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Charities in Brazil

GiveRadar tracks 572,005 nonprofit legal entities in Brazil, drawn from Receita Federal's CNPJ tax register and filtered to nonprofit legal forms. This is not a charity register: 97.6% carry Associacao Privada, IBGE's catch-all code shared by churches, residents' associations, and sports clubs alongside genuine charities. For charity-specific status, check OSCIP, CEBAS, or Utilidade Publica Federal separately.

571,978
Nonprofit legal entities
100%
CNPJ on file
Community Development
Largest cause area
1 per 372
Residents per organization
Matt Timmermans Reviewed by Matt Timmermans Founder of GiveRadar · Checked August 17, 2026
Where this data comes from  ·  How current it is
The directory

All organizations in Brazil

Filters

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571,978 charities

Page 1 of 28,599

59

Associacao Vaga Lume

São Paulo, São Paulo · Environment ·

59

Sos Children'S Villages Brasil

São Paulo, São Paulo · Community Development ·

68

Centro Comunitario de Ed. Prof. Darci Carvalho

Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro · Education ·

65

Futebol Clube Cascavel

Cascavel, Paraná · Community Development ·

65

Uniao Brasileira de Apoio Estudantil - Ubraest

Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro · Environment ·

62

Associacao Museu da Imaginacao

São Paulo, São Paulo · Arts & Culture ·

53

Fpc

Águas da Prata, São Paulo · Community Development ·

68

Instituto Educacional Augustus

São Paulo, São Paulo · Education ·

65

Instituto Indoor de Assistencia Medica

Brasília, Distrito Federal · Community Development ·

62

Administracao Central

São Paulo, São Paulo · Education ·

62

Adsat

Pindamonhangaba, São Paulo · Community Development ·

62

Aea

Campinas, São Paulo · Community Development ·

62

Ampara Animal

São Paulo, São Paulo · Animal Welfare ·

62

APAE Raposos

Raposos, Minas Gerais · Youth Development ·

62

Associacao Ayruma

Serro, Minas Gerais · Community Development ·

62

Centro de Acolhida e Cultura Casa 1

São Paulo, São Paulo · Health ·

62

Comunidade Agua Viva

Vila Velha, Espírito Santo · Religion ·

62

Consulado da Mulher

São Paulo, São Paulo · Community Development ·

62

Cruz Vermelha Brasileira - Afiliada Minas Gerais

Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais · Community Development ·

62

Escola Amigo Especial

Araputanga, Mato Grosso · Education ·

← Prev Page 1 of 28,599
The register at a glance

How many nonprofit organizations does GiveRadar track in Brazil?

GiveRadar tracks 572,005 Brazilian nonprofit legal entities from Receita Federal's CNPJ tax register, of which 571,956 (100%) carry a CNPJ number and 303,501 (53.1%) list an email address.

Whole-register totals
571,978 Nonprofit legal entities
2000s Median decade on the register 571,958 records carry a date, the oldest from 1907
1 per 372 Residents per organization Against a population of 212,812,405 (World Bank, 2025)
51.5/100 Average integrity assessment A measure of disclosure, not impact or effectiveness

Brazil's average integrity assessment on GiveRadar is 51.5 out of 100, and the register's breadth shows why: name searches find 28,744 entries containing "igreja" (church), 19,102 containing "moradores" (residents' associations), 17,126 containing "clube" (club), and 1,850 containing "condominio," roughly 66,800 organizations, about 12% of the register, that most donors would not call a charity. Crude name matching only catches the obvious cases; the integrity assessment measures disclosure, not charitable purpose.

By category

What causes do Brazil's nonprofit organizations work in?

GiveRadar categorizes 386,478 of Brazil's 572,005 nonprofit legal entities (67.6%) under community development, the largest cause category we track here, but that reflects how our importer maps the residual Associacao Privada legal form, not a finding about what Brazilian organizations actually do. The remaining categories are smaller and more specific: education 80,696 (14.1%), religion 45,955 (8%), environment 27,435 (4.8%), arts and culture 14,557 (2.5%), and health 6,787 (1.2%).

01 Community Development 386,478 68% 02 Education 80,690 14% 03 Religion 45,955 8% 04 Environment 27,431 5% 05 Arts & Culture 14,557 3% 06 Health 6,786 1% 07 Social Services 2,854 <1% 08 International 2,779 <1% 09 Animal Welfare 1,506 <1% 10 Science & Technology 1,126 <1% 11 Disaster Relief 871 <1% 12 Youth Development 743 <1% 13 Advocacy & Civil Rights 186 <1%
Governance

What governance data does GiveRadar have for Brazil?

