The Congress meets annually in Brasília from 2 February to 22 December, with a mid-term break taking place between 17 July and 1 August.

Each state and the Federal District has a representation of three senators, who are elected by popular ballot for a term of eight years.

Every four years, renewal of either one third or two-thirds of the Senate (and of the delegations of the States and the Federal District) takes place.

[5][6] The Chamber of Deputies represents the people of each state, and its members are elected for a four-year term by a system of proportional representation.

The current composition of the Board of the National Congress is as follows:[9] The Federal Senate (Portuguese: Senado Federal) is the upper house of the National Congress created by the first Constitution of the Brazilian Empire in 1824; it was inspired by United Kingdom's House of Lords, but with the Proclamation of the Republic in 1889 it became closer to the United States Senate.

The Senate was located near Railway Central Station, beside the Republica Square, at Moncorvo Filho Street, where there is today a Federal University of Rio de Janeiro students' center.

From the 1930s to early 1960s, the Senate occupied the Monroe Palace, which was demolished in the 1970s to allow the construction of the subway Cinelândia Station.

At the back of it, is the Praça dos Três Poderes ('Three Powers Plaza'), where lies the Palácio do Planalto and the Supreme Federal Court.

[16] On 8 January 2023, supporters of the former president Jair Bolsonaro invaded and vandalized the Brazilian National Congress as well as other federal buildings in Brasília.

The inauguration of a new composition of Chamber of Deputies for a four-year term of office marks the start of a new legislature.