On social networks, you have the right to read about the wonderful mechanism for the liberation of those who are not empty to Mexico. If you are denied entry into the country and are being held at the airport awaiting your return flight, a lawyer may appear and file a legal complaint, called amparo, and the denial of entry will be reversed. Sentences with the magic word «amparo» Telegram is full of information about assistance in entering Mexico, but in fact, these offers are nothing more than luring out money without the opportunity to really influence the decisions of the migration service.
Legal mechanism of amparo (amparo) in Mexico really works. It is provided for by the Constitution of the state to protect fundamental human rights, which were violated by the actions or inaction of state bodies. It is one of the most powerful legal protections in the Mexican legal system. But amparo can only suspend, change or demand a revision of a decision of a government body. Amparo is not able to force a state body to make the «necessary» resolution.
Most often, citizens of Central Asian countries (which many call “stans,” for example, Kazakhstan) fly to Mexico not for vacation, but to get to the United States through Mexico. If a Mexican immigration officer suspects a traveler's migration intentions, he is taken to a special room at the airport, often called a "glass window." because of the glass walls. After the order is issued at the entrance, he is transferred to another, completely isolated room with more stringent detention requirements to await boarding the flight to the country where the tourist has arrived. This wait can last from several hours to several days.
The essence of the proposals in Telegram for release from detention at the airport comes down to the fact that while a guest of the country is waiting from being sent home, a lawyer can file a direct amparo to appeal in court the decision of the migration service on the refusal of entry. Amparo is filed in a federal court or in an amparo court. The judge to whom amparo is served must temporarily suspend a decision on refusal of entry and only after a court hearing can this decision be changed.
The grounds for filing amparo are usually allegations of a violation of human rights by the migration service (arbitrary refusal of entry or refusal without reason) or violation of procedural issues (for example, refusal of entry was not issued or was not communicated to the tourist). The lawyer must prove that the migration service did not have direct evidence or reasonable suspicion to justify the refusal of entry, or that the detention was carried out in violation of the procedures provided for by law. More than one violation that is permitted and subject to appeal is the failure to provide the guest state with the option of contacting the diplomatic mission of their country, although this rarely happens.
Amparo can be filed either personally by a foreigner who is denied entry, or by his lawyer or even the diplomatic mission of his country. However, practice shows that consulates never serve amparo. Offers of entry by amparo are often accompanied by the condition of paying for the lawyer's services in advance. This is explained by the fact that he should contact a lawyer in advance in order to file amparo as quickly as possible. This creates a situation where a foreign tourist, heading to Mexico, is forced to worry about an agreement with a lawyer even before arrival, even if the likelihood of being denied entry is minimal.
1. Before a decision on refusal of entry is issued, amparo cannot be filed. As long as there is no ruling, there is nothing to appeal. The Migration Service has the right to conduct an additional check within a period of three hours, after which it must either allow entry or issue a refusal order. If a tourist is denied entry, he will be put on a return flight before the lawyer has time to file amparo. Even if the judge himself promptly arrives at the airport (which is extremely rare), this does not guarantee a change in the situation. Let's say, Turkish Airlines flights make stops in Mexico City and Cancun for less than two hours, for this reason the migration service begins to filter passengers from such flights right at the plane's ramp (there can be two flights a day).
2. First, the judge makes a temporary decision to suspend the entry order. This does not mean that the migration service is obliged to allow a tourist into the country. The suspension only prohibits the migration service from sending the guest of the country back until the completion of the trial. The traveler will continue to remain in temporary detention while awaiting the final decision of the court.
The task of amparo is to restore the rights of the guest state, violated by the illegal actions of the migration service. But it is important to understand: amparo does not have the right to force the migration service to allow entry! It only has the right to oblige it to comply with the laws and reconsider its decision within the framework of established procedures.
3. After the temporary decision, a court hearing will take place. The judge may change the entry refusal order and order the migration authorities to re-examine the applicant's case. However, even if the judge changes the order, he does not have the right to oblige the migration service to allow entry. The review of the decision of the migration service may drag on for weeks. During this time, the tourist will be under the care of the migration service in a special room. There are many cases where the migration service deliberately delayed the re-examination of the case if a guest of the state from Mexico seemed to leave Mexico and continued to insist on entry.
It is difficult to find specific public examples of the successful use of amparo in such situations. This may be due to the confidentiality of court cases and the lack of publicity. It should be borne in mind that even if you have all the necessary documents, including a visa, the final decision on entry is made by migration control personnel at the border. They have the right to refuse entry if there is suspicion. Such decisions can be appealed through amparo proceedings if there are grounds to believe that the decision was unfounded or violated human rights. At the same time, the likelihood of a successful review of decisions of the migration service after filing amparo is extremely low.