Visiting Mexico: Tourist Entry, Visas and How Long You Can Stay (2026)

If you plan to stay longer than 180 days, you need residency, not a visitor stay. See temporary residency.

When you arrive, an officer of the National Migration Institute (INM) checks your passport and decides how many days to give you, up to 180. That decision is recorded on your Forma Migratoria Múltiple (FMM), which at many airports is now digital and linked to your passport scan instead of a paper form or stamp.

Be ready to show:

• a passport valid for your whole stay
• a return or onward ticket
• where you will stay
• enough money for your trip

Officers do not always give 180 days. If you want a long stay, say so and explain your plans. Check the number of days you were given before you leave the counter.

The visitor fee for non-residents (derecho de no residente) is included in most air tickets. Travelers who enter by land and go beyond the border zone pay it separately.

Mexico keeps a list of nationalities that need a visa to visit. Recent changes:

• Ecuador (since September 2021), Venezuela (since January 2022), and Peru (since April 20, 2024) need a visa.
• Brazil needs a visa; since February 5, 2026, Brazilians flying in can use an electronic visa for a single entry.

Most travelers who need a visa can skip it if they hold a valid visa or permanent residence from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan, or a Schengen country. If your nationality needs a visa, a connection through a Mexican airport can also need one. See Mexico visa requirements and visa requirement changes.

Allowed: tourism, visiting family, business meetings, attending conferences, short courses, and medical treatment.

Not allowed: working for a Mexican employer or being paid by a Mexican source, and living in Mexico long term.

Remote work for an employer abroad during a vacation is common, but Mexico has no formal remote work status for tourists. For longer stays, see digital nomads.

Changing status. Tourists generally cannot switch to residency inside Mexico. The main exception is family unity for spouses, children, and parents of Mexican citizens. See change of status.

Business visitors. Meetings, negotiations, trade shows, and similar activities are allowed on a normal visitor entry, as long as you are not paid by a Mexican source. If a Mexican company will pay you for a short project, you need a visitor visa with permission to do paid work, which starts with the company's request to INM. See working in Mexico.

Traveling with children. Foreign children visiting as tourists need their own passport and entry record. Mexico's special exit authorization for minors applies mainly to Mexican children and to foreign children who live in Mexico traveling without both parents. Carry a consent letter anyway if a child travels with only one parent, since airlines and officers may ask.

Border day trips and cruises. Short visits to the border zone and cruise stopovers have simplified rules, and many cruise passengers do not complete a full FMM. If you go beyond the border zone or stay overnight inland, make sure your entry is recorded.

Money and health. Bring a card that works abroad and some cash in pesos. Buy travel medical insurance; visitors cannot use Mexico's public health system the way residents can.

You can drive into Mexico with a foreign car. Within the border zone and some areas (such as the Baja California peninsula) no vehicle permit is needed. To drive deeper into Mexico, you need a temporary vehicle import permit (TIP) from Banjercito, and you must return the permit when you leave.

Buy Mexican auto liability insurance; most US and Canadian policies do not cover driving in Mexico.

If you overstay, you cannot simply fly out. You usually have to go to an INM office or the airport's INM desk, pay a fine, and get your exit processed, which can cause you to miss a flight. A record of overstays can also lead officers to give you fewer days, or refuse entry, on future trips.

2026 changes mostly affected nationalities that need a visa: Brazilians flying in regained an electronic visa on February 5, 2026, while Venezuelans, Ecuadorians, and Peruvians still need a consular visa unless they hold a qualifying US, Canadian, UK, Japanese, or Schengen document. Track changes on the Mexico Status Now page.

• Keep your FMM record or a photo of your entry stamp until you leave.
• Leave before your days run out. Overstays bring fines and can cause problems on future trips.
• Carry a copy of your passport when you travel within Mexico.
• Check safety information for the regions you will visit.
• Thinking of moving? Start with how immigration works in Mexico and compare visiting the USA and Canada.