# Expats and their CFE Bills



## Hawkeyes (May 13, 2013)

I am looking for some guidance from some expats with respect to paying my CFE bill. I don´t have a Mexican bank account, so online banking is not an option. Oxxo and other authorized pay locations can only accept payments if you have your most recent bill (they cannot accept payments with just the account number or an older bill). This wouldn´t be an issue if it wasn´t for the fact that my mail deliveries are oh what´s the word? Unpredictable shall we say?

It´s a 20 minute drive each way from where I live to the closest CFE office, where I am usually presented with a further wait just to pay the bill.

Am I missing something, or is this my only option?

Thanks.


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## AlanMexicali (Jun 1, 2011)

Hawkeyes said:


> I am looking for some guidance from some expats with respect to paying my CFE bill. I don´t have a Mexican bank account, so online banking is not an option. Oxxo and other authorized pay locations can only accept payments if you have your most recent bill (they cannot accept payments with just the account number or an older bill). This wouldn´t be an issue if it wasn´t for the fact that my mail deliveries are oh what´s the word? Unpredictable shall we say?
> 
> It´s a 20 minute drive each way from where I live to the closest CFE office, where I am usually presented with a further wait just to pay the bill.
> 
> ...


No, you have it correct. OXXO, banks and even large stores where you can pay the CFE bill only will accept a bill that is being paid before the "before" it is late date on it. Where we live the CFE pays a private contractor service to deliver their bills and it is very reliable. Even then the window to pay it before it reaches the "late" date is usually less than 2 weeks, more like 10 days usually.


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## maesonna (Jun 10, 2008)

Is there a bank branch closer than the CFE office? You don’t have to have an account to pay in person at a bank. If the bill is past due, you can phone the CFE line to get a new numerical code (_línea de captura_) that will allow the bank to accept your payment. At least that’s how it works for me in Mexico City. 

Does anyone know whether the stores where you can pay the bill will accept payment with a renewed _línea de captura_?


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## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

All you need to do to pay your CFE bill at OXXO or a bank accepting those bills is to sign up with CFE on line and print out their most recent bill on your computer in full color. Then you take that CFE bill into OXXO with you and pay it. The best solution, however, is to open a Mexican bank account and have them pay your CFE and Telmex and other utility bills when due without any need for your participation in the process. We do this through Bancomer which is a free service never needing our participation after signing up with them and we have paid our electric and telephone bills every month that way for 11 years with no problems. We are not required to do anything except have money in the bank, much less stand in line. 

If you are concerned that you may be improperly billed and the bank will pay money you do not, in fact, owe, not to worry. This happened to us about a year ago when CFE seriously overbilled us when we switched to solar generated supplemental power and the bank paid the bill CFE has been re-imbursing us bi-monthly for a year now for the overcharge and everythng is copascetic.

We also pay all other recurring utility bills including satelitte and cable TV service through automatic bank charges. In fact, we hardly get any mule delivered mail anymore at all.


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## Caribbean Cat (May 2, 2013)

I did not know this about Bancomer! Thank you so much for sharing that!


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## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

[_QUOTE=Caribbean Cat;1165806]I did not know this about Bancomer! Thank you so much for sharing that![/QUOTE]_

Glad I could be of assistance, CC, but understand that many banks will offer this service for free including Banamex and, no doubt, other banks including HSBC, Santander and others. Just go into your nearest bank branch and ask. If you have difficulty with Spanish, just ask for assistance.

Good luck.


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## Coconutz (May 9, 2013)

I just paid my CFE bill online with my Paypal account through a company called MexiBillPay. They charge a service fee, but for somebody like me who doesn’t have a CFE office nearby it is totally worth it.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

Coconutz said:


> I just paid my CFE bill online with my Paypal account through a company called MexiBillPay. They charge a service fee, but for somebody like me who doesn’t have a CFE office nearby it is totally worth it.


As an earlier poster has mentioned, you can pay your CFE bill at any bank in Mexico. You don't need to have an account at a bank to do this, and no service fee will be charged.


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## tijuanahopeful (Apr 2, 2013)

Coconutz said:


> I just paid my CFE bill online with my Paypal account through a company called MexiBillPay. They charge a service fee, but for somebody like me who doesn’t have a CFE office nearby it is totally worth it.


I did a Google search for this and nothing came up for it.


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## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

_


Isla Verde said:



As an earlier poster has mentioned, you can pay your CFE bill at any bank in Mexico. You don't need to have an account at a bank to do this, and no service fee will be charged.

Click to expand...

_
Good point Isla Verde but remember, fellow correspondents, that under the rules reported by Isla Verde, you must go physically into the bank or OXXO or whomever to pay each recurring bill. If you have a Mexican bank account and set up a continuing recurring payment account, bills for CFE, Telmex and other recurring bills are paid automatically and you never have to go into the bank and stand in line again. Those bills are all paid electronically and you can follow payments on line. Believe me, this is important. There are times of the month when you might have to stand in line for up to hours in your bank or at utility offices just to spend five minutes paring a lousy electrical or telephone or cable TV bill. This is a quite common problem in Chiapas where countless customers wait in line endlessly at certain times of the month. Our bank account at BBVA Bancomer is free of charge with a minimum balance of only $2,000Pesos a month and I rarely have to go into the bank to maintain that balance and I´ll be damed if I want to stand in a long line or need a physical bill in hand to pay an electric or telephone or cable TV bill.


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## Coconutz (May 9, 2013)

tijuanahopeful said:


> I did a Google search for this and nothing came up for it.


Just place a dot com at the end of their name "Mexibillpay"


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## joaquinx (Jul 3, 2010)

CFE's web site has an option to pay online.


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## tijuanahopeful (Apr 2, 2013)

Coconutz said:


> Just place a dot com at the end of their name "Mexibillpay"


Found it, thanks! It's similar to My Check Free which I use, but they don't charge a fee for payments, but they don't have very many (3-4) billers.


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

For years I have paid in advance, basically giving them 5 or 6 thousand pesos on account and they deduct my bill each billing cycle showing my balance...no OXXO,no banks no BS..........


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## tijuanahopeful (Apr 2, 2013)

chicois8 said:


> For years I have paid in advance, basically giving them 5 or 6 thousand pesos on account and they deduct my bill each billing cycle showing my balance...no OXXO,no banks no BS..........


Good idea!


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

chicois8 said:


> For years I have paid in advance, basically giving them 5 or 6 thousand pesos on account and they deduct my bill each billing cycle showing my balance...no OXXO,no banks no BS..........


I do that with my water bill. They give you about a 10% discount for paying it annually in advance.


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## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

_


TundraGreen said:



I do that with my water bill. They give you about a 10% discount for paying it annually in advance.

Click to expand...

_We do the same with our cable TV bills and alarm company bills in both Ajijic and San Cristobal de Las Casas. We always pay for 12 months in advance and get one month free by doing so. in each case- So, we not only only have to shell out money once a year but get a discount and don´t have to think about these expenses but once a year. No standing in line at the cable TV company once a month and we would have it no other way.


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