# Working In Mexico, Visa Question



## grotton (Apr 20, 2012)

I am currently in Mexico on a tourist visa and have been offered a job teaching at a high school in Chiapas. The school traditionally hires native English speakers to enhance their program and In the past they processed the visa application for their foreign teachers through the immigration office in Tuxtla. Because of the changes in the immigration laws, teachers need to apply for their visas initially in the United States. The process is so new for the school, their director of personnel is uncertain of the process and has been receiving unclear direction from the immigration office in Tuxtla on what documentation is necessary. I have made very concerted efforts to reach a Mexican consulate in the United States for direction but after several weeks of trying, have not received a response to my emails of phone messages. My question is, what is necessary for me to provide to the Mexican Consulate in my home town to apply for my work visa. I assume it would involve presenting a document from the school indicating that they have offered me a position. I would appreciate any assistance that could be provided on the process and the necessary materials I would need to provide to the consulate in the United States, and any additional information that might be relevant to the process.
Thanks in advance!


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

grotton said:


> I am currently in Mexico on a tourist visa and have been offered a job teaching at a high school in Chiapas. The school traditionally hires native English speakers to enhance their program and In the past they processed the visa application for their foreign teachers through the immigration office in Tuxtla. Because of the changes in the immigration laws, teachers need to apply for their visas initially in the United States. The process is so new for the school, their director of personnel is uncertain of the process and has been receiving unclear direction from the immigration office in Tuxtla on what documentation is necessary. I have made very concerted efforts to reach a Mexican consulate in the United States for direction but after several weeks of trying, have not received a response to my emails of phone messages. My question is, what is necessary for me to provide to the Mexican Consulate in my home town to apply for my work visa. I assume it would involve presenting a document from the school indicating that they have offered me a position. I would appreciate any assistance that could be provided on the process and the necessary materials I would need to provide to the consulate in the United States, and any additional information that might be relevant to the process.
> Thanks in advance!


I'm an English teacher living in Mexico but only give private classes these days. From my friends here who are still active teachers, I have learned that no one really knows what is going on with the new immigration rules and how they will affect someone in your situation. Probably you haven't heard anything back from the Mexican Consulate in your hometown because they don't know yet what to do. You can post an inquiry at this website for overseas English teachers to see how others in your position have dealt with this problematic situation: 
Job Discussion Forums :: View Forum - Mexico 

Let us know what happens and good luck!


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## grotton (Apr 20, 2012)

It seems to me that the work visa application process for teachers would be the the same as for any other type of employment. So if anyone has general information, that would be helpful.


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## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

grotton said:


> It seems to me that the work visa application process for teachers would be the the same as for any other type of employment. So if anyone has general information, that would be helpful.


I have researched this a bit after the school I was offered a job ran into this snag recently and the school/employer now has to re-register with the SEGOB INM if they haven´t already anew with the new immigration law to hire foreigners. Their old registration/classification/permission has expired and the new one has to be turned into INM before you can work for them. Other than that the letter they provide is usually enough for it to be submitted for review by the INM. If you have any specific questions I might be able to help. 

It might be you need a degree from your country to work as a teacher here by the INM standards, I am not sure. Mine is in Electronic Engineering and they accepted that with no proof and it is a TEC University even though I was hired to teach English. 

The TEC University wanted a TELFL certificate which is good for 2 years and a TKT certficate which I am studying for and taking classes at the university. The TKT exam is 6 hours long. The TELFL exam was 2 hours long and a cake walk, costs $48.00 US and I took it at the University. Alan


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## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

AlanMexicali said:


> I have researched this a bit after the school I was offered a job ran into this snag recently and the school/employer now has to re-register with the SEGOB INM if they haven´t already anew with the new immigration law to hire foreigners. Their old registration/classification/permission has expired and the new one has to be turned into INM before you can work for them. Other than that the letter they provide is usually enough for it to be submitted for review by the INM. If you have any specific questions I might be able to help.
> 
> It might be you need a degree from your country to work as a teacher here by the INM standards, I am not sure. Mine is in Electronic Engineering and they accepted that with no proof and it is a TEC University even though I was hired to teach English.
> 
> The TEC University wanted a TELFL certificate which is good for 2 years and a TKT certficate which I am studying for and taking classes at the university. The TKT exam is 6 hours long. The TELFL exam was 2 hours long and a cake walk, costs $48.00 US and I took it at the University. Alan


 Also the TEC University wanted a "Seguridad Social" number which I got at the IMSS office with my INM card and an official translated copy of my birth certificate which I got at the University "Centro de Idiomes" for $150.00 pesos in 2 hours. The TEC University got a SEP number [tax number] for me with these documents.
Alan


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## circle110 (Jul 20, 2009)

grotton said:


> It seems to me that the work visa application process for teachers would be the the same as for any other type of employment. So if anyone has general information, that would be helpful.


