We would like to talk about a situation where a resident’s family enters Mexico with him. The resident will apply for entry using a visa or resident card, family — like travelers.
If a future resident is receiving their resident visa, it is ideal for family members to receive their resident visas along with them based on their relationship. But this is not always allowed:
- the Mexican consulate has the right to be in another city or country, and the main recipient of the visa travels there alone,
- relatives currently do not have a birth or marriage certificate, which is required to obtain a resident visa based on kinship with the main recipient of the visa,
- Some consuls are very reluctant to issue visas if they see a large family moving to Mexico. For this reason, in particular, it is better to obtain a work visa yourself.
It is quite normal for family members of a resident to enter Mexico with him as guests of the country, and then, already in Mexico, receive their resident cards based on their relationship with him. In most cases, this is even easier than going the route of acquiring a visa.
To obtain entry into Mexico, a resident needs only 2 documents:
- passport,
- a visa stuck in your passport or a resident card.
Resident's family members — ordinary tourists, so upon entry they must comply with the criteria for guest states. They will not be denied entry because they are traveling with a resident, but requirements must still be met.
Birth or marriage certificate
It is used to confirm the relationship with the resident and ensures that the migration service treats them as members of the resident’s family, and not as ordinary travelers. The certificate must be certified with an apostille stamp and accompanied by a translation into Spanish or English, without certification. Translators know how to make a translation while preserving the original formatting.
If the last name on the certificate and the passport are different, an additional document is required confirming the change of last name. Usually this is a certificate (not a certificate) of marriage, a certificate of name change, etc.
After entering Mexico, the certificate and document on the change of surname are translated by an official translator of Mexico and submitted to the migration service for registration of residence for a family member.
Return ticket
We strongly advise you to have a return ticket, even if family members tell the immigration officer that they came to Mexico to purchase residence. It is possible that the migration officer will allow entry without a return ticket (although he is not obliged), but even before that, the airline has the right to refuse boarding on a flight to Mexico without a return ticket. The risk of not having a return ticket is not worth it!
Accommodation reservation
It is also needed and also according to the same principle. The resident is able to say that family members will live with him, but is such an explanation accepted — at the discretion of the migration officer and the airline. For example, for Turkish Airlines, the lack of accommodation reservation for a guest of the country may be grounds for denial of boarding on a flight to Mexico.
Cash
The tourist is required to confirm that he has sufficient funds to stay in Mexico, although the passport control officer very rarely checks this. A verbal guarantee from an accompanying resident may not be enough. Expect about $50 per day. About $300 can be cash, and it is allowed to say that there is still money on the card (they will not check).
Purpose of visit
In this case, the purpose of the visit is obvious, and there is no point in hiding it. Family members of a resident can safely report that they came to Mexico to visit a relative — resident or for registration of residence by relationship with him.
Letter — invitation
It is not necessary because family members are traveling with the resident and he can personally confirm all information that his family members provide to the passport control officer.
Permitted length of stay
Most often, the permitted period of stay in Mexico is based on a return ticket plus a few days. If family members come to Mexico to apply for residency, they must do so before the end of their authorized stay, but not before the resident receives their resident card if they entered on a resident visa. They will not be denied residence registration even after the end of the permitted period of stay, but they will have to pay a fine.
Try requesting a longer permitted period of stay. Should I give it to you — at the discretion of the migration officer.
After entry, do not forget to download the FMMD migration form from the migration service website. It will be needed when submitting documents to exchange a resident visa for a resident card or when obtaining a residence permit by members of the resident’s family.