Contravention

In Civil [law (legal system)|civil law], a contravention is a lesser offense, similar to an infraction or civil penalty in common law countries.

Brazil

In Brazil, contravention is a sort of penal infraction — not only an administrative offense - which is considered to be less serious than a crime.
Since 1941, Brazilian criminal law has a dual system which separates penal infractions in two main different acts. They are the Brazilian Penal Code, describing crimes in general, and the, describing the contraventions.
Contraventions are punished less severely than crimes in Brazilian law. While crimes may be punished to reclusão or detenção, the only kind of possible imprisonment for contraventions is prisão simples, which is never served under closed conditions. Fines may also be imposed due to contravention sentencing.
In Brazilian law, one who is already convicted for a crime is not considered to be recidivist when committing a contravention for the first time, and vice versa.