Cost of a Mexican Resident Card Increased for 2019

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Readers often write me to ask how much it costs to get a temporary or permanent resident card in Mexico. My answer changes every January when the Mexican immigration authority, known as the Instituto Nacional de Migración (INM), puts their latest fee schedule into effect.

This year I’ve been a little slow updating the information because Linda and I have been busy traveling and enjoying life south of the border. That’s the price you have to pay as a reader for following a hobby blog written by two beach bums.

I had some free time this morning while visiting the old country, so here are the latest fees for temporary and permanent resident cards, as well as other common immigration services like work visas. And, like most things in life, they increased from the year before.

The fees are all given in pesos — a fact that shouldn’t surprise most people considering it’s Mexico — however, you can find the latest exchange rates on the side bar of the blog.

If you’re using a mobile device, the exchange rates will appear after the article.

When and Where to Pay The Fees

For those readers who are unfamiliar with the process to get a resident card, the process actually begins outside of Mexico at a Mexican Consulate. The consulate officials will review your application and it is ultimately their decision if you will be granted Mexican residency.

If they do approve your application, the paperwork is still far from over. Once you arrive in Mexico, there are additional forms and procedures to follow. That’s also where you will be required to pay the fees shown in the last section.

If you choose to handle the Mexican side of things yourself, keep in mind that the paperwork is only provided in Spanish and multiple trips to the immigration office are required.

The process can be confusing and that’s why we always recommend that people moving to Mexico, especially non-Spanish speakers, hire either an attorney or immigration specialist to handle this part of the process.

If you’re looking for an immigration specialist in our part of Mexico (Puerto Morelos, Playa del Carmen or Tulum), we highly recommend Adriana Vela. Here’s her contact information:

Adriana Vela, Immigration Specialist
Business site: migrationtomexico.com
Contact email: [email protected]

Let’s Wrap This Up

If you look at the fee schedule above, you’ll notice that the cost of a permanent resident card, that never expires, is much lower than the cost of a temporary resident card that expires in four years. In the past, this has prompted many readers to ask me why people don’t just get that one right off the bat.

In the interest of cutting down on our daily email load from readers, I’ll go ahead and address this one now.

Generally speaking, people who immigrate to Mexico are required to complete four years as a temporary resident, after which they can obtain their permanent residency; however, there are exceptions. One of the notable exceptions, especially for readers of this blog who tend to be older, is the one for foreign retirees.

A foreign retiree/pensioner can jump right to permanent residency provided that he or she meets the requirements to prove economic solvency. In layman’s terms, that just means that Mexico wants to make sure you can support yourself and not drain their services.

There are economic requirements to obtain temporary residency too, but they are a bit lower.

To learn more about this topic, check out Retiring in Mexico: Financial Requirements for Residency.

Well, that’s it for today. It’s time for us to go back to enjoying retirement.

Q-Roo Paul

Paul Kurtzweil (Q-Roo Paul) was a deputy sheriff in Florida for 25 years before retiring at the rank of lieutenant in 2015. He and his wife moved to Mexico looking to maximize their retirement income. They later started a blog called Two Expats Mexico (qroo.us) to share their experiences, as well as information about the logistical and legal aspects of retiring south of the border.

Source: two expats mexico

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