# Advice? RE: Visas, pregnancy, travel



## Katouche (Sep 6, 2013)

Hello all,

I have a tough situation and would like some help on where to begin... hoping that one or some of you have gone through something similar. I'll make it as to-the-point as possible:

I am living in Mexico and without a visa (tourist visa expired Nov 8, 2013). My fiancee is Mexican and I am Canadian... we are expecting our first child in September. The immigration offices in Playa Del Carmen told me to wait for the birth of the child to get legal status to be here.

Unfotunately my mother has fallen ill with cancer and my uncle has arranged a family reunion in North Carolina, USA this upcoming May. My parents went ahead and bought plane tickets for my fiancee and I. 

To complicate things... my Canadian passport expires in June 2014.

My problems to solve and related questions:
-Can I get a temporary permit to travel out and return to Mexico? (We want the child born here in Mexico)
-How do I go about getting a new passport from within Mexico?
-For my fiance's USA visa will he need to go to Mexico City? (We are living in Quintana Roo)

Thanks for taking the time to read this and if you can share some wisdom.

-Katouche


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

Katouche said:


> Hello all,
> 
> I have a tough situation and would like some help on where to begin... hoping that one or some of you have gone through something similar. I'll make it as to-the-point as possible:
> 
> ...


When you leave Mexico, there will probably be a fine to pay for having overstayed your tourist permit. I suggest talking to Migración again. When you return to Mexico, you can get a new tourist permit. After the child is born you can apply for a visa.

You need to contact the Canadian consular office in Playa del Carmen. I suspect they can give you a new passport.
*Jurisdiction: States of Campeche, Quintana Roo and Yucatán
except the coast of Quintana Roo from Puerto Morelos to Tulum and Cozumel Island
**
Address, phone, fax, email*
Consular Agency of Canada
Centro Empresarial Oficina E7
Blvd. Kukulcan Km. 12
Zona Hotelera
77599 Cancún, Quintana Roo - Mexico
Telephone: (998) 883-3360 / 883-3361
Fax: (998) 883-3232
E-mail: [email protected]
*Hours of Operation*
Monday - Friday: 9:00 am - 1:00 pm


Your fiance can apply for a US visa at either the US Consulate in Merida or at the Consular Office in Cancun. I don't know whether Consular Offices do visas, but Consulates do.


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## maesonna (Jun 10, 2008)

TundraGreen gave you the info for your Canadian passport. At the consulate they will tell you whether you can renew the passport there. In my case, I live in Mexico City, and I renew my passport at the consulate at the Canadian Embassy in Mexico City. 

Here is the starting point for information about what you need to renew your Canadian passport. Look for the links for renewing your passport abroad.

Once your child is born, be sure to go to the Canadian consulate to get a Certificate of Canadian Citizenship for your baby. This will save you a whole raft of problems in the future, such as having to get the baby a visa to travel to Canada or the U.S. as a Mexican. Your child will be able to have a Canadian passport and enter Canada and the U.S. as a Canadian.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

The INM advice to await the birth of the baby was very generous and practical. Under the circumstances, I would not chance leaving Mexico until then. You could be fined and possibly prevented from returning, which would really be terrible. Maybe you could attend the family reunion via Skype. Are you even sure that your husband can get a visa for the USA? It is not easy.
Your error, of course, was not returning to get a fresh FMM, or even applying for Residente Permanente status as the spouse of a Mexican national. Now you face a possible Catch-22 situation.
Hopefully, the baby is due in the not-too-distant future and you can resolve the problem. Meanwhile, keep a low profile and I hope all goes well.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

RVGRINGO said:


> The INM advice to await the birth of the baby was very generous and practical. Under the circumstances, I would not chance leaving Mexico until then. You could be fined and possibly prevented from returning, which would really be terrible. Maybe you could attend the family reunion via Skype. Are you even sure that your husband can get a visa for the USA? It is not easy.


If your husband applies for a visitor visa and mentions he has an American fiancée, there's an excellent chance that the visa will be denied.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

Isla Verde said:


> If your husband applies for a visitor visa and mentions he has an American fiancée, there's an excellent chance that the visa will be denied.


She is not a US citizen, but rather a Canadian citizen, so this may not be an issue. It certainly would be if she were US.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

TundraGreen said:


> She is not a US citizen, but rather a Canadian citizen, so this may not be an issue. It certainly would be if she were US.


Good point, TG. When I made my comment, I'd forgotten that important fact.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

Isla Verde said:


> Good point, TG. When I made my comment, I'd forgotten that important fact.


The fact that she has family in North Carolina and a Mexican fiance, may raise concerns with US immigration even though she is not herself a US citizen. They may wonder if the couple is really thinking of staying in the US near her relatives. So your comment is probably still accurate.

Incidentally, from everything I have been told by US Consular visa section employees, it would not be a good idea to try to hide any of these facts from the visa interviewer. They interview hundreds of people a week and are very good at detecting people that are lying or hiding facts. If they even suspect that the applicant is hiding something, it is an automatic rejection.


