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Parcelado: How Installment Purchases Work on Brazilian Credit Cards

By PointsExplainedLast reviewed

Ask for the upfront price

Merchants may charge different prices by payment term or instrument and must display any discount, so compare the Pix or debit price with the installment price.

Check who is financing the installments

Sem juros installments are split by the merchant; com juros installments are credit from the issuer.

For com juros, get the CET and the total

The lender must tell you the CET, the effective monthly rate and the total to pay with and without financing before you accept.

Look at future obligations on your bill

Your bill shows the consolidated total of future installments and your available limit for each type of operation.

Where this comes from

Sources

The documents this guide relies on. If one has changed since we read it, the document is right and this guide is out of date.

  1. Banco Central do Brasil — Relatório de Cidadania Financeira: Glossário

    Distinguishes card purchases paid upfront or split by the merchant (parcelado lojista) with no financial charges from purchase, bill or withdrawal installments financed by the issuer with financial charges.

    bcb.gov.br · Accessed
  2. Lei nº 13.455, de 26 de junho de 2017 — diferenciação de preços (Planalto)

    Price differentiation by payment term or instrument authorized; contract clauses in payment arrangements forbidding it are void; merchants must display discounts visibly (new art. 5-A of Lei 10.962/2004).

    planalto.gov.br · Accessed
  3. Banco Central do Brasil — FAQ: Diferenciação de preços no âmbito dos arranjos de pagamento

    A product paid with Pix can be cheaper than when paid by credit card.

    bcb.gov.br · Accessed
  4. Código de Defesa do Consumidor — Lei nº 8.078/1990, texto compilado (Planalto)

    Art. 52 (prior information on credit, including effective annual rate, installments and totals; § 2º early settlement with proportional reduction); art. 54-B (CET, effective monthly rate, late charges, right to early repayment at the time of offer); art. 49 (7-day withdrawal outside the establishment); art. 54-F (linked contracts).

    planalto.gov.br · Accessed
  5. Banco Central do Brasil — FAQ: Limitação dos juros e encargos financeiros no saldo devedor da fatura do cartão

    The 100% cap does not include purchases in installments with interest; it covers the rotativo and bill installment plans for debts from 3 January 2024.

    bcb.gov.br · Accessed
  6. Resolução BCB nº 96, de 19 de maio de 2021 — contas de pagamento, texto vigente (Banco Central do Brasil)

    Bill must list transactions including those in installments, show each credit-operation installment with its number out of the total, used and available limits, and consolidated future obligations including purchase installments; installment transactions shown within two business days of the bill opening (art. 9, §§ 5º and 9º).

    bcb.gov.br · Accessed
  7. Resolução CMN nº 4.549, de 26 de janeiro de 2017 (Banco Central do Brasil)

    Unpaid balance in the rotativo only until the next due date; later financing in installments only on more advantageous terms.

    bcb.gov.br · Accessed
  8. Banco Central do Brasil — FAQ: Liquidação antecipada da fatura do cartão de crédito

    Early settlement of the card bill is a right, without a fee, with the discount at the contracted rate.

    bcb.gov.br · Accessed
  9. Decreto nº 7.962, de 15 de março de 2013 — comércio eletrônico (Planalto)

    Art. 1: regulates the CDC for e-commerce, including the right of withdrawal; art. 5, § 3º: seller must immediately inform the card issuer when the consumer withdraws, so the transaction isn't posted or is reversed.

    planalto.gov.br · Accessed
  10. Banco Central do Brasil — FAQ: Parcelamento de compras realizadas no exterior

    Foreign-exchange rules don't regulate installments on purchases abroad; it depends on the merchant's contract with the card network.

    bcb.gov.br · Accessed
  11. BTG Pactual — Regulamento do Programa de Fidelidade BTG Pactual

    Points or cashback on installment purchases calculated in proportion to the installment paid in the month (cl. 4.1 iv).

    cdn.btgbank.com · Accessed
  12. Nubank — Termos e condições do Pacote Nubank+ (vigência 26/12/2025)

    Installment transactions generate cashback on the total of the installments once.

    nubank.com.br · Accessed
Questions

About this guide

Is parcelado sem juros really interest-free?

The Banco Central records merchant installments as carrying no financial charges. But under Lei nº 13.455/2017 the merchant can charge a different price depending on the payment term or instrument, so the installment price may be higher than the upfront price.

Does the 100% cap on card interest apply to installment purchases with interest?

No. The Banco Central says the cap does not include purchases in installments with interest. It covers the rotativo and bill installment plans.

Can I pay installments off early?

For credit with interest, the Código de Defesa do Consumidor guarantees early settlement with a proportional reduction of interest and other charges. Early settlement of the card bill is a right, with no fee.
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