It is not much better to shake up your life sometimes? Who wants to get stuck in a rut doing the same thing over and over, year after year? Not us 😎 Life is short and we want to make our final years the best that we possibly can.
Our very recent road trip took us to the Mexican Consulate in Vancouver.
We have been Rving to Mexico in our RV since 2002. After having traveled around most of Mexico ( no further south than Veracruz ) including to parts of the interior, as well as both coasts, we stopped at Tres Amigos RV Park in 2009, on Isla de la Piedra for a few days and stayed for 14 years. We will still be returning to the Isla but to a different location. That is a post for another day.
Never in all of our years in Mexico did we even consider becoming a resident. Many friends did but it just didn’t appeal to us. We were happy just going down to visit for 4 -5 months each winter. However with all the changes in our world it seems to be the right time to make a change. Just to mention a few reasons, the economy, the huge climate changes, prices of food and lack of food choices not to mention politics and peoples behaviour in general made us realize that we could move. We only decided in May to make this huge change in our lives
To become a resident to Mexico you must apply for a Temporal Visa for four years and then are able to get a Permanente Visa. If you wish, after another year you can apply for citizenship. But the first step is to start the Visa process at the consulate. Much paperwork and requirements but we aced it. We have our Mexican Visa and have 30 days once we cross into Mexico to complete the process ( more forms and paperwork ) and then we get our Temporal Visa Card. Of course the transfer of money is also involved.
Colin and I are no longer restricted to a six month stay. We can now stay as long as we want in Mexico, for up to four years. We can come and go as we wish. Freedom to make a choice to live in a better place than Canada or the USA. Our departure date is October 16th.
We honestly have no focused plan other than getting set up in our new location starting October 31st. We then will look at the Isla with a different perspective. Would we want to live there or move elsewhere within Mexico? We have four years to figure it all out. To stay on the Isla, to rent or to buy somewhere else, to open a Mexican bank account and so on. Then we have to sort out closing down Colin Jewall Photos Studios Inc. And what will become of our very special home here on the lake? I never thought that we would sell it, but for the right price we just might do that.
The only negative thing we can see at the moment, is that after our four year temporal we are not allowed to keep using our vehicles in Mexico. There is an approximate 40% import tax. Much more economical to buy a vehicle in Mexico, prices are much cheaper than north of the border. The motorhome is a different situation. RV’s are imported once every ten years and our expires in 2026. So that gives us until 2036 of being able to come and go in the RV. I am 98% certain of that, but things are always changing.
We are just happy that our appointments at the consulate went well and we came home with our visas. The rest will fall into place poco a poco ( bit by bit ). The most difficult part is done. Well not quite true, as we have to create a new RV site for the next few years. We are already ahead of the game by only paying 50% of what we have paid monthly at Tres Amigos.
Stay tuned for the next post in our exciting lives regarding the new RV location. I might sneak in a few smaller posts before that post – it will be difficult to write 😥
Tres Amigos sunset.
New location sunset.
How nice you are embarking on a new adventure in Mexico! You say, “We are just happy that our appointments at the consulate went well and we came home with our visas.” You do not have your visas. You must take your stamped passports to immigration in Mexico within 30 days of your arrival, and there is more paperwork, fingerprinting, photos, etc. and they will grant you your Residente Temporal. And yes, after 4 years of being Temporal you can apply for Permanente. What you are allowed to move/bring into Mexico differs with being a Temporal or Permanente. Pay attention to the timeline and allowances/restrictions.
As a Residente Permanente, I can tell you it is a process – and the end result is achieved in Mexico, not at a Mexican Consulate elsewhere.
Welcome to the comment section of my blog. Nice of you to take the time to comment. We actually do have a Residencia Temporal pasted into our passport. It is valid until February 1,2024. Once we actually cross into Mexico we have 30 days ( as mentioned in my blog ) to get to Immigration and complete part two of the process which will be receiving the actual Visa card to carry with us. We were both photographed ( even though we had already brought passport size photos with us, those went onto a different document ) and were fingerprinted in Vancouver. We in fact have been granted our temporal as shown in our passport (MEXCIO VISA ) but good only for six months. We are well aware that a visit to INM must happen with within thirty days on entry into Mexico. Thank you for making certain that we knew what we were doing.