Well, yes and no. Technically, yes, the process should be the same. But in reality the ESL schools in Mexico have always recruited teachers from the ranks of those already in Mexico so they never worried about initiating the visa process abroad. This is all new to them too and the documentation from INM has been slim at best.

Most of the regular posters here are either retired, own businesses or were already working here when the changes went into effect so we probably haven't confronted the situation of getting a first time visa for employment post-INM-changes.

AN HR person in an international corporation may have more information on this since they might have confronted the problem because of bringing international employees in the company to work in Mexico.

Hopefully someone will have some clearer information for you and your school. As Isla Verde suggested, that forum for ESL teachers in Mexico will have a higher percentage of posters who have been in situations like yours.


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## mickisue1 (Mar 10, 2012)

My only suggestion is to just go to the consulate in your town. They can ignore voicemail and email, but it's difficult to ignore a body standing in your office.


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

circle110 said:


> As Isla Verde suggested, that forum for ESL teachers in Mexico will have a higher percentage of posters who have been in situations like yours.


That resource is the best on the www for seeking the information, IMO.


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## circle110 (Jul 20, 2009)

Longford said:


> That resource is the best on the www for seeking the information, IMO.


Agreed. Just about everyone on that forum will have had experience with the OP's situation or will know someone who does or will be working at a school that is grappling with it.


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## grotton (Apr 20, 2012)

I will check the resource Isla Verde recommended and see what I can learn. The school that has offered me the position will be retaining four foreign teachers from this year to whom the new process does not apply, but with attrition, they are now looking to hire new teachers and they don't know how. I am wondering what documents I will need to provide in the United States and then what documents I will need to provide and IMSS in Mexico. The "Seguridad Social" Alan commented on sounds like something the school needed apart from the immigration process in order to pay him.


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

grotton said:


> I will check the resource Isla Verde recommended and see what I can learn. The school that has offered me the position will be retaining four foreign teachers from this year to whom the new process does not apply, but with attrition, they are now looking to hire new teachers and they don't know how. I am wondering what documents I will need to provide in the United States and then what documents I will need to provide and IMSS in Mexico. The "Seguridad Social" Alan commented on sounds like something the school needed apart from the immigration process in order to pay him.


You will, I suspect, have many 'hoops' to jump through, to gain government permission to live/work in Mexico. So will your employer. You will need to bring with you, apostilled documents such as university transcripts and maybe other records. And then there are the 'other' requirements of INM. Your employer will have to provide a letter/offer of employment and accept some responsibility for your financial well-being in Mexico, and likely copies of its corporate formation and tax documents. Everything I have read and listened to about applying for work if someone is already in Mexico and on a tourist card is that they must return to their home country and start the application process there. As we've already mentioned, the best resource for you to cross-post your questions has been provided above. You'll need a lot of patience during this process, because regulations are not uniformly applied throughout Mexico. What one INM office doesn't ask you to bring from home, the other will. So my advice is to over-prepare.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

grotton said:


> I will check the resource Isla Verde recommended and see what I can learn. The school that has offered me the position will be retaining four foreign teachers from this year to whom the new process does not apply, but with attrition, they are now looking to hire new teachers and they don't know how. I am wondering what documents I will need to provide in the United States and then what documents I will need to provide and IMSS in Mexico. The "Seguridad Social" Alan commented on sounds like something the school needed apart from the immigration process in order to pay him.


In the past, very top-notch private schools that cater to the upper echelons of Mexican society looked for teachers at international job fairs and are used to hiring staff from abroad. Schools like the one that has offered you a position were able to find new teachers from people already in Mexico, and under the old rules it was fairly simple to change a tourist visa to a "working" visa. With the new rule changes, schools like your future employer are having a difficult time hiring new staff. One problem is that INM hasn't quite figured out how to deal with this aspect of the new rules, and surely staff at Mexican Consulates around the world are equally in the dark.

When dealing with Mexican bureaucracies, the rule-of-thumb is the more paperwork the better! For starters, you'll probably need your birth certificate, your college diploma, and a job offer letter from the school wanting to hire you.


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## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

Longford is right. This is a sticky situation at the moment. The letter will need your IMSS "Seguridad Social" number, which you can only get here probably in person after you have an IMN visa card, as far as I was told by them. It will also need your SAT number which the school will generate but you need an INM visa card to get it also. You also need a CURP number on the letter and you will need an INM visa card to get that also.

