Salvador da Bahia: making a person-to-person money loan safe

In Salvador, lending or borrowing between individuals remains possible under the Brazilian Civil Code, with a mútuo contract signed before two witnesses, interest below the Lei da Usura cap, a traceable payment in reais and a declaration to the Receita Federal.

Bahia's capital and its service economy

Brazil's first capital, Salvador has about 2.4 million inhabitants, most of them Afro-Brazilian. Tourism in the Pelourinho, retail and services dominate, and a large share of informal work makes borrowers' income hard to document for anyone lending them money.

Carnival and seasonal cash needs

Before Carnival, street vendors, cordeiros and small shopkeepers often borrow to build up a stock of drinks or costumes. A loan lasting only a few weeks should still state the repayment date, even between neighbours in Liberdade or Cajazeiras.

The mútuo before the Bahia Court of Justice

Once signed by the borrower and two witnesses, the mútuo contract becomes an enforceable instrument that the lender can rely on before the Tribunal de Justiça of the State of Bahia. Without a written document, the handover of funds must be proved by other means.

Usury and agiotas in working-class districts

Agiotas, informal moneylenders, lend day to day to traders in Bahia's popular markets at rates far above the Lei da Usura ceiling. Courts can reduce this interest, and doing it habitually has been a crime against the popular economy since 1951.

Public microcredit as an alternative to family loans

The state development agency, Desenbahia, and the microcredit programmes of public banks fund small entrepreneurs in Bahia. Comparing these offers with a family loan is worthwhile, as our page on peer-to-peer microcredit explains in more detail.

Tax reporting for Soteropolitanos

Salvador residents, known as Soteropolitanos, follow federal rules: the borrower reports the debt in the IRPF income tax return above 5,000 reais and the lender records the claim. The State of Bahia may levy ITCMD on a gift disguised as a loan.

Salvador's cartórios and a certain date

Having signatures recognised at a cartório de notas, then registering the contract at the Registro de Títulos e Documentos, fixes its date against third parties. Fees follow the Bahia schedule, so ask the chosen registry office directly for its current rates.

Fake online loans using bank names

Fraudsters use the logos of well-known banks to offer quick loans on Facebook to Bahians with a negative credit record, in exchange for an upfront fee. Our page on phishing and fake lenders shows how to spot these sites and messages.

Procon-BA and the Bahia Public Defender's Office

The Bahia State Procon handles complaints against financeiras and banking correspondents operating in Salvador. The Defensoria Pública of Bahia gives free support to people without resources who challenge a usurious debt or a seizure of funds on their account.

Reporting a scam in Salvador

Bahia's civil police record a boletim de ocorrência, online for certain offences. Attach the conversations, the fake lender's profile and the Pix receipt, and warn your bank the same day so it can try to block the transferred money quickly.

The Bahian diaspora and long-distance loans

Many Bahians work in São Paulo or abroad and send money to relatives who stayed in Salvador. A long-distance loan needs a contract signed electronically or by power of attorney, and an identifiable bank transfer rather than cash passed through a go-between.

Comparing with Fortaleza and federal rules

The Northeast shares many practices, from agiotas to microcredit programmes. See our page on peer-to-peer lending in Fortaleza and our Brazil guide for the national rules on usury and on reporting fraud to the authorities.

Recommended procedure for lending in Salvador

1. Assess the borrower's ability to repay, including informal income, using bank statements or a record of sales.
2. Set out in writing the amount, the interest, instalments suited to the tourist season and the consequences of late payment.
3. Sign the mútuo before two witnesses and, for a large amount, have the signatures recognised at a cartório.
4. Send the funds by Pix to a key linked to the borrower's CPF, never to a third party they name.
5. Record each repayment with a dated receipt and update the outstanding balance.
6. Report the loan in the IRPF return and ask a contador, a local accountant, about the taxation of interest.

Indicative fees and rates in Salvador

Documents to prepare in Salvador

• Carteira de identidade or CNH driving licence, and CPF
• Comprovante de residência in Salvador
• Bank statements or sales book for informal income
• Mútuo contract signed by two witnesses
• Borrower's Pix key or bank details
• Proof of transfer and repayment receipts

Typical mistakes and scams in Bahia

• Paying a release fee to a Facebook profile that uses a major bank's logo to offer credit to people with bad credit.
• Borrowing from an agiota before Carnival and leaving personal documents or a bank card with him as security.
• Handing cash to a go-between who is supposed to take it to a relative, with no receipt and no bank trail.
• Lending to a friend without any written record, relying on trust, and then having no proof when a dispute arises.
• Accepting a loan whose contract shows neither the rate nor the total cost, which rules out any comparison with microcredit.

Questions about peer-to-peer loans in Salvador