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

Your fiancé can apply for a US visa on line. He will have to make two appointments , one for finger print one day and the other for the visa interview. The application asks where you want to go for the interview Mexico City or Merida so in your case it is easy.

It was not a good idea to buy tickets in advance as the visa maybe denied . If your fiancé owns a business , a house and can show money in the bank and can show he has a reason to go back to Mexico he will have no problems with his visa if not he probably will not get he visa.

You are also taking a chance by leaving as what the immigration in Yucatan says is one thing and what they will say when you want to come back maybe another, 

You would be better off planning to go to North Carolina after the baby is born and your status has been settled, the family could see the baby as well.

I know it is a tough situation since your mother is sick and I am sure you are anxious to see her and have your family meet your fiancé but you are taking chances going back before you fix yor papers.


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

The Visa people are very unpredictable. I have been helping people with paperwork for visa and it is a hit and miss.
The interviewers are looking for reasons why people may want to stay in the States so if people are middle class with steady jobs, businesses and so forth they usually get the visa but if there is a family matter involved , that may indicate they could stay in the US , they are turned down people on the slightest thing.

People down here prefer to go to Merida rather than Mexico because they say they are more lenient but I do not know if that is correct or if it is just a rumor.


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## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

TundraGreen said:


> When you leave Mexico, there will probably be a fine to pay for having overstayed your tourist permit.


In my opinión she could fly out to a destination in the US and not hand in her expired FMM. The airports here have INM counters to hand in FMMs when you show the your airline ticket and are leaving Mexico going through security to the waiting área for departures.

The airlines "used" to take your FMM when leaving Mexico at the check in counters. Back then I bet they didn´t even check dates etc..

Now I bet they do and enter the returned FMMs in a system computer, but am not so sure all places do what they are told to do all the time.

If she did not turn in the expired FMM at these INM windows or booths when exiting Mexico and got a new FMM when flying back what might happen?

My guess is, [don´t forget I flew back and forth many times on 1 FMT/FMM for 6 months at the border airports back in 2011 and before] nothing will happen and the FMM she fills out on the international flight will be stamped by the INM officer when landing and all will be forgotten about the expired FMM and this is my main reason for thinking this: especially if she uses a brand new Canadian passport.


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## Katouche (Sep 6, 2013)

Hi there,

Thanks for all your replies

UPDATE:

-He got his visa for USA no problem in Merida (FYI; we only gave the necessary info and did not volunteer anything else, i.e. wedding plans and pregnancy etc.)

-I got passport renewed no problem in DF, via consular office in Playa del Carmen

-I got extorted and put through the wringer when leaving Mexico but NOT deported so I can still go back, right now trying to get the papers done correctly from Canada (still unsure about THAT process...)

-FYI I did try to get papers sorted many months before my visa expired and was ripped off the last of my savings (which wasn't that much but still totally left me incapacitated financially) by an "immigration lawyer" in Mexico City

Thanks again for all your replies, I have made another post concerning a source for good info concerning visa process, check it out if you think you have some intel for me 

Cheers!


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

If I were her I would day trip to Belize and get another FMM on a turnaround, check with the Mexican INM officer at his small office next to where the boat goes to Ambergris Caye ......That would be at least 1 problem solved...

But then I read her second post and she says she is in Canada, and most of the story is different than this post,
who knows?


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## maesonna (Jun 10, 2008)

It’s not confusing, Chicois8, it’s a question of dates. Earlier this year (in March), she was in the situation she described in her first post. That was three months ago. Since then, she got her situation sorted out, and got back to Canada. Now she is looking to immigrate to Mexico.


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

maesonna said:


> It’s not confusing, Chicois8, it’s a question of dates. Earlier this year (in March), she was in the situation she described in her first post. That was three months ago. Since then, she got her situation sorted out, and got back to Canada. Now she is looking to immigrate to Mexico.



Thanks, I only looked at the 7 not the March, so I figured it was 2 days ago....


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## BirthAbroad (May 18, 2014)

Well I am a bit worried that your situation may be even more complicated than you think. I too overstayed my FMM (if you are from Canada, I do not believe you need a visa). Two months ago m son was born here in Mexico and I contacted the INM about attaining permanent residence immediately through my son. I was told I would need both my passport and a valid FMM. Both of which they scrutinized when I actually went in. I even tried getting permanent residence without mentioning my FMM, and it was denied. 

You will have to go to the Mexican border to get a new FMM. In Ciudad Juarez, there are two different bridges, one for pedestrians and cars and the other for buses and semis. There are also two INM offices. One to drop your old FMM off, and another to get a new one. When I arrived at the border, I went to the bridge with the entering INM office, told them I just entered the country and needed an FMM so I could get permanent residence. They looked at my passport and gave me a new FMM to fill out. Because you are renewing it, you are getting a totally new one, I don't think Mexico keeps record of your old stay, or else I would have been denied a new one. I do not know if there are two INM offices in each city, but it was great for me because it is up to the INM officer how much to fee you for overstaying and I did not have enough money to mess around with that crap. I would call INM again and make sure you do not need a new FMM for your permanent residence.


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## BirthAbroad (May 18, 2014)

I think I should have read the second page before commenting...


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