GiveRadar has governance-related data for 571,190 of Brazil's 572,005 nonprofit entities (99.9%): the CNPJ's record of each entity's responsible person and any qualified partners.

571,190 Nonprofit legal entities with a board on record 99.9% of the register
666,037 Named people on those boards 1.2 per organization on average

This is a legal filing requirement, not a governance disclosure by the organization itself: Receita Federal requires every CNPJ holder to name a responsible party and any qualified partners at registration, whether the entity is an active nonprofit or a dormant residents' association. Brazil's tax register also publishes no financial statements, which is why this page carries a revenue figure for only 761 of 572,005 entities (0.1%).

Age of the register

When were Brazil's nonprofit entities registered on the CNPJ?

Most of Brazil's 572,005 nonprofit entities on GiveRadar registered recently: 150,461 (26.3%) in the 2000s and 120,439 (21.1%) in the 1990s, the two busiest decades on record.

3,625 1960s
27,865 1970s
45,869 1980s
120,439 1990s
150,460 2000s
118,399 2010s
105,066 2020s
Median decade
2000s
Earliest on record
1907
Records with a date
571,958 of 571,978

This is the CNPJ registration date, not necessarily when the organization began its work: only 117 entities carry a 1950s date and 3,625 a 1960s date, while registration accelerated from the 1990s onward and 105,066 (18.4%) have already registered in the 2020s. An organization that existed for decades can still carry a recent CNPJ date if it formalized late.

Accreditations

Which Brazilian organizations hold a charity-specific status?

GiveRadar records OSCIP status for 4,002 Brazilian organizations and CEBAS certification for 2,263, out of the 572,005 nonprofit legal entities it tracks in Brazil.

4,002 OSCIP Organizacao da Sociedade Civil de Interesse Publico, a qualification granted to organizations working in the public interest and subject to reporting duties. Unlike a CNPJ entry it says something about what the organization does. Issued by Brazil's Ministry of Justice 2,263 CEBAS Certificacao de Entidades Beneficentes de Assistencia Social, certifying that an organization provides free public-benefit services in social assistance, health or education, in exchange for relief from certain social contributions. Issued by the responsible federal ministry

Together they cover about one percent of this register, and that is the point of showing them: a CNPJ entry is a tax registration granted to any nonprofit legal form, while OSCIP and CEBAS are granted after someone examines what the organization actually does. Neither share is a coverage figure for Brazil as a whole, because we hold these flags only where a public list let us match them, so treat an absent badge as unknown rather than as a refusal.

Location of nonprofits in Brazil

Where are Brazil's nonprofit entities located?

GiveRadar locates 571,965 of Brazil's 572,005 nonprofit entities (99.9%) on the map, spread across all 27 states and led by Sao Paulo with 99,439 (17.4%).

Organization density
Each state shaded by nonprofit organizations. Boundaries: Natural Earth.

Top cities

Sao Paulo city alone holds 28,689 (5%) of Brazil's nonprofit entities on GiveRadar, more than Rio de Janeiro (14,941, 2.6%) and Brasilia (11,790, 2.1%) combined.

01 São Paulo 28,684 organizations 02 Rio de Janeiro 14,937 organizations 03 Brasília 11,790 organizations 04 Belo Horizonte 6,353 organizations 05 Curitiba 5,352 organizations 06 Salvador 4,858 organizations 07 Fortaleza 4,822 organizations 08 Porto Alegre 4,664 organizations 09 Goiânia 3,888 organizations 10 Manaus 3,870 organizations

Entities by state

São Paulo 99,432 17.4% Minas Gerais 61,861 10.8% Bahia 45,012 7.9% Rio Grande do Sul 43,632 7.6% Paraná 37,389 6.5% Rio de Janeiro 36,381 6.4% Santa Catarina 31,435 5.5% Ceará 24,865 4.3% Pernambuco 21,292 3.7% Maranhão 19,947 3.5% Pará 18,922 3.3% Goiás 17,233 3% Espírito Santo 11,872 2.1% Distrito Federal 11,790 2.1%

572,004 (100%) of Brazil's nonprofit entities carry a city and 572,000 (100%) a state; 571,965 (99.9%) of those match a mapped state boundary, so the table and map above are close to complete. After Sao Paulo, the next-largest states are Minas Gerais with 61,862 (10.8%) and Bahia with 45,012 (7.9%).

Data sources

Where does GiveRadar's Brazilian data come from?

GiveRadar's 572,005 Brazilian nonprofit entities come from Receita Federal's CNPJ, the national tax register of legal entities, filtered to the nonprofit legal forms defined by IBGE's natureza juridica classification.

