Eleven Visits to the Mexican Immigration Office

If you have ever waited in line at the California DMV without an appointment, you might know what the Immigration Service in Mexico--called INM- is like.

It’s 11 times worse.

To make a very long story short, I visited that INM office 11 times and 6 months later to finally get my authorization to work in Mexico. The good news was the office was close to our apartment, so i could walk there. The bad news: every time I went, it became increasingly more frustrating.

As I’ve written before, Mexico has a very “manana” mentality. Things can wait until tomorrow or the next week. This is very well seen at this office, where they are only open from 9-1 p.m.

I marched into the office in August armed with all my information gleaned from the internet and various people I had talked to. But that would not be enough. I would not get my work permit until January of 2017.

11 Visits to INM:

The Famous INM Office in Queretaro

Visit #1: I came with original birth certificate for me, Gavin and Diane, marriage certificate, my passport, official photos, and the official INM form. I waited for a couple hours, then Claudia--the designated English speaker clerk--helped me. She looked at my forms, shuffled them, then calmly said, “No.” I asked what was wrong. She told me the forms needed to be translated into Spanish. I looked at them and they were already in Spanish. I asked why. “It needs to be official.” I stupidly asked why, again. She repeated the same response. We found Patricia Moreno Rubio (Multilink Traductores) who said she could have them all done by the next Monday or Tuesday. So, we waited. $1500 pesos later and it was translated.

2-My friend Edu joined me picking up the translations, then at INM. But when I presented the forms, I wasn’t aware they needed to keep copies of the translations. So, I had to return the next day (the office closes at 1). At least, Edu and I enjoyed a lunch together at the local Mercado.

3-I presented the forms a couple days later, but it was not correct. We lived at Calle 5 de Mayo. On the form, it asked what the name of our street was. I did not put Calle 5 de Mayo, so we had to return the next week (holidays, etc).  So, we had to change one word, try to decipher the Spanish, and print it out.

4-Our marriage certificate had the wrong name on it. I married Diane Gloria Waxman. But her passport said only Diane Bidna. So, INM wanted us to go to the U.S. Consulate in San Miguel de Allende to get a letter saying that my wife was the same person.

5-We presented the letter from the U.S Consulate. Claudia asked, “Where is Diane Gloria?” She raised her hand and said, “I’m here.” “No, this is for Diane Bidna, not Diane Gloria. You need to get another letter from the U.S. Consulate stating that they are the same person." So, we jumped in an Uber and went back to the U.S. Consulate about 40 minutes away. We made it in time that the Consulate closed at 1, but INM was closed. The man at the Consulate (Ed) felt so sorry for us.

6.Finally, by October 20, we were close to getting our card. Claudia finally looked at us, and said, “Yes, congratulations. We will process your card.” She stamped several documents, with a loud “stamping” sound, copied something and told us to pay $1149 pesos at the bank. We went the next couple days, on October 25, and I proudly walked in the next day.

7-I came in with all the documents. But I had figured out the system--go late in the afternoon, about 12:00 or 12:30 because they close the doors at 1 p.m. The clerks want to leave, so they will do anything to get out of there quickly. So, I walked in with all the documents. But one of the copies of the marriage certificate did not photocopy correctly--one little corner did not photocopy.  So, they told me to come back the next day with a complete copy. The irony: I had our original marriage certificate, but she needed the copy. Plus, they had copy machines in the back room!

8-Finally, the correct documents were submitted and I could pick up my card--after the holidays--in 10-14 days.

Now, I had to apply for a card to work and earn money in Mexico. The same kind of process: fill out a form online, visit the office, get a letter from the school, submit photos and I was done.

9-I submitted all the documents. I paid the money--$3596 pesos--at the bank, and waited. It might take weeks to get my work permit, they told me.

10-On December 14, 2016 at 1:05 p.m., I submitted everything and waited. They fingerprinted me, check and double-checked and the clerk Ramses helped me. He also handwrote a letter to get my official CURP number (it took him 1 minute).  He said it might take weeks--because of the Christmas holiday--to get my work permit. I also brought him some chocolate candy. He was so excited.

11-Finally, on January 11, 2017, I received my “Residente Temporal” with “Permiso Para Trabajar” card. Now, I could start earning money. Wow.

What did I learn?

People line up early--7 a.m.-but expect to
 wait and wait and wait

-If you want to speed up the process, you can hire an attorney who speaks Spanish and will save you time. But they usually costs 2 or 3 times the amount of the fees.

-Mexico prides itself on its rules and regulations,but the more you know the people, the better the service.

-If I had spoken Spanish, several of these visits to INM could have been avoided.

-There is a 24/7 phone number for INM, but they don’t like to speak English--I was lost several times when they tried to transfer my call.

-For the 6 months, no one was ever mean or rude to me about the process. They were just following their rules.

-If you make a mistake (Calle, for example), you must correct it in the manner which you submitted it: If you typed it, you must retype it. If you handwrite it, you must re-handwrite it.

- You need to sign your name exactly as it is on your passport, or it will be rejected. And stay within the lines or you need to redo the entire application!

-You cannot expect to just initial something if you make a mistake. It must be your exact signature.

-Never say, “That’s what we do in the United States.” This is Mexico, and you should know that.

-Dulce at Diane's school was so helpful for me, giving us the correct information. Her attorney friend Alicia, who was always there, also helped. There is a lot of wrong information online! Also, our neighbors Michelle and Alessandro helped us laugh through the process.

-Bring something to read or do while you sit there for hours.

-Bring the clerks candy. Or tacos. Or Enchiladas Queretanos. They are human.

-You need to be patient. And more.