The law against religious intolerance is Law 7.716/1989: art. 20 punishes discrimination or prejudice based on religion with imprisonment of one to three years and a fine. The Penal Code adds art. 140, §3º, for insult with religious elements, and art. 208, for outrage to worship. None of these texts use the word intolerance: they speak of discrimination, prejudice, insult, and outrage.
What is the law against religious intolerance and the penalty of each article
The law against religious intolerance is Law 7.716/1989, known as the Racial Crime Law. Art. 20 punishes practicing, inducing, or inciting discrimination or prejudice based on religion, with imprisonment of one to three years and a fine. Law 9.459, of May 13, 1997, included religion in art. 1º and rewrote art. 20.
“Art. 20. Practicing, inducing, or inciting discrimination or prejudice based on race, color, ethnicity, religion, or national origin.”
Law 7.716/1989, art. 20, wording of Law 9.459/1997
| Device | What it covers | Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Constitution, art. 5º, VI | Guarantees freedom of belief, the free exercise of worship and, in the form of the law, the protection of places of worship and liturgies | It is not a crime, it is a right |
| Law 7.716, art. 20, caput (Law 9.459/1997) | Practicing, inducing, or inciting discrimination or prejudice based on religion | Imprisonment of 1 to 3 years and a fine |
| Law 7.716, art. 20, §2º | The same crime by means of social media, social networks, internet or publication of any nature | Imprisonment of 2 to 5 years and a fine |
| Law 7.716, art. 20, §2º-A (Law 14.532/2023) | The same crime in religious, sporting, artistic or cultural activity intended for the public | Imprisonment of 2 to 5 years and prohibition of attendance for 3 years at locations of sporting, artistic or cultural practices, as the case may be |
| Law 7.716, art. 20, §2º-B (Law 14.532/2023) | Obstructing, preventing or employing violence against any religious manifestations or practices | Same penalties as the caput, without prejudice to the penalty corresponding to violence |
| Penal Code, art. 140, §3º (Law 14.532/2023) | Insult with elements referring to religion | Imprisonment of 1 to 3 years and a fine, with action dependent on representation by the offended party |
| Penal Code, art. 208 | Publicly mocking someone for religious belief or function, preventing or disturbing a ceremony or practice of worship, publicly vilifying an act or object of worship | Detention of 1 month to 1 year, or a fine, with an additional 1/3 if there is violence, without prejudice to the penalty for violence |
The Law 14.532, of January 11, 2023, added §§ 2º-A and 2º-B of art. 20 and arts. 20-A to 20-D to Law 7.716. Arts. 20-A and 20-B provide for an increased penalty.
Crime or misdemeanor: where religious discrimination fits
Religious discrimination is a crime, not a misdemeanor. The law of introduction of the Penal Code calls an offense punished with imprisonment or detention a crime, and one punished only with simple imprisonment or a fine a misdemeanor. Art. 20 of Law 7.716 provides for imprisonment, and art. 208 of the Penal Code provides for detention.
The Law 1.390/1951 and the Law 7.437/1985 speak of a misdemeanor for prejudice, according to the Planalto text. The first speaks of race or color, and the second, of race, color, sex, and marital status. Neither of the two mentions religion.
The noise misdemeanor is another. Art. 42 of the Law of Criminal Misdemeanors punishes disturbing the work or peace of others, and one of the forms is abusing sound instruments or acoustic signals. The penalty is simple imprisonment of fifteen days to three months, or a fine. Art. 42 does not mention religion or terreiro.
Preventing or disturbing a ceremony or practice of worship is another conduct, that of art. 208 of the Penal Code. Which text applies to a concrete fact depends on a professional.
What the law does not say about religious intolerance
Law 7.716 does not define religious intolerance or religious racism
She speaks of discrimination and religious prejudice. In Law 14.532, the expression religious racism appears only in the summary. Law 25.150/2025, from Minas Gerais, and Law 6.556/2026, from Mato Grosso do Sul, define the term for their own purposes. The concept and the difference from intolerance are in the text about religious racism.
Neither Law 7.716 nor the Penal Code mention Afro-Brazilian religions
Art. 20 speaks of religion without distinguishing which one, and art. 208 speaks of religious worship. Candomblé and Umbanda are different religions, as shown in the text about the difference between Umbanda and Candomblé, and these articles do not distinguish between them.
The law does not name demonization
The glossary of the booklet Respeite o meu terreiro includes the demonization of religious expressions of black, African, or Afro-Brazilian origin among the forms of religious racism. Law 7.716 does not use this word. To know a guardian like Exu Marabô for what he is in the religion, there is a text about him.
Racial insult is not insult by religion
Art. 2-A of Law 7.716 speaks of race, color, ethnicity, or national origin, with imprisonment of two to five years and a fine. The insult with elements referring to religion is in art. 140, §3, of the Penal Code, and the action depends on the representation of the offended party.
The law does not say which article applies in each case
Preventing a worship falls under two texts. Art. 208 punishes preventing or disturbing a ceremony or practice of worship, and §2-B of art. 20 punishes obstructing or preventing religious manifestations or practices. The penalties differ: detention of one month to one year, or a fine, on one side, and imprisonment of one to three years and a fine, on the other.
Which one applies in each situation depends on a lawyer, a public defender, or the Public Prosecutor's Office. How to register the fact is in the text about how to report religious intolerance.
The law of January 21 does not create a crime
The Law 11.635/2007 uses the expression religious intolerance only to establish the National Day to Combat Religious Intolerance. It does not define a crime or a penalty.
What the law guarantees to the terreiro
The Constitution guarantees freedom of belief, the free exercise of worship and, in the form of the law, the protection of places of worship and liturgies. Art. 5, VIII, says that no one is deprived of rights because of religious belief. The exception applies to those who invoke it to escape a legal obligation imposed on everyone and refuse the alternative provision.
The Statute of Racial Equality, Law 12.288/2010, names the Afro-Brazilian worships. Art. 24 includes in the right the practice of worships, festivities and ceremonies and the maintenance of places of worship. It also includes the production, commercialization, acquisition and use of religious items and materials suitable for the practices of the respective religiosity, except for conduct prohibited by specific legislation.
The Minas Gerais law guarantees the integrity of sacred places and the rituals of the black population and traditional peoples and communities, in art. 7. It does not create a crime or a penalty: in art. 2, IV, it refers to current federal criminal legislation. Legislating on criminal law belongs to the Union, in art. 22, I, of the Constitution.
What the STF decided about the ritual sacrifice of animals
The STF Plenary decided on March 28, 2019, in RE 494.601, a case from Rio Grande do Sul. By majority, it denied the appeal, and the established thesis is this:
“The animal protection law is constitutional because, in order to safeguard religious freedom, it allows the ritual sacrifice of animals in cults of African-matrix religions.”
STF, Informativo 935, RE 494.601, 03/28/2019
The Rio Grande do Sul law, Law 12.131/2004, added a paragraph to art. 2 of the State Animal Protection Code. According to the text, the free exercise of cults and liturgies of Afro-Brazilian religions does not fall under the code's prohibition. The Rio Grande do Sul Court of Justice judged the law previously. Its syllabus, transcribed in the rapporteur's vote, states that ritual sacrifice does not infringe the code “as long as it is without excess or cruelty.”
For the Court, according to the Informativo, the legal protection for these religions is not a privilege, but a way to ensure religious freedom, while maintaining the secularity of the State. The syllabus of the judgment records that the practice and rituals related to animal sacrifice are intangible cultural heritage.
The decision has limits. It judged a state animal protection law, and the Informativo records that the Rio Grande do Sul code does not describe infractions or penalties. The Plenary also understood that admitting immolation does not remove the protection for animals from art. 225, §1, VII, of the Constitution. Three ministers, including the rapporteur, were partially dissenting. They admitted constitutionality with a conforming interpretation to extend the rule to cults of any religions and to rule out mistreatment and torture.
The text about comidas de santo no batuque brings the thesis in one sentence. Here the excerpt is only legal, without addressing the rite.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a law against religious intolerance?
Yes. Law 7.716/1989 punishes religious discrimination or prejudice in art. 20, with imprisonment of one to three years and a fine. The Penal Code also has art. 140, §3º, for insult with religious elements, and art. 208, for outrage to worship.
What is the number of the law against religious intolerance?
The law is number 7.716, of January 5, 1989, known as the Racial Crime Law. The caput of art. 20 comes from Law 9.459/1997, and Law 14.532/2023 brought new paragraphs. The Penal Code is Decree-Law 2.848/1940.
What is the penalty for religious intolerance?
It depends on the provision. Art. 20 of Law 7.716 provides for imprisonment of one to three years and a fine. On the internet, it is two to five years and a fine. Insult with religious elements has imprisonment of one to three years and a fine. Outrage to worship has detention of one month to one year, or a fine.
Is religious intolerance a non-bailable crime?
The Constitution says, in art. 5º, XLII, that "the practice of racism constitutes a non-bailable and imprescriptible crime, subject to the penalty of imprisonment, in the terms of the law". The subsection speaks of racism and does not mention religion. How it applies to a case of religion is a matter for a lawyer or a public defender.
References
- Presidência da República: Federal Constitution, arts. 5º and 22
- Presidência da República: Law 7.716/1989, arts. 1º, 2º-A and 20 to 20-D
- Presidência da República: Law 9.459/1997
- Presidência da República: Law 14.532/2023
- Presidência da República: Penal Code, arts. 140, 145 and 208
- Presidência da República: Decree-Law 3.914/1941, introductory law of the Penal Code
- Presidência da República: Misdemeanor Law, art. 42
- Presidência da República: Law 1.390/1951
- Presidência da República: Law 7.437/1985
- Presidência da República: Racial Equality Statute, Law 12.288/2010, art. 24
- Presidência da República: Law 11.635/2007
- Assembleia Legislativa de Minas Gerais: State Law 25.150/2025, original text
- Diário Oficial de Mato Grosso do Sul, March 12, 2026: State Law 6.556/2026
- STF: Informativo 935, from March 25 to 29, 2019, RE 494.601
- STF: rapporteur's vote in RE 494.601, with the syllabus of the Court of Justice of Rio Grande do Sul
- STF: RE 494.601, syllabus and judgment, full text copy hosted by Instituto Piracema
- MDHC, Renafro and Ilê Omolu (Omulu) Oxum (Oshun): booklet Respect my terreiro, 2nd edition, November 2025