That seems to me to be hard to do if you do not have a Residente Temporal visa card already. You might have to apply for it before hand but I presume the school can work around that with a good lawyer and when you present the letter to a Mexican Consulate in the US there might be leeway for you to update the letter after you arrive, I don´t know. 

The diploma you have has to be listed on the letter, but here in San Luis Potosi the SEGOB INM office never asked for a copy, they must have taken the Universities´word on that. They also list your monthly pay on the letter. In other words you will be getting a job a Mexican National cannot fill.

If the INM reviews the letter and finds it is not good enough I imagine the school could upgrade it if requested by INM. They might accept and process a 30 day Residente Temporal visa and put it in your passport with an incomplete leter at a Mexican Consulate just to get you down here to fill in the missing components, I might suspect. Alan


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## grotton (Apr 20, 2012)

Longford said:


> You will, I suspect, have many 'hoops' to jump through, to gain government permission to live/work in Mexico. So will your employer. You will need to bring with you, apostilled documents such as university transcripts and maybe other records. And then there are the 'other' requirements of INM. Your employer will have to provide a letter/offer of employment and accept some responsibility for your financial well-being in Mexico, and likely copies of its corporate formation and tax documents.


My employer has a long history of legally hiring foreigners for their program and has an established relationship with immigration. I have finally received some information directly from the school and some of the requirements to hire are daunting and perplexing.

1. They need my flight itinerary from the US to Mexico, (required) to start the visa application process. But how can I provide this since I am already here.

2. After permission is granted for the school to hire me, I will have 10 days to appear before the Mexican consulate in my home town.

3. I will need to provide an apostille for my diploma which will need to be processed of course in the US and can not be done from here. 

4. Birth certificate, copy of passport, all of which I have with me so not a big deal.

The requirement that I must apply at the consulate 10 days after receiving permission from Immigration here in Mexico seems particularly inflexible. It seems to me that this new process will make it very difficult for schools with a legitimate interest in hiring foreigners to find candidates willing to tolerate the process.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

grotton said:


> The requirement that I must apply at the consulate 10 days after receiving permission from Immigration here in Mexico seems particularly inflexible. It seems to me that this new process will make it very difficult for schools with a legitimate interest in hiring foreigners to find candidates willing to tolerate the process.


Exactly! My expat friends here (most of whom are teachers) and I have been saying this for some time. I wonder if the schools affected by the new rules will try to organize and lobby INM for exceptions.


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## grotton (Apr 20, 2012)

The rules seem schizophrenic. Some of the requirements to apply for work visa require me to be here while others assume I am in the United States. For example I am being asked to provide my proof of residence in Mexico while at the same time obtain an apostille which can only be done in the US. I have no interest in working illegally in Mexico, nor do I need to thankfully, but that job I was being offered sounded enjoyable so I am disappointed by the situation. I will try to remain patient and let the school attempt at address my concerns and questions.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

grotton said:


> The rules seem schizophrenic. Some of the requirements to apply for work visa require me to be here while others assume I am in the United States. For example I am being asked to provide my proof of residence in Mexico while at the same time obtain an apostille which can only be done in the US. I have no interest in working illegally in Mexico, nor do I need to thankfully, but that job I was being offered sounded enjoyable so I am disappointed by the situation. I will try to remain patient and let the school attempt at address my concerns and questions.


The rules seem schizophrenic because they're a mishmash of the old rules and the new ones. No one has figured out how to make sense of this new situation, I fear. I hope the school can figure out what to do in time for you to start working in the fall.


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## grotton (Apr 20, 2012)

I'm pretty confident I can work it out. The school just suggested I scan my diploma and email it home to a friend who can then apply for the apostille. Good idea. And now I just have to book my return fight to Mexico and they can start the application process here in Tuxtla.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

grotton said:


> I'm pretty confident I can work it out. The school just suggested I scan my diploma and email it home to a friend who can then apply for the apostille. Good idea. And now I just have to book my return fight to Mexico and they can start the application process here in Tuxtla.


Good news! In the past, people who were hoping to come to Mexico on a tourist visa and look for work were advised by those of us already here to have important documents like birth certificates and college diplomas apostilled before arriving.


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

grotton said:


> I'm pretty confident I can work it out. The school just suggested I scan my diploma and email it home to a friend who can then apply for the apostille. Good idea. And now I just have to book my return fight to Mexico and they can start the application process here in Tuxtla.


It's been a while since I went through this process. But when I did and when I was getting the apostille on my school transcript, etc., I first had to stop at a Notary Public (in Illinois) and swear that the document was a true and correct copy. Then the Notary Public affixed his seal to an affidavit I had to prepare and the state required me to bring the affidavit to them to review before it provided the apostille. 

