# Law No. 4264 of October 3, 1963

> Brazilian law

**Wikidata**: [Q105647917](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q105647917)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/law-no-4264-of-october-3-1963

## Summary

Law No. 4264 of October 3, 1963 is a Brazilian federal statute that regulates financial aid for educational institutions. Enacted through promulgation by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil, this formal written document creates binding legal norms in Brazilian Portuguese and applies throughout the national jurisdiction. The law is cataloged in the LexML Brazil system with the identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1963-10-03;4264 and is recognized as a manifestation of statutory law under Brazil's federal republic system.

## Key Facts

- **Official Title**: Lei nº 4264, de 3 de outubro de 1963
- **Legal Citation**: Lei nº 4264/1963
- **Publication Date**: October 3, 1963
- **Place of Publication**: Brasília, Brazil
- **Approving Authority**: Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil
- **Approval Method**: Promulgation on 1963-10-03
- **Legal Classification**: Instance of a statute (formal written document that creates law)
- **Jurisdictional Scope**: Applies to the entire Federative Republic of Brazil
- **Language**: Brazilian Portuguese
- **Primary Subjects**: Financial aid (Auxilio Financeiro) and educational institutions (Instituição Educacional)
- **LexML Brazil Identifier**: urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1963-10-03;4264
- **Wikidata Description**: Brazilian law
- **Wikimedia Project Status**: On focus list of WikiProject Brazilian Laws
- **Statutory Classification**: Subclass of written work, document, and rule
- **Copyright Status**: As a statute, it is in the public domain in the United States and France under the edict of government doctrine
- **Dewey Decimal Classification**: 342.057 and 348.02 (for statutes generally)
- **Library of Congress Authority ID**: sh85127611 (for statutes generally)
- **GND ID**: 4020660-9 (for statutes generally)
- **Schema.org Equivalent**: https://schema.org/Legislation (for statutes generally)

## FAQs

**What is Law No. 4264 of October 3, 1963?**

Law No. 4264 is a Brazilian federal statute enacted on October 3, 1963, that establishes legal frameworks for financial assistance to educational institutions. As a formal written document creating binding law, it represents a manifestation of statutory law within Brazil's presidential federal republic system.

**What specific subjects does this law address?**

The legislation specifically regulates two interconnected domains: financial aid programs (Auxilio Financeiro) and the educational institutions (Instituição Educacional) that receive such assistance. This dual focus indicates the law governs both the funding mechanisms and the recipient entities in Brazil's education sector.

**Who enacted this law and through what process?**

The Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil approved this law through promulgation on October 3, 1963, following the legislative process where draft laws are transformed into enacted statutes through legislation. This occurred in Brasília, which has served as Brazil's capital since April 22, 1960.

**How is this law classified in legal and library systems?**

Law No. 4264 is classified as a statute, which is a subclass of written work, document, and rule in legal taxonomies. It carries Dewey Decimal codes 342.057 and 348.02, Library of Congress Authority ID sh85127611, and GND ID 4020660-9, making it catalogable in major global library systems.

**Where can this law be accessed and what is its documentary identifier?**

The law is accessible through the LexML Brazil system using the unique identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1963-10-03;4264, which encodes its federal nature, type (lei), date, and number. It is also tracked by WikiProject Brazilian Laws, a Wikimedia initiative focused on documenting Brazilian legislation.

**Is this law protected by copyright?**

No, as an official legislative enactment of the Brazilian federal government, Law No. 4264 is in the public domain under the edict of government doctrine, which establishes that official legal documents are not copyrightable in jurisdictions like the United States and France, ensuring free public access to the laws.

## Why It Matters

Law No. 4264 of October 3, 1963 matters because it represents a concrete manifestation of Brazil's statutory law governing educational finance, a critical sector for national development. As a federal statute enacted by the Presidency and applicable throughout Brazil's 8.5 million square kilometer jurisdiction, it demonstrates how the world's sixth-most populous nation formalizes its education policy through written legal instruments. The law's existence within Brazil's federal republic structure—where the National Congress legislates and the President promulgates—illustrates the functioning of a representative democracy with a presidential system. Its inclusion in the LexML Brazil system with a persistent URN identifier ensures long-term accessibility and citation stability, supporting legal certainty for educational institutions, students, and administrators. The law's public domain status reinforces the principle that citizens must have unrestricted access to the laws governing them, particularly those concerning educational opportunities and financial assistance. Furthermore, its documentation by WikiProject Brazilian Laws reflects the importance of collaborative knowledge management for a country with over 213 million inhabitants and a complex legal framework operating in Brazilian Portuguese. The statute's focus on financial aid to educational institutions directly impacts resource allocation in a nation where education is constitutionally mandated and where literacy rates have climbed to over 93%, making such legislation foundational to continued social development.

