# Question about tourist permit (FMM)



## telcoman (Feb 11, 2010)

My wife & I drive down in Jan and she has to fly back to Canada in Feb for a week then return. Will she have to turn in her tourist card & get a new one or can she just keep the one she has.


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## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

She has to turn it in. They will collect it at the airport.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

True. The FMM is a single use document.


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## telcoman (Feb 11, 2010)

I guess that means forking out another $40 or $50. Oh well.


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## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

The FMM earlier this year was about $22 USD.


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## makaloco (Mar 26, 2009)

As mentioned, your wife will have to turn in the remaining half of her FMM when she leaves and get a new one on the return flight, but she may not have to pay again. If Canada works like the US, the airlines are set up to include the Mexico "tourist tax" in the ticket price for trips originating abroad, but not for trips originating IN Mexico, as your wife's will be. No guarantees, though.


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## playagrandma (Apr 24, 2009)

*fmm*



telcoman said:


> My wife & I drive down in Jan and she has to fly back to Canada in Feb for a week then return. Will she have to turn in her tourist card & get a new one or can she just keep the one she has.


yes she will turn in the tourist card she received when you entered by car. On her return to Mexico, she will fill out a new one. She cannot leave the country without turning in that fmm. And there are no fees for the fmm. The fees mentioned is a departure tax-which typically is added to the price of the ticket.


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## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

Maybe no fees for FMM if you have FM3 or no inmigrante but there definitely are for tourists.


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## telcoman (Feb 11, 2010)

The mexican consulate pretty much told me the same thing when emailed them today.


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## playagrandma (Apr 24, 2009)

ReefHound said:


> Maybe no fees for FMM if you have FM3 or no inmigrante but there definitely are for tourists.


Please explain that cause I dont understand. Is this a new rule since last May when everything changed? I do have an fm3, however I havent had one all that long and never ever paid a fee for an fmt. Is the fmm considered part of the departure tax-because if so then that is already included in the price of your plane ticket unless your airline does not include it. So like I said please explain this fee for an fmm. Thanks


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## sparks (Jun 17, 2007)

If your flight originates in the US or Canada your ticket will include the cost of an FMM/FMT whether you have an FM3/FM2 or not. It's not a departure tax ... is the tourist visa cost.

If you have an FM3 and are leaving Mexico ... you go to Immigration at the airport and they will give you the paperwork you need to give to the airline. It's a two part form and you use the second part to re-enter Mexico. With an FM3 you need to check out and back in.


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## playagrandma (Apr 24, 2009)

*fmm*



playagrandma said:


> Please explain that cause I dont understand. Is this a new rule since last May when everything changed? I do have an fm3, however I havent had one all that long and never ever paid a fee for an fmt. Is the fmm considered part of the departure tax-because if so then that is already included in the price of your plane ticket unless your airline does not include it. So like I said please explain this fee for an fmm. Thanks



I figured out my own confusion about all this and a fee for an fmm. If you enter mexico driving-I believe it cost for to get an fmm. Could someone please clarify that for me? I only entered once that way but that was over 5 years ago and I cant remember. Then of course, procedure stays the same-when you fly out, it has to be turned back in. When coming back to Mexico you will receive the form on the plane to fill out-no cost invovled.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Entering