If you are traveling by airport and entering Mexico by the following Cities, you should be aware that you won’t get paper forms FMM (aka Multiple Migratory form) traditionally called tourist cards, visitors’ cards- resident’s paper forms, immigration forms:
- Cancún, Quintana Roo
- Guadalajara, Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco.
- Los Cabos, baja California.
- Monterrey, Nuevo leon.
- AIFA-Aeropuerto internacional Felipe Ángeles, Mexico.
The recent changes about no more papers forms FMM (aka Multiple Migratory form) traditionally called tourist cards, visitors’ cards- residents paper forms, and immigration forms which usually was given to you by the airline or at the immigration lineup at the airports have been implemented a few months ago by an INM immigration in México as PILOT TEST with the purpose to speed the entries and exits from Mexico ONLY through airports on the cities mentioned above.
If you are entering To Mexico for tourism purposes you’ll get from the immigration agent a stamp with entry and exit day on your passport at the airport. the entry date and the exit date could be up 180 days. The allowed days to stay in Mexico will be under the discretion of the immigration agent, which will be reflected on the exit date that the immigration agent should write with a pen on your passport, then after have passed the immigration line up you’ll able to get the FMME (electronic Migratory Multiple form- tourist form ) by an online website through the following link: https://www.inm.gob.mx/spublic/portal/inmex.html where to access you’ll need to create an account, to validate the account and once has been created you’ll find your FMME form ready to download after some steps to be followed, as the FMME is automatically generated by the Immigration agents at the airport after your entry registration to México.
If you are a temporary or permanent resident visa holder (visa stamped by the Mexican consulate NOT TEMPORARY RESIDENT CARD HOLDER) entering Mexico at the airport you must get from the immigration agent the entry date stamp on the temporary or permanent VISA PAGE (no other page), and the immigration agent should write the word CANJE (as show it on the image below ) and 30 days on it, and you must make sure that it’s correctly stamped on the vis page otherwise you may have issues/delays to continue with your residency process before the INM immigration office in México.
If you are a Temporary or permanent resident card holder entering Mexico from the above airports, the immigration agent will stamp the entry date on your passport and the letters RT regarding Temporary residents or the letters RP for permanent residents. Be sure that entering Mexico at the airport you show first your temporary or permanent residency card and then passport to the immigration agent so that the agent registers your entry as a Temporary or permanent resident otherwise you’ll be entering Mexico as Tourist and you’ll lose your residency status in Mexico. For leaving Mexico through the cities mentioned you don’t must to go the INM immigration desk at airport to check your exit , now you only must check in with the airline and show your residency card and your passport.
If you are a temporary or permanent resident visa holder (visa stamped by the Mexican consulate) who is coming to Mexico to continue with the residency process (CANJE process), you or your legal representative will be able to get to obtain your FMME (AKA Electronic Multiple Migratory Form ) through the following link: https://www.inm.gob.mx/spublic/portal/inmex.html
If you are a foreign tourist in Mexico who recently entered from the above cities, and who is planning to apply for a temporary or permanent residency while in Mexico under some category that you may qualify, you or your legal representative will be able to obtain your FMME (AKA Electronic Multiple Migratory Form) through the following link: https://www.inm.gob.mx/spublic/portal/inmex.html
PROS AND CONS of Pilot Test of FMME (aka Electronic Multiple Migratory form) traditionally called tourist cards, visitors’ cards- or immigration forms.
Pros….
- Foreigner tourists and foreign legal residents don’t waste lots of time filling out paper forms anymore.
- The entry and exits from Mexico through immigration lines at the airports mentioned on the above lines are speedy.
- Immigration agents at the airport will scan your information on your entry to Mexico and they will be uploading your information and generate your FMME (aka Electronic Multiple Migratory form) traditionally called a tourist card, visitors forms – immigration forms, which you won’t be required to do it anymore.
- The allowance days to remain in Mexico as a tourist will be shown on your passport on the entry stamp by the INM immigration agents from the airport.
Cons…
- If a foreign tourist wants to access the website https://www.inm.gob.mx/spublic/portal/inmex.html for getting their FMME form Printed out, the surprise is that this website is just in the Spanish language which will make it complicated for the foreigner to get access to this website.
- The new entry stamps on the passports by the immigration agents are confusing as sometimes rarely you can see the days allow it to stay.
- Some Immigration agents at our airport are new employees and they have been doing mistakes with their entry registrations, such as wrong passports numbers registration, wrong purpose trip registration, etc., and of course, those mistakes may affect the INM immigration process, some processes could be delayed at the INM immigration office until the mistake is fixed, and this mistakes could apply to tourist foreigner that would like to start any residency process before the INM immigration office, or to those who are temporary or permanent resident visa holders (visa stamped by the Mexican consulate) who want to finalize their process at the INM immigration office in México. Some of the mistakes did it on the generation of FMME forms by the immigration agent has made that when you create your account through the website https://www.inm.gob.mx/spublic/portal/inmex.html to download your FMME, this doesn’t exist as the registration was wrongly personal information such wrong passport, birth date, etc. and on this case and if you are planning to start some process with the INM immigration office in Mexico is extremely important to go directly to the INM so that they send the request to fix the issue.
In conclusion, this pilot test fulfills the purpose of speeding the entries and exits of Mexico at the airports, doesn’t have end date and we don’t know if will be continue forever , could change any time as currently is just a PILOT TEST, however, since the implementation of the FMME pilot test in some airports we have seen lots of mistakes in the Registration FMME by the immigration agents and also lots of tourist foreigners haven’t been able to access to the website for getting printed their FMME. Residency Process that has been started before the INM immigration office in Mexico with an FMME with issues has only been delayed.
Article prepared by Maria Lazareno, immigration lawyer of KL México Soluciones Jurídicas y migratorias, the reproduction is not allowed without consent for profit, since I own the copyright. This article is a general explanation, for each particular case; it is recommended to contact the Company to request in writing the information applied to your case.