Mexico
Residency route coverage
| Route family | Routes | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Investment | Routes recorded | |
| Remote work | No routes recorded | No qualifying route as of 2026-05-15[4][10][14] Mexico has no remote-work or digital-nomad permit. The Ley de Migración's list of conditions of stay (art. 52) is exhaustive, and so is the list of visa procedures in the Lineamientos, and neither contains a category defined by working for a foreign employer or foreign clients. The word "remota" appears in those instruments only once, as the working arrangement an employer must now declare when offering a Mexican job – that is domestic employment done remotely, not a route for income earned abroad. In practice remote workers apply on the residente temporal solvencia económica track, shown here under passive income, whose qualifying income is "empleo o pensión" and so admits salaried income earned abroad. |
| Passive income | Routes recorded | |
| Entrepreneur | No routes recorded | No qualifying route as of 2026-08-04[10][14] Mexico has no dedicated startup or entrepreneur permit. Neither the Ley de Migración's conditions of stay (art. 52) nor the visa procedures in the Lineamientos contains one. The nearest mechanism is the investor ground, which accepts evidence of business activity and is shown here under investment. |
| Work | Routes recorded | |
| Study |
| Routes recorded |
| Family | Routes recorded |
Country facts
Identity
| Local name | México |
|---|---|
| ISO code | MEX |
| Region | Americas |
| Currency | MXN as of 2026-01-09[5][8] Mexican peso; official reference figures are denominated in 'pesos mexicanos' |
| Official languages | es as of 2023-10-18[11][13] No statutory 'official language' designation exists; Spanish and recognized indigenous languages are 'lenguas nacionales' (LGDLPI art. 4). Spanish is the operative administrative language (e.g. naturalization requires Spanish, Ley de Nacionalidad art. 19) |
Permanent residence
| Qualifying years | 4 as of 2026-01-15[10][19] Residente permanente after 4 years holding residente temporal (Ley de Migración art. 54 fr. V; Reglamento art. 139 fr. V). Reduced to 2 years for spouses/partners of a Mexican or of a permanent resident (Reglamento art. 139 fr. VII). Certain categories obtain permanent residency directly (pensioners, close family of Mexicans, asylum/refuge) |
|---|---|
| Language requirement | none as of 2026-01-15[10][19] No language requirement appears in the Ley de Migración, its Reglamento or the Lineamientos for obtaining residente permanente |
| Integration requirement | No as of 2026-01-15[10][19] No civics/integration test or programme in the governing instruments |
| Absence rules |
|
Citizenship
| Years to naturalisation | 5 as of 2013-11-25[11][20] 5 years' residence immediately before application (Ley de Nacionalidad art. 20). Reduced to 2 years for: direct descendants of a Mexican by birth, parents of Mexican-born children, nationals of Latin American or Iberian Peninsula countries, and spouses of Mexicans (2 years cohabitation in Mexico, art. 20 fr. II). Absences: residence not interrupted unless absences in the 2 years before application exceed 6 months in total (art. 21) |
|---|---|
| of which on permanent residence | 0 as of 2013-11-25[11][20] Residence may be proven with either a residente temporal or a residente permanente card (Reglamento de la Ley de Nacionalidad art. 14); no minimum period on permanent status is required |
| Dual citizenship | restricted as of 2026-08-04[3][11] Mexicans by birth cannot be deprived of their nationality and may hold others (CPEUM art. 37-A). Naturalization applicants must formally renounce their prior nationality (Ley de Nacionalidad arts. 17, 19 fr. II), and naturalized nationality is lost by voluntary acquisition of another nationality, using a foreign passport, or 5 continuous years residing abroad (CPEUM art. 37-B) |
| Language requirement | required, level unspecified as of 2013-11-25[11][20] Spanish is required ('probar que sabe hablar español', Ley de Nacionalidad art. 19 fr. III; exam per Reglamento art. 15), but no CEFR level is defined anywhere in the governing instruments — required_unspecified records the requirement honestly without inventing a level |
| Citizenship test required | Yes as of 2013-11-25[11][20] Exams on Spanish, Mexican history and integration into national culture, per contents approved by the Instituto Matías Romero (Reglamento art. 15). Persons over 60, minors and refugees only prove spoken Spanish |
Tax
| Tax-residency day threshold | Not applicable[1][18] No day-count test for individuals. Residency arises from establishing a casa habitación (home) in Mexico; with homes in two countries, the centre-of-vital-interests test decides (CFF art. 9) |