An honest Notary Public should not notarize a document without the specific individual they are notarizing the signature of standing in front of them as they apply their seal and your comment that you are intending to provide a scanned copy of the transcript (and not other documents?) and have a friend obtain the apostille raises red flags in my mind. It's still that way in Illinois, from what I understand ... but maybe the state in which your school is located from which the transcript will be generated, handles this differently. States will only apostille documents which originate in the specific state (i.e., a Secretary of State in Illinois will not apostille a university transcript from Indiana).

Make certain that you carefully read the apostille requirements in the state(s) from which the documents originate and which you will provide to INM, lest you have to re-do everything ... if INM reads things carefully and objects to something a clerk determines has been done incorrectly.


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## circle110 (Jul 20, 2009)

Adding to Longford's post - the apostille of your degree will need to be done on a certified copy. All universities have a process where you can request a certified copy and they will send it to whatever address you request (of course you have to pay for it). Then you can send on that certified copy to the Secretary of State of the state that the school is in so they can affix the apostille (for a few more bucks). They will mail it all to a US address. It can then all be sent to you via whatever method you trust best. For something like that I'd bite the bullet and use FedEx or DHL.

I just went through this process and it worked fine even though it wasn't exactly cheap.


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## grotton (Apr 20, 2012)

Longford said:


> It's been a while since I went through this process. But when I did and when I was getting the apostille on my school transcript, etc., I first had to stop at a Notary Public (in Illinois) and swear that the document was a true and correct copy. Then the Notary Public affixed his seal to an affidavit I had to prepare and the state required me to bring the affidavit to them to review before it provided the apostille.


Good points to consider. But this is what I've learned should work for me. I telephoned the registrars office for my University and she told me that they are familiar with the apostille process for diplomas. What she told me to do was request a copy of my diploma from her and she will notarize it as an official copy of my diploma provided by her and the University. This costs $40.00. And because her name is in the record as an authorized state employee, the secretary of state will accept this copy as an official record and provide an apostille. The University registrar will then mail the official notarized diploma to my sister who then merely needs to forward the documents plus $15.00 to the Secretary of State's office for the apostille. I confirmed that this is the correct procedure with the Secretary of State's office. So though it sounds like a pain in the ass, now that I've got the ball rolling, it hopefully won't be such a big deal.


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## grotton (Apr 20, 2012)

Immediately after making my last post I read Circle 110's post where he describes the exact process I was told to complete. Thanks for the help!


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## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

I reread my post and made an error. The SAT number is not a SAT number. SAT is the "Secrateria and Hacienda etc." , a gov´t. agency. The number you get for tax purposes from them is a RFC number. Alan


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## treiche1 (May 11, 2013)

*Visa Info*

I was offered a job at a university in Oaxaca, the process as I understand it, goes like this:
1) Employer must go to immigration office and apply on your behalf to work there, presenting all your documents needed for employment (degrees, transcripts, passport, birth certificate, etc.). I e-mailed all these documents to my employer, to be told I have to get an apostille for all of them and then send them (I thought I could present them with the apostilled documents when I arrive in Mexico, but nope). 

2) Your employer send you the NUT number issued by immigration

3) You go to your consulate with a filled out application for temporary resident visa, the NUT numbers, passport, passport photos, and id

4) Consulate pre approves you

5) You go to Mexico within 180 days of this approval

6) Within 30 days of arriving in Mexico, you go to immigration with all necessary documents, and you are approved!

Now, I am not an expert on this process, and I am only on step 1, this is just the process my employer has told me from what they know. 

What I want to know is how long immigration will take to approve my employer's request because I am leaving in one month and a half, and am getting very worried I won't be approved in time! Hope this helps somewhat!


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

The employer should understand the process under the new regulations, because it's likely done this before. So the advice you receive is probably the best you canget at this point. 

A couple of the items seem to me to be out-of-the-ordinary and maybe that's because the school has an arrangement/understanding with the INM office locally which relaxes some of the requirements others applying elsewhere in Mexico face. Regulations are not uniformly applied throughout the country, and that drives a lot of people crazy because they'll read something on a forum about what someone experienced in Mexico City but when they get to Guadalajara they find the other person's experience in Mexico City doesn't apply in Guadalajara (as an example).

My understanding has been that the documents submitted to INM are to be originals, especially those requiring the apostille. And the translation of certain documents is oftentimes required. Situations vary, I know. And the remainder of the items on the list, the expected timeline sounds right to me.

Anyhow, lucky you ... having the opportunity to live/work in Mexico.


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