Great for you and Colin; just great. So many reasons to get your Temporal Visa and decide in four years if you want to go Permanente Visa. Goodness I just counted months and you leave in a little over two months! Wishing you well.
Yes departure day is fast approaching. So many things to do but we are both looking forward to a new location and being free.
Colin and Contessa;
Good luck in your new adventure I look forward to reading your posts everyday!
Be safe and have a safe trip on your way south. Sounds like a new door is opening soon.
Again good luck to you both.
Excellent next chapter! Happy for you both!
Thanks Cindy.
Patrick, welcome to the comment section of my blog. It will be quite a change for us. It is nice to now have the option to say longer in Mexico. We will stay longer this next visit and then back here in May of 2024. Plans will then be made.
Wow. I did not expect this news. But I am really excited for you to take on this new adventure. Looking forward to posts about the process.
Thank you. We aren’t going to rush into anything. We have a few years to sort it all out.
Very interesting process, we look forward to following along with you. You must be super excited! As you know, we are intrigued by the thought of going down there and it is nice having people like you to lean on and learn the process. Good luck!
I will be happy to have uni both along with us. This will certainly be a different trip for us as we will be looking at everything with a different perspective.
There is a similar process for people to stay in Panama. A bunch of our cruising friends went that way to get permanent residency as they liked to stay there more than the allotted time. You guys have been to Mexico so many times that I understand that you feel very much at home there.
I am looking forward to reading your posts of the changes and your new place etc.
What surprises me is that we waited this long to do this. I guess being closer to permanent retirement got our minds going as tot he possibilities.
Well, this is certainly a big change! I wish you both luck in this new phase of your lives. I do have to ask though, what about the two dogs? What does Mexico require regarding pets?
Nice to hear from you Jim. Yes a HUGE change actually.But we will take things very slowly. We have never in over 20 years been asked for paperwork for the dogs. I have heard that those flying in are often checked for a current rabies vaccine. We already have a very good vet there. The girls will be well looked after.
Congratulations! Embarking on a new adventure! Exciting times ahead, looking forward as always, to this winters posts.
Different photos and diffrent experiences.
I suspect you are consulting with Rae about this as you follow in her footsteps. So exciting!
Rae consulted with me about moving to Mexico!
Contessa, keep in touch with your blogging friend in Merida; she is really on top of all of this paperwork for future citizenship, bank accounts, credit, and house purchases. She also is further along than you in the processes, so her advice will be tried and true.
Tell her when you see her that you will make her one of your famous veggie pizzas if she will give you some practical advice now and then. Beach and I wish you God’s speed on your and Colin’s (and the pups’) new journey.
Dee
Rae and I are good friends and we have known each other in person since her first move to the Isla (only before that ). I was the one who helped her find a place to stay. I will be consulting with her as needed especially re banking. I think she has had my pizza but she prefers my garlic shrimp cheese quesadillas. We will be fine but plan to the things poco a poco.
That’s fantastic news! We have been discussing this exact plan and looking into a purchase in LDM, I’m so excited for you and I agree wholeheartedly with your reasoning!
Wishing you all the best in your new venture
Fantastic. The prices keep going up re having the finances to get in so don’y wait too long.
Congratulations to you both! You won’t regret it.
Thank you Nancy. Don’t be surprised if I start asking for advice.
Wonderful news! Looking forward to seeing you in the fall on the Isla❤️ Hi to Colin and the Girls🥰🥂
We look forward to spending quality time with you both.
Hi Contessa y Colin, que buenas noticias tienen, me alegra saber que el proceso va bien encaminado. Mucha, muchísima suerte a los cuatro y por favor continùa diciéndonos como va marchando todo. My regards: Lucy desde soleada y caliente California 🌺🌿.
Gracias.
Contessa,
That is such great news, I’m so jealous. That was Jim and my intention when we bought in Paamul but when I became so ill and insurance would not cover we had to come home. I wish you both good health and the life you deserve to live. The puppies will love it!!
Love reading your blog!!
I am so sorry that you did not get to live your dream to the fullest.
Contessa, howdy !
When U get an itsy bitsy tiny time 🤪 could U please send me a ‘ private note ? ‘
My regards: Lucy.
Will do.
Certainly.
Wow big changes, I hope it all works out for you 😊
Us too.
Sent U a private…it bounced !😰