|---|---|
| Other tax-residency triggers | domicile, centre of vital interests as of 2026-01-30[1][18] 'domicile' maps 'casa habitación en México'. Centre of vital interests: >50% of calendar-year income from Mexican sources, or Mexico is the main centre of professional activities (CFF art. 9 fr. I a). Mexican nationals are presumed tax-resident unless proven otherwise |
| Headline income tax rate | 35% as of 2026-01-30[15][17] |
| Income tax structure | progressive as of 2026-01-30[15][17] |
| Net-wealth tax | No as of 2026-01-30[16] |
| Inheritance or estate tax | No as of 2026-01-30[15][16] No standalone inheritance/estate tax; inheritances and legacies are income-tax-exempt for residents (LISR art. 93 fr. XXII) |
Your next step
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Reference figures
| Measure and Update Unit (UMA), daily value | |
|---|---|
| General minimum wage, daily |
|
Changes
Recent changes
| 2025-07-25 | New Lineamientos Generales para la expedición de visas published (DOF 25-07-2025, in force 2025-08-09), abrogating the 2014 Lineamientos: economic-solvency, investor and real-estate thresholds redenominated in UMA days (680 / 11,460 / 45,850 / 91,710), electronic-visa framework introduced, photo and paper-copy requirements removed from consular visa applications. Affects: Temporary Resident Visa – Investor / Real property owner, Temporary Resident Visa – Economic solvency, Permanent Resident Visa – Retirees or pensioners, Temporary Resident Visa – job offer (employer-sponsored), Temporary Resident Student Visa, Temporary Resident Visa – family unity, Permanent Resident Visa – family unity[2][14] |
|---|---|
| 2025-11-07 | Ley Federal de Derechos reform (DOF 07-11-2025, effective 2026-01-01) roughly doubled migration document fees: residente temporal card MXN 11,140.74 (1 yr) to 25,057.82 (4 yrs), residente permanente card MXN 13,578.96 (~109% increases); a 50% family-unity fee reduction mechanism was introduced. Affects: Temporary Resident Visa – Investor / Real property owner, Temporary Resident Visa – Economic solvency, Permanent Resident Visa – Retirees or pensioners, Temporary Resident Visa – job offer (employer-sponsored), Temporary Resident Student Visa, Temporary Resident Visa – family unity, Permanent Resident Visa – family unity[7][12] |
| 2025-12-09 | CONASAMI resolution (DOF 09-12-2025): 2026 general minimum wage raised 13% to MXN 315.04/day (ZLFN +5% to 440.87), effective 2026-01-01. Affects: mx-salario-minimo[5] |
| 2026-01-09 | UMA 2026 published (INEGI 2026-01-08; DOF 2026-01-09): daily value MXN 117.31 (+3.69%), effective 2026-02-01 — all UMA-denominated visa thresholds move accordingly. Affects: mx-uma, Temporary Resident Visa – Investor / Real property owner, Temporary Resident Visa – Economic solvency, Permanent Resident Visa – Retirees or pensioners, Temporary Resident Visa – job offer (employer-sponsored), Temporary Resident Student Visa, Temporary Resident Visa – family unity, Permanent Resident Visa – family unity[6][8] |
| 2026-05-15 | Acuerdo reforming and adding to the Lineamientos Generales para la expedición de visas (DOF 15-05-2026, signed 13-05-2026, in force the day after publication per Transitorio Primero). Adds Trámite 5 requisito III inciso h): a residente temporal supuesto for highly specialised technical assistance and knowledge transfer in strategic projects, expressly non-remunerated in Mexico and conditioned on a knowledge-transfer programme for Mexican staff and a sworn statement that national talent is not displaced. Reforms Trámite 10 (oferta de empleo): the job offer must now state the work modality (presencial, remota o mixta) and the full addresses of every work location, and the amount AND periodicity of remuneration; strategic-project offers by persona moral employers must add a knowledge-transfer programme and evidence of the foreigner’s credentials. Reforms Trámite 11 accordingly. Affects: Temporary Resident Visa – job offer (employer-sponsored), Temporary Resident Visa – highly specialised technical assistance and knowledge transfer in strategic projects[4][9][21][22] |
Verification
| Sources cited | 22 |
|---|---|
| of which official (tier 1) | 16 |
| Oldest as-of date | 2013-11-25 |
| Newest as-of date | 2026-08-04 |
| Reviewed on | 2026-08-11 |
| Schema version | 1.1 |
Sources
- [1] Código Fiscal de la Federación, art. 9 (residencia fiscal; última reforma DOF 09-04-2026)
Cámara de Diputados del H. Congreso de la Unión · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2026-04-09 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [2] Lineamientos para la expedición de visas — texto DOF 25-07-2025 (PDF mirror)
