Immigration Visa Process in San Miguel, Puerto Vallarta, Nuevo Vallarta.

San Miguel: I meet clients early. INM opens a 9 am. You may be number 7 or you may be number 20 depending on how many people are there and when they arrived. Your could be at INM 5 hours and temperatures are cool early in the day and then may be hot. Your visa card will normally be issued that day with a few exceptions such as when progressing from temporary resident to permanent resident or being sponsored under family.

Puerto Vallarta: Teresa makes appointments and she has to take the appointment time and the day the next one is available. 

Nuevo Nayarit: Teresa or Sarai her assistant, normally meets you very early. No one is allowed to have someone stand in line on your behalf. The office allows people inside at 6 am to sit and wait. Early mornings will be cool and soon after hot. Typically, it is 5 to 7 hours but on rare occasions longer. Be prepared as to what you wear and for food. 

Please be realistic. Some of the problems you may experience include staff shortages; lack of cards; printer or software issues; etc. At times what you expected to be completed that day will not. 

Please put in perspective your visa process in Mexico compared to this: for a Mexican citizen to apply for a resident visa for the US, it takes up to 1 year and normally you may not leave the country in that time. And, applicant requires background check plus medical.

For a Mexican citizen to visit the US or to change planes in the US, the next appointments for a tourist visa at the MX embassy in Mexico City, is almost 2 years from now. 

Permanent Resident Visa

The Permanent Resident Visa (PR) is for those who plan to live in Mexico permanently. It starts with a pre-approval at a Mexican consulate and the process is the same as a Temporary Resident.

Here is a list of Mexican consulates.

Consulate Requirements

1. Photo with face uncovered, no glasses, front view, in colour, white background. 3.9 cm x 3.1 cm (1.53” x 1.2”). This is not American passport size.

2. In the U.S. $53 cash per person and in Canada $74.

3. Mexican consulate visa application is to be printed double-sided (one per person). Complete and take with you. Best estimate for port-of-entry and date of entry is acceptable. On question 21, for Temporary Resident pre-approval check more than 180 days and less than 4 years. For Permanent Resident check “DEFINITIVE”​. In reason for applying: “to live in Mexico” or “to retire in Mexico”. Complete questions 1- 25 and nothing more. Please do not sign.

4. Passport plus copy. 

5. For financial statements some consulates want originals. Check with your MX consulate as there are variables for which I am not responsible. If an account is in both names, you are to have both names appear on your financial statements. Mexican printouts often show 1 name on joint accounts. The following amounts are based on a 20 to 1 US$ and 14 to 1 Canadian $ exchange rate. 

The amounts are per person. When sponsoring a child or spouse the additional financial amount required by the person sponsoring is sometimes a little as 25% more. These are the 2025 financial requirements.

• Minimum monthly income $6,975 US / $9,964 Can. (500 days x minimum wage 279) employment or pension showing 6 months of bank statements and each month not less than the minimum, or  
• Minimum investments $279,000 / $398,571 Can (20,000 days x minimum wage 279) with 12 months of individual statements and each month not less than the minimum.

6. Appointment confirmation form.

7. Original and copies of marriage licenses when spouse is sponsoring the other and birth certificates for children.

To make an appointment check the consulate web site and FB page. Consulates have an email address and phone number.

Prior to leaving the consulate, please check your pre-approved visa in your passport to ensure your name is spelled correctly; your birthdate is accurate; male / female is indicated correctly; and, if you applied for Temporary Resident, that what you received is not Permanent Resident which for those bringing a car is an issue. Similarly, if you applied for Permanent Resident pre-approval please confirm. An error is a problem.

Entering Mexico With a Pre-approved Visa from a Mexican Consulate

Once pre-approved, you have 6 months to enter Mexico and once you enter, you have 30 days to start your visa process or at least make an appointment at an Immigration office. The 30 days includes the day you entered Mexico. But you must start your process in Mexico prior to the pre-approved visa expiration date. For example, you may not enter Mexico two days prior to the pre-approved visa expires and think you now have 30 more days to start your visa process at Immigration in Mexico. 

Once you are pre-approved at a consulate for temporary or permanent resident, you may only enter Mexico once and at that time you must process your visa at Immigration. Your pre-approved consulate visa states: No. de entradas / No. of entries: UNA. Should you enter Mexico and leave without processing your resident visa card you will need to start over at a Mexican consulate. 

When you enter Mexico, please show your passport and pre-approved visa. At border crossings you will be issued an FMM marked CANJE and the number 30. Your pre-approved visa in your passport will be date stamped. At airports your passport will be date stamped and written the word “CANJE” and the number “30”.

For those entering at an airport with no FMM and only date stamp, the word CANJE and the number 30 in your passport, you must scan the QR code and print out the FMM. Or, you may also access the FMM portal here. Once you have uploaded a photo of your passport and you corroborated the information is correct, select “Ingresos” and next click the small ORANGE CIRCLE with a check mark. Next, select “Descargar” for the download icon. You will not be able to process your pre-approved visa at Immigration in Mexico without a FMM that has been printed and presented. You may only download it once so please do not lose the FMM you printed. For clients, I will do this for you.

Immigration’s fee for Permanent Resident, once pre-approved at a Mexican consulate is 6495 pesos. For those changing from Temporary Resident to Permanent Resident there is also a review fee of 1702 pesos. These fees are payable at Immigration using Visa or MasterCard.

Permanent Resident Card

Once this permanent residency card is issued, it is permanent and renewals are not required with the exception of a child who must renew their Permanent Resident card every 4 years until age 18. You may work as a PR but you must inform INM after registering with SAT for taxes. INM may deny approval to work. A foreign plated car is not allowed. Some consulates will not provide Permanent Resident pre-approval to those under retirement age. For those who are Temporary Residents and living in Mexico, you may become a Permanent Resident in less than 4 years. The requirements vary at Immigration offices but this is the most common practice: you must prove you are receiving a pension and be at least age 65. And, you are required to prove 6 months of pension income of 500 x UMA / month (~$3000 if US) or 12 months of investments/savings of 25,000 x UMA (~$140,000 US). La Unidad de Medida y Actualización (UMA) is 108.57. Your name on your financials must exactly match your name on your passport and not one letter may be different. All financials require certified translation.

Children with a Permanent Resident visa between the ages of 1 and 3 must renew their visa annually. Children over age 3 must renew every 4 years until 18. Once a child has residency, there is no need for financials including when child turns 18.

Please never have a color copy of your resident card, driver’s license or any other Mexican government issued ID as that is considered fraud with serious consequences.

Entering Mexico As a Permanent Resident

When you enter Mexico at an airport which has passport scanners, as a Permanent Resident you must NOT go through the automatic scanners. They are meant for tourists. Should you do so you will be a tourist and you will need to start the process over proving financials. Here is a photo of what you do NOT want as it has entry and exit date meaning you are a tourist. You may also print out your FMM confirming your status as a tourist.

​Carrying ID Within Mexico

In Mexico, your are to carry your original Temporary or Permanent Resident card. If a tourist, you carry your passport and proof you entered Mexico.

Lost Resident Card Out-of Mexico

If you lose your Temporary of Permanent Resident card while outside of Mexico it helps to have. police report. You may go to the nearest Mexican consulate. Another option, is upon arrival at an airport in Mexico, you immediately go to Inmigracion at the airport. You ask for a meeting and request a 2 page letter called: ACTA DE INTERNACION AEREA. You then apply at your local INM in Mexico. If immigration at the airport records you as a tourist, that is what you will be and you will have to start your visa process over again at a Mexican consulate and prove financials.

Traveling by Minors

Foreign minors under the age of 18 traveling to Mexico alone or with a third party of legal age as visitors for a stay if up to 180 days, do not require authorization or a letter of consent from their parents or guardian. And, Mexican migratory authorities will allow these minors to leave Mexico upon presentation of a valid passport.

Minors under 18 years of age who are of Mexican nationality or foreigners holding the migratory status of Permanent Resident, Temporary Resident or Temporary Student Resident, who are in Mexico and wish to travel abroad alone or accompanied by a person of legal age other than one of their parents, must present a document issued by the National Migration Institute (INM) called Permiso SAM (Formato de Salida de Menores).

One or both parents may apply at Immigration along with the minor child. The SAM approval is valid for 6 months. There is no cost and one document is required for each child. It is very important to note that only INM agents are authorized to stamp the SAM Format and without this stamp,  minors will not be able to leave Mexican territory even if they have their travel ticket.

Minors under the age of 18 traveling with at least one of their parents or guardians do not require authorization.