Receita Federal CNPJ open data dados.gov.br ↗
Brazil's national register of legal entities - CNPJ, legal form, activity, address, status
571,978 records 100% coverage
OSCIP register, Ministry of Justice mj.gov.br ↗
Which organizations hold OSCIP public-interest status, which the CNPJ does not record
Mapa das OSC, IPEA ipea.gov.br ↗
IPEA's filtered map of Brazilian civil society organizations, built from the same registers
One GiveRadar profile
571,978
Share of profiles carrying each field
Registration ID 100%
Financial return 0.1%
Expense breakdown 0%
Website 8.8%
Contact email 53%
Freshness

How current is GiveRadar's Brazil data?

August 30, 2026 Register last refreshed The most recent full pass over Receita Federal's CNPJ open data for Brazil's nonprofit legal entities. Any profile with its own newer edit carries that later date instead.
August 17, 2026 This page last reviewed When the figures, wording and sources on this page were last checked against the register.

GiveRadar refreshes its Brazilian nonprofit data in periodic bulk passes rather than a live daily feed, so a very recent registration, status change, or deregistration on the CNPJ may not yet appear here. Confirming an organization's current status with Receita Federal's own lookup, or with oscip.mj.gov.br for OSCIP status, remains the more reliable step before a large gift.

Learn more with our country guide

Giving in Brazil

How the charity sector is regulated, what kinds of nonprofits operate, and how to evaluate them before you give.

Charities and nonprofits in Brazil

Brazil has Latin America's largest nonprofit sector, with hundreds of thousands of organizacoes da sociedade civil (OSCs) addressing inequality, education, public health, environmental and Amazon protection, indigenous rights, urban poverty, and disaster response. The sector blends grassroots associations, large national foundations, faith-based agencies, and community-based organizations across all 27 federation units.

Whether you are searching for a comprehensive list of Brazilian charities or a CNPJ lookup, GiveRadar brings together each organization's registration record, legal form, location, contact details, news coverage, and an independent integrity score. It does not hold OSCIP, OS or CEBAS status, which are granted separately and have to be checked at their own registers. Read about how GiveRadar works before you give.

How charities are registered in Brazil

Brazilian nonprofits are typically constituted as associacoes or fundacoes and registered in the Civil Registry of Legal Persons (Registro Civil de Pessoas Juridicas). Every legal entity also receives a CNPJ (Cadastro Nacional da Pessoa Juridica) from the Receita Federal (receita.fazenda.gov.br), which is the register this page is built from.

Organizations can apply for additional federal qualifications: Organizacao da Sociedade Civil de Interesse Publico (OSCIP) under Federal Law 9.790/1999 (planalto.gov.br), administered by the Ministry of Justice; Organizacao Social (OS) for service contracts with the state; and the CEBAS certificate (Certificado de Entidade Beneficente de Assistencia Social) for tax-exempt social welfare, education, and health services.

Lei Complementar 224/2025 reshaped tax rules for OSCs from 2026 onwards while preserving constitutional immunities for OS, OSCIPs, and CEBAS-certified entities. GIFE and ABONG are the main sector umbrella bodies.

Major causes and well-known Brazilian charities

The Brazilian nonprofit sector is structured around several flagship cause areas:

  • Education: Fundacao Lemann, Fundacao Roberto Marinho, Fundacao Bradesco, Instituto Ayrton Senna, and Todos pela Educacao.
  • Children, youth, and family: Fundacao Abrinq, Crianca Esperanca, ChildFund Brasil, and Aldeias Infantis SOS Brasil.
  • Environment, Amazon protection, and climate: Instituto Socioambiental (ISA), Imazon, Fundacao SOS Mata Atlantica, and Instituto de Pesquisa Ambiental da Amazonia (IPAM).
  • Indigenous rights: ISA, COIAB (Coordenacao das Organizacoes Indigenas da Amazonia Brasileira), and APIB (Articulacao dos Povos Indigenas do Brasil).
  • Health: Hospital de Amor (Pio XII), GRAACC (cancer in children), and Hospital A.C. Camargo Foundation.
  • Hunger and food security: Acao da Cidadania, Banco de Alimentos, Mesa Brasil SESC, and Gastromotiva.
  • Human rights and democracy: Conectas Direitos Humanos, Instituto Vladimir Herzog, and Articulacao dos Povos Indigenas do Brasil.

Compare two organizations side by side with our charity comparison tool, or browse best environmental charities in Brazil and best education charities in Brazil to narrow by cause.

How to evaluate a Brazilian charity before donating

Brazil has multiple overlapping charitable qualifications, so it pays to confirm exactly what an organization is and is not. Things to check before giving to any Brazilian charity:

  • CNPJ: every legitimate Brazilian nonprofit has a tax ID issued by the Receita Federal; verify it is active and classified under a non-profit nature code.
  • OSCIP, OS, or CEBAS qualification: the strongest signals of regulated charitable status. Check the Ministry of Justice OSCIP register and the CEBAS database.
  • Annual reports and audited financials: reputable foundations publish them online; large foundations follow Brazilian GAAP audit standards.
  • GIFE membership: a strong governance benchmark for Brazilian grantmaking foundations and corporate-philanthropy entities.
  • ABONG membership: the main umbrella body for advocacy and rights-based NGOs.
  • Registration and disclosure record: use our free charity checker tool to pull an organization's registration status, legal form, and disclosure record together on one page.

Each Brazilian charity profile on GiveRadar combines CNPJ status, OSCIP/OS/CEBAS qualification, financials, governance, and third-party signals into a single 0-100 integrity score. Read our integrity score methodology for the full weighting.

Brazil charity explorer: browse, filter, compare

This page works as a Brazil charity explorer: every Brazilian nonprofit legal entity we hold data on, ranked and filterable by cause area, state, presence of a website, and contact details. Use the filters on the left to narrow by category (education, environment, indigenous rights, children, health, hunger, advocacy, religion, and more), and the search bar to find a specific organization by name or CNPJ.

GiveRadar refreshes its Brazilian records in periodic bulk passes over Receita Federal's published CNPJ data rather than a live daily feed. To compare Brazilian giving against other markets, browse all countries or jump straight to environmental charities globally.

Donating to charities in Brazil

Most Brazilian charities accept Pix, credit-card, and bank-transfer donations directly through their websites. Some donations to OSCIPs, OS, and certain cultural and health projects qualify for tax incentives via the Lei Rouanet, Fundo da Crianca e do Adolescente, Fundo do Idoso, or PRONON/PRONAS.

International donors typically give through US 501(c)(3) intermediaries (such as the Brazil Foundation) or European fiscal sponsors. GiveRadar links to each organization's official donation channel where we hold one. For a structured donor walkthrough, read our donor due-diligence guide.

FAQ

Common questions

What is a CNPJ in Brazil?

A CNPJ (Cadastro Nacional da Pessoa Juridica) is Brazil's national register of legal entities, administered by Receita Federal, the federal tax authority. It records tax and cadastral status for companies, associations, and foundations alike, and performs no charitable assessment of any organization it lists.

Are the organizations on GiveRadar's Brazil page verified charities?

No, these are not verified charities: GiveRadar's Brazil page lists 572,005 nonprofit legal entities from the CNPJ tax register, filtered by legal form, not by charitable purpose. The catch-all code Associacao Privada covers everything from established charities to residents' associations, churches, and sports clubs.

What is OSCIP in Brazil?

OSCIP (Organizacao da Sociedade Civil de Interesse Publico) is a charity-specific qualification the Ministry of Justice grants to nonprofits serving education, health, or the environment in the public interest. Qualified organizations are searchable at oscip.mj.gov.br, separate from GiveRadar's CNPJ tax register.

What is CEBAS in Brazil?

CEBAS (Certificacao de Entidades Beneficentes de Assistencia Social) is a federal certification for nonprofits that provide free public-benefit services in social assistance, health, or education, in exchange for exemption from certain social-security contributions. It can be revoked, unlike ordinary CNPJ registration.

How do I check whether a Brazilian nonprofit is real and active?

Start with Receita Federal's own Comprovante de Inscricao e de Situacao Cadastral lookup to confirm the CNPJ is active, then search oscip.mj.gov.br for OSCIP status, then cross-check the organization on IPEA's Mapa das OSC. GiveRadar's listing alone does not confirm any of these.

How many civil society organizations does Brazil have?

Brazil had about 972,000 civil society organizations as of September 2025, of which 644,000 were active, according to IPEA's Mapa das OSC. GiveRadar's 572,005 nonprofit legal entities are drawn from a narrower set of CNPJ legal forms and are not a direct count of the same population.

Can I see financial statements for Brazilian nonprofits on GiveRadar?

No, financial statements are not available: Brazil's CNPJ tax register does not publish them, and GiveRadar holds a revenue figure for only 761 of 572,005 entities (0.1%). Unlike the US Form 990, there is no public filing requirement covering ordinary Brazilian nonprofit associations.

What does Associacao Privada mean on GiveRadar's Brazil page?

Associacao Privada is the catch-all legal form for private nonprofit associations in IBGE's natureza juridica classification, covering 558,521 of Brazil's 572,005 nonprofit entities (97.6%) on GiveRadar. It is a legal category, not a charity type, shared by churches, clubs, and residents' associations.

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