Consulado General de México en Houston (SRE) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2025-07-25 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [3] Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, art. 37 (nacionalidad)
Cámara de Diputados del H. Congreso de la Unión · statute · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [4] ACUERDO por el que se reforman y adicionan los Lineamientos Generales para la expedición de visas que emiten las secretarías de Gobernación y de Relaciones Exteriores (DOF 15-05-2026)
Diario Oficial de la Federación (SEGOB/SRE) · gazette · Tier 1 · Published 2026-05-15 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [5] RESOLUCIÓN del H. Consejo de Representantes de la CONASAMI que fija los salarios mínimos 2026 (DOF 09-12-2025)
Diario Oficial de la Federación (CONASAMI) · gazette · Tier 1 · Published 2025-12-09 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [6] UNIDAD de Medida y Actualización 2026 (DOF 09-01-2026)
Diario Oficial de la Federación (INEGI) · gazette · Tier 1 · Published 2026-01-09 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [7] Mexico: Immigration Fee Increases and New Reduction Mechanism Forthcoming
Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy LLP · law firm · Tier 2 · Published 2025-11-12 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [8] Comunicado de prensa 1/26: Unidad de Medida y Actualización (UMA) 2026
Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI) · official guidance · Tier 1 · Published 2026-01-08 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [9] Mexico – New Visa Requirements and New Visa Category (GMS Flash Alert 2026-166)
KPMG International · law firm · Tier 2 · Published 2026-05-15 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [10] Ley de Migración (texto vigente, última reforma DOF 15-01-2026)
Cámara de Diputados del H. Congreso de la Unión · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2026-01-15 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [11] Ley de Nacionalidad (última reforma DOF 23-04-2012)
Cámara de Diputados del H. Congreso de la Unión · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2012-04-23 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [12] Ley Federal de Derechos, arts. 8 y 22 (cuotas migratorias y consulares; última reforma DOF 07-11-2025)
Cámara de Diputados del H. Congreso de la Unión · fee schedule · Tier 1 · Published 2025-11-07 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [13] Ley General de Derechos Lingüísticos de los Pueblos Indígenas, art. 4 (última reforma DOF 18-10-2023)
Cámara de Diputados del H. Congreso de la Unión · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2023-10-18 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [14] Lineamientos Generales para la expedición de visas que emiten las secretarías de Gobernación y de Relaciones Exteriores (DOF 25-07-2025)
Diario Oficial de la Federación (SEGOB/SRE) · gazette · Tier 1 · Published 2025-07-25 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy · Amended by mx-dof-reforma-lineamientos-2026 - [15] Ley del Impuesto sobre la Renta, arts. 93 y 152 (última reforma DOF 01-04-2024)
Cámara de Diputados del H. Congreso de la Unión · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2024-04-01 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [16] Worldwide Tax Summaries — Mexico: Individual — Other taxes
PwC · law firm · Tier 2 · Published 2026-01-30 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [17] Worldwide Tax Summaries — Mexico: Individual — Taxes on personal income
PwC · law firm · Tier 2 · Published 2026-01-30 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [18] Worldwide Tax Summaries — Mexico: Individual — Residence
PwC · law firm · Tier 2 · Published 2026-01-30 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [19] Reglamento de la Ley de Migración (última reforma DOF 23-05-2014)
Cámara de Diputados del H. Congreso de la Unión · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2014-05-23 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [20] Reglamento de la Ley de Nacionalidad (última reforma DOF 25-11-2013)
Cámara de Diputados del H. Congreso de la Unión · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2013-11-25 · Accessed 2026-08-04 · Archived copy - [21] Acuerdo que reforma y adiciona los Lineamientos Generales para la expedición de visas — texto íntegro (mirror SIDOF)
Sistema de Información del Diario Oficial de la Federación (SEGOB) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-05-15 · Accessed 2026-08-04 - [22] Modificaciones a los Lineamientos Generales para la Expedición de Visas
Von Wobeser y Sierra, S.C. · law firm · Tier 2 · Published 2026-06-04 · Accessed 2026-08-04