Immigration to Mexico
2021-02-16
To legally work in Mexico, you must obtain a work visa in one of two ways: through a job offer from a Mexican employer or by opening a business there. You then have your own company hire you as an employee. Work permits in Mexico are processed through the Instituto Nacional de Migración (INM).
Mexican Work Visa from a Job Offer
Let’s say you receive a job offer you want to accept. Firstly, your potential employer should apply for your work visa at the INM. This can be done through the INM office directly or by using an immigration specialist. The employer submits various company documents proving its legal existence, that taxes are paid, and the identity of the representative.
Then, once these documents have been approved, you book an interview at a Mexican consulate outside Mexico. At this interview, you get a Mexican Visa sticker on your passport. You have 180 days to return to Mexico from that date.
Upon returning to Mexico, do not enter as a tourist. Ensure the INM agent sees your sticker and updates your Forma Migratoria Multiple (FFM) accordingly. They will then allow you 30 days to report to the INM.
This part of the process is called the Canje (exchange) and is handled by the immigration office in Mexico. Eventually, you exchange your 30-day visa for temporary residency with permission to work.
Mexican Work Visa as a Business Owner
If you own a business in Mexico, you also require permission to work. First, your company needs to register for Constancia de Empleador at the INM, allowing it to hire foreigners.
The requirements are:
- Constitutive Act – original and copy
- Public registry record
- Fee payments
- Up-to-date tax document
- Annual tax payment
- Original I.D. of the legal representative
- Proof of residence – current and actual electricity or water bill
- Photos of premises – 3 inside and three outside
- Google Maps location indicator
- Letterheads on opaline paper with colour logo, RFC (Federal Register of Contributors number), address, telephone number, website, and email
- IMSS (social security) list of Mexican and foreign employees, specifying positions and nationality
- IMSS (social security) receipt
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