Immigration

Mexico | Electronic visa for visitors & simplification of immigration and visa processes

Summary

Summer is in full swing, but for the federal government parties, work has continued apace over the past few weeks. Just before the political summer recess, they reached agreement on a number of important issues, and further work was done to get previous agreements put in legal texts. So where do we stand?

The detail

Electronic Visa

Mexico will begin implementing the Electronic Visa, which will be available to citizens of certain nationalities without requiring a consular visit (to be published in due course). This visa is intended solely for air travel entry under the visitor status without work authorization (tourist or business visitor).

The visa will be issued automatically and electronically in the form of a QR code and will be valid for 180 days, allowing a single entry into the country.

The new guidelines were published on July 25, 2025, and will enter into force 15 calendar days later, on August 9, 2025. Nevertheless, full implementation of the Electronic Visa depends on the launch of the electronic system by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE), which must take place within 180 calendar days from August 9, 2025.

In-country process simplification

Additionally, certain requirements for various immigration procedures were eliminated or modified as part of administrative simplification and process improvement measures.

Resolution timeframes have also been shortened for the following procedures:

• Notification of personal changes  – a resolution will be issued within a maximum of 3 business days from the date of submission.
• Card Swap (Canje), renewal and replacement processes – a resolution will be issued within a maximum of 10 business days from the date of submission.

With regard to the elimination of certain requirements, these include the following:

• The presentation of the temporary or permanent resident card for personal notification processes is eliminated.
• The requirement to submit three child-size color photographs is eliminated, and the applicant must authorize a digital photograph to be taken at the office where the process is carried out.
• The Basic Form (Formato Básico) will be completed electronically and in person at the office where the process is carried out.

The reform was published on July 25 and will enter into force five business days later, that is, on August 1, 2025.

Key Points

• Mexico will implement a new Electronic Visa for certain nationalities, valid for 180 days and single entry by air, eliminating the need for consular visits for non-working visitors.
• Lead times for certain immigration procedures have been shortened to improve processing efficiency.
• Certain requirements in in-country immigration processes have been suppressed as part of administrative improvement efforts.

Impact for Mobility Teams

Electronic Visa

• Removes the need for in-person consular appointments for non-working visitor visas.
• Speeds up the authorization process with immediate online issuance.
• Applicable only for entry by air and does not grant work authorization within the country.

In-country process simplification

• Response times have been reduced for procedures related to notifications of changes in personal information, as well as for card swaps, renewals, and replacements of residence cards.
• Requirements such as submitting residence cards or photographs have been eliminated, and the Basic Form will now be completed directly at the immigration authority’s offices.

Contact us

For a deeper discussion on the above, please reach out to your Vialto Partners point of contact, or alternatively:

Vialto Partners Immigration Team 

 

 

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