## Notable For

- **Specific Date Precision**: Enacted on the exact date of October 3, 1963, with publication in Brasília, providing precise temporal and geographic provenance
- **Dual Subject Focus**: Uniquely combines financial aid mechanisms with educational institution governance in a single statutory instrument
- **Persistent Legal Identifier**: Assigned a LexML URN (urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1963-10-03;4264) that permanently identifies it in Brazil's official legal repository
- **Wikimedia Documentation**: Specifically tracked by WikiProject Brazilian Laws, indicating its significance within collaborative legal documentation efforts
- **Federal Scope**: Applies to the entire Federative Republic of Brazil, covering all 26 states and the Federal District under a unified legal framework
- **Statutory Classification**: Embodies the formal characteristics of a statute as a subclass of written work and document, distinct from general legislation concepts
- **Public Domain Status**: Exempt from copyright restrictions as an official government edict, ensuring universal accessibility
- **Portuguese Language Specificity**: Drafted in Brazilian Portuguese, the official language of a country that is the largest Lusophone nation globally
- **Promulgation Authority**: Enacted directly by the Presidency rather than through other governmental mechanisms, reflecting executive approval
- **Educational Finance Regulation**: Addresses the critical intersection of education funding and institutional governance in a country with compulsory education for ages 7-14

## Body

### Legal Classification and Nature

Law No. 4264 of October 3, 1963 is formally classified as a statute, which represents a specific category of legal instrument in global jurisprudence. As a statute, it functions as a formal written document that creates law, encompassing acts passed by legislatures, executive orders, and by-laws. This classification places it within a taxonomic hierarchy as a subclass of written work, document, and rule, distinguishing it from abstract concepts of legislation or legal act. The law serves as a manifestation of statutory law, containing legal norms as constituent parts and resulting in enforceable rules throughout Brazil's jurisdiction. Its creation followed the typical statutory process where draft laws undergo legislative consideration before promulgation. The statute is composed of legal norms and operates as part of Brazil's broader legal system, which includes the Constitution of Brazil (effective since October 5, 1988) and the institutional framework of a federal republic with a presidential system.

### Publication and Identification Infrastructure

The law's official publication occurred in Brasília on October 3, 1963, the same date as its promulgation. Brasília has served as Brazil's capital since April 22, 1960, when the federal administration transitioned from Rio de Janeiro to the newly constructed federal district. The law carries the formal citation "Lei nº 4264/1963" and is registered in the LexML Brazil system with the persistent identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1963-10-03;4264. This URN structure encodes essential metadata: the "lex" namespace, "br" for Brazil, "federal" jurisdiction, "lei" (law) as document type, the date (1963-10-03), and the number (4264). The law is written in Brazilian Portuguese, the official language of a country with approximately 213.4 million residents and a literacy rate of 93.22%. As a federal statute, it is cataloged under Dewey Decimal classifications 342.057 and 348.02, and is assigned authority control identifiers including Library of Congress ID sh85127611 and GND ID 4020660-9. The law is also recognized as equivalent to the Schema.org Legislation class, enabling its representation in semantic web contexts.

### Subject Matter and Regulatory Scope

The statute addresses two primary subjects as documented in its metadata: financial aid (Auxilio Financeiro) and educational institutions (Instituição Educacional). This dual focus indicates that the law establishes the legal framework for allocating and managing financial resources directed toward educational entities across Brazil's 8.5 million square kilometer territory. The law applies to all educational institutions within Brazil's jurisdiction, which includes 26 states and the Federal District governed under a federal republic structure. Brazil's education system operates within a representative democracy where the National Congress (comprising the Federal Senate and Chamber of Deputies) holds legislative authority, and the Supreme Federal Court (STF) serves as the highest judicial authority for interpreting such statutes. The law's subject matter directly impacts Brazil's compulsory education system, which mandates schooling for children ages 7 to 14, and influences resource distribution in a nation where approximately 188.5 million people reside in urban areas with diverse educational needs.

### Procedural History and Enactment

The law was approved by the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil through the determination method of promulgation on the specific date of October 3, 1963. This approval process reflects Brazil's presidential system where the head of state also serves as head of government. The promulgation followed the legislative process where draft laws are debated and processed by the National Congress before executive approval. The law's enactment occurred during Brazil's period as a federal republic, following the establishment of Brasília as capital in 1960 and preceding the 1988 Constitution that currently governs the nation's legal framework. The statute remains in force as part of Brazil's statutory law corpus, which includes thousands of federal laws documented through the LexML system and tracked by specialized Wikimedia initiatives such as WikiProject Brazilian Laws.

### Jurisdictional and Constitutional Context

Law No. 4264 operates within the Federative Republic of Brazil, a federal republic with a presidential system and representative democracy. The law applies to Brazil's entire jurisdiction, which spans from the Atlantic coast to borders with ten neighboring countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, and Venezuela. Brazil's legal system is built upon the Constitution of Brazil, effective since October 5, 1988, which establishes the framework within which statutes like Law No. 4264 function. The law's implementation involves multiple branches of government: the executive branch through presidential promulgation, the legislative branch through initial lawmaking processes, and the judicial branch through potential interpretation by the Supreme Federal Court. The statute's authority derives from Brazil's sovereignty as the largest country in South America, with an area of 8,515,767 km² and a population of approximately 213.4 million as of 2025 estimates.

### Documentary and Knowledge Management Status

The law is formally documented in Brazil's LexML system, a legal information repository that assigns persistent URNs to legislative texts. Its identifier urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1963-10-03;4264 ensures permanent retrievability and citation. The law is also recognized by WikiProject Brazilian Laws, a Wikimedia project focused on organizing and improving coverage of Brazilian legislation. This project status indicates the law's inclusion in collaborative knowledge management efforts. As a statute, the law benefits from public domain status under the edict of government doctrine, which establishes that official legislative enactments are not copyrightable in the United States, France, and by extension Brazil, ensuring that the 213.4 million Brazilian citizens have unrestricted access to the text. The law's metadata includes aliases in Portuguese and is classified under multiple authority control systems, including the German GND system where statutes are categorized as "Gesetz" (Law) or "gesetzliche Regelung" (statutory regulation), and the Art & Architecture Thesaurus which lists statutes as acts of a legislature.

## References

1. [Source](https://www.lexml.gov.br/urn/urn:lex:br:federal:lei:1963-10-03;4264)