Spend like a local with Pix

Pix is Brazil’s instant payment system, run by the country’s central bank, letting you send and receive money in seconds, 24/7, using a phone number, email, CPF, or QR code. Since launching in 2020, it has become the dominant way Brazilians pay for almost everything, from rent to a coffee, processing over 63 billion transactions in 2024 alone. For newcomers, it is the closest thing Brazil has to a universal payment rail. See the full guide to Pix for how it works in more detail.

Yes, as long as you have access to a Pix-compatible account or wallet, you can use Pix just like a local Brazilian would. The usual hurdle for foreigners is that most Brazilian banks require a local bank account and phone number before they will issue Pix access, which normally means paperwork before you can pay for anything. Liminal removes that specific hurdle: you can Pix against your multi-currency balance without opening a Brazilian bank account or getting a Brazilian phone number first.

Traditionally you need a CPF (Brazil’s tax ID), a Brazilian bank account, and a local phone number your bank app verifies before you can send or receive via Pix. With Liminal, two of those three requirements disappear: you can Pix with no Brazilian bank account and no Brazilian phone number, using your existing multi-currency balance instead. A CPF is still required by Brazilian regulation, but it can be applied for from your home country before you fly, so it does not have to hold up your first Pix payment on arrival.

Yes. Pix works instantly at any time, including weekends and public holidays, since it settles directly between accounts rather than waiting for a bank’s business hours or a card network’s clearing window. There is one built-in restriction worth knowing: transactions between 8pm and 6am are capped at a lower limit by default for security, though you can raise that limit with a short cooldown period if you need to send more overnight. Outside that window, there is no cap tied to time of day.

Yes. Pix is used for almost everything in Brazil, from rent and utility bills to cafés, transport, and daily purchases, which is part of why it has become the default payment method for over 170 million registered users. Landlords in particular tend to strongly prefer Pix over a bank transfer or card payment, since it settles instantly rather than taking days to clear. If you are moving to Brazil, being able to Pix from day one, before you have set up a local bank account, is often the single most useful thing to have sorted.