The child was born outside of Mexico, but one or both parents have Mexican citizenship. Since 1998, the Mexican Nationality Law allows for a second nationality in addition to Mexican. In this material we will tell you how to obtain Mexican citizenship for a child based on the citizenship of his parents.
To obtain Mexican citizenship for a child born outside the country, it is enough that one of his parents has such citizenship. It does not matter how the parent acquired Mexican citizenship.
A parent could obtain Mexican citizenship:
- by birth in Mexico,
- from one of his parents — Mexican citizen
- on naturalization.
In all cases, a direct transfer of Mexican citizenship from parent to child is possible, in other words, the child will be considered Mexican. But if the child was born abroad (he has a foreign birth certificate), Mexican citizenship should be prepared.
Procedure for acquiring citizenship for a child
A child is allowed to obtain citizenship:
- at the Mexican consulate in the country where the child was born,
- at the office of the Civil Registry in Mexican territory.
In both cases, the presence of the child must be present, since entering data into the Mexican Civil Registry requires the collection of biometric data. But only one of the parents is able to be present — the one who will submit the documentation. He will then receive an extract from the Civil Register.
Originals of all documentation, including identification cards, are required for submission. This has the potential to be a problem if the mother and father are in different powers.
If you are going to grant Mexican citizenship to your child upon arrival in Mexico, you first need to grant him citizenship of your country, get a local passport, get a Mexican visa for this passport, and only then go to Mexico.
Purchasing Mexican citizenship at a Mexican consulate eliminates the need for a Mexican visa but requires a Mexican passport. The child will leave the country of birth on one passport and enter Mexico on a Mexican passport as a citizen.
So, you need to create the followingdocuments:
- Child's birth certificate. In addition, you need to make two simple photocopies.
- Child's ID (only if over 6 years old). This could be a foreign passport, a school ID, and in Mexico — certificate from a pediatrician with a photograph.
- Passports or ID cards of both parents.
- Birth certificates of both parents.
- Parents' marriage certificate.
- Immigration document of the foreign parent (say, FMM in Mexico, migration document in Russia).
- 2 color passport size photographs (4.5 x 3.5 cm) on a white background, full face, without glasses, with the head uncovered, taken recently. For babies, photos are not needed.
- 2 adult witnesses with their ID are required. Their nationality is not important, but they are not your parents' direct relatives.
You should check that all names on all documents match. Otherwise, you should contact the consulate for clarification or make changes at the registration authorities and then obtain new documents.
All documentation (except passports and migration forms) must be certified with an apostille stamp. Documents not issued in Mexico must be translated into Spanish and have the translation certified. In Mexico, documentation can be translated and certified by anyonejudicialtranslator, in other countries, usually at a notary. Then you need to make copies of the papers.
An original birth certificate issued in Mexico is not required. Instead, it is enough to give a certifiedcopy, which can be issued online.
If one of the parents has died, you should provide a death certificate and a copy of their ID, even if it is invalid.
The most importantwarning: If the marriage between the parents was not consummated or occurred after the birth of the child, the Mexican parent must be present in person at the filing of documents to confirm his or her parental rights, even if he is listed on the child's birth certificate. If the Mexican parent is unable to be present or has died, the child may not be able to acquire Mexican citizenship at the consulate or the Civil Registry. Then you should come to Mexico and, through lawyers, submit an application for the child to acquire citizenship.
After collecting all the papers, you should make an appointment and visit the Mexican consulate in your country or contact any Civil Registry office in Mexican territory.
Contacts of foreign consulates can be foundHere, and the offices of the Civil Registry (Registro civil) in Mexico — in thispublications.
Pre-requiredpay for servicesfor citizenship registration. Payment details can be obtained from the consulate or the Civil Registry.
In some cases, you may be asked to prove that you do not have Mexican citizenship. This is done at the consulate or at the Civil Registry office by requesting the registry and amounts to 520 MXN.
The consulate requires you to fill out a formDNN-1, in the offices of the Civil Registry — your own application form.
Five days after filing the papers, you should go again to the consular department or the Civil Registry office and pick up a certified («certified») copy of the registration in the Mexican Civil Registry. Only the parent who submitted documents for registration has the right to do this.
Now your child can get a Mexican citizen passport to travel abroad.
The child was born before the parent acquired Mexican citizenship
It should be understood that direct transfer of citizenship from a parent to a child is only possible if the parent was already a Mexican citizen at the time of the child's birth. Children born before a parent acquired citizenship may first obtain a Mexican permanent resident card based on their parent's relationship — citizen, and then no earlier than a year later apply for naturalization.
The process of obtaining permanent residence for a child can begin if the child is located both outside of Mexico and already in the country. In the first case, you should contact the consular department, in the second — to the office of the National Institute of Migration (INM).
We described the process of acquiring a residence permit in Mexico based on family ties in thisarticle.
Permanent residence permits the path to citizenship. After obtaining permanent residence, the child must live in Mexico continuously for 1 year, and then can begin the naturalization procedure. It is also possible to apply for citizenship later. It is important that the child remain in Mexico for the last year before applying for citizenship.