent in the financial years of 2002
and 2003;
II – eight hundredths percent in the financial year of 2004, and
it shall be wholly allocated to the
f
und to f
ight and e
radicate
po
verty, set forth in articles 80 and 81 of this te
mporary
c
onstitutional
p
rovisions a
ct.
ar
ticle 85. th
e contribution mentioned in article 84 of this
temporary c
onstitutional p
rovisions a
ct shall not be levied, as
from the thirtieth day after the publication of this c
onstitutional
Amendment, on entries concerning:
i
– current deposit accounts especially opened and exclusively
used for transactions carried out by:
a) clearinghouses and providers of clearing and settlement
services referred to in article 2, sole paragraph, of la
w no. 10,214,
of March 27, 2001;
b) securitization companies referred to in Law no. 9,514, of
November 20, 1997;
c) business corporations whose exclusive purpose is to purchase
credits originating from transactions carried out in the financial market;
II – current deposit accounts, when such entries are related to:a) stock purchase and sale transactions, effected within stock
exchange trading floors or electronic systems, and in the
organized over-the-counter market;
miolo_constitution_versao_camara.indd   302 17/6/2010   15:01:14
Constitutional Amendments 303
b) contracts written on stocks or stock indices, in their various
modes, negotiated in stock exchanges, commodities and futures exchanges;
III – foreign investors’ accounts, regarding entries into and
remittances from Brazil of funds employed exclusively in transactions and contracts referred to in item
ii
of this article.
pa
ragraph 1.
th
e ex
ecutive br
anch shall regulate the provisions
of this article within thirty days as of the date of publication of this
c
onstitutional a
mendment.
p
aragraph 2.
t
he provisions of item i
of this article apply only
to the transactions specified in an act issued by the Executive
br
anch, from among the transactions that constitute the purpose
of said entities.
pa
ragraph 3.
th
e provisions of item i
i
of this article apply
only to transactions and contracts effected through financial institutions, securities brokerage houses, securities distribution companies, and commodities brokerage houses.
ar
ticle 86.
de
bts that must be paid by the fe
deral, st
ate,
Federal District, or Municipal Tax Authorities by virtue of final and unappealable judicial decisions shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of article 100 of the
fe
deral co
nstitution, the
parceling rule established in the head paragraph of article 78 of this
te
mporary co
nstitutional pr
ovisions ac
t not being applicable, if
such debts meet the following cumulative conditions:
I – having been the subject of a court order;II – having been defined as small amount debts by the law referred
to in paragraph 3 of article 100 of the
fe
deral co
nstitution, or by
````

## What this means (mechanical reading aid, not legal advice)

- The index files this text under article 37 of the Constitution of Brazil.
- The index files it under the chapter heading “Chapter II: – Social”.
- The passage runs to about 2,340 words.
- Read plainly, it mentions arrest and detention — it deals with arrest or detention, and the conditions attached to holding a person (the words used: “arrested”); it mentions privacy, search and seizure — it protects privacy or limits searching a person, their home or their communications (the words used: “inviolability”); it mentions equality and non-discrimination — it requires equal treatment or forbids discrimination (the words used: “equal”).
- **Caveat:** The row’s stored title is a body fragment, not a heading (“of the Federal Constitution.”), so it is not used as the provision’s title here.
- **Caveat:** The index gives this passage an article number but stores a body fragment where a heading would be, so the number could not be cross-checked against the text. Check it against the official Constitution before relying on it in a citation.

> This is a mechanical reading aid generated from the text above by matching words in it. It is not legal advice, not a lawyer’s interpretation, and not a substitute for the provision itself.

## How to cite this

Constitution of Brazil, article 37, Portable Lawyer, https://www.portablelaw.com/provision/0ff88980-c36c-4beb-9ee6-5382f00ec58e (accessed 27 September 2026).

## Related

- [Constitution of Brazil](https://www.portablelaw.com/countries/561c3433-2160-4ca0-8e5a-8f5e9dbd522c)
- [Brazil on Portable Lawyer](https://www.portablelaw.com/countries/561c3433-2160-4ca0-8e5a-8f5e9dbd522c)
- [HTML version of this provision](https://www.portablelaw.com/provision/0ff88980-c36c-4beb-9ee6-5382f00ec58e)
- [Machine-readable corpus digest](https://www.portablelaw.com/llms-full.txt)

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Portable Lawyer · Article 37 of the Constitution of Brazil (chapter: “Chapter II: – Social”). t he d irecting b oards of the c hamber of d eputies and of the f ederal s enate, under the terms of paragraph 3 of article 60 of the f ederal c onstitution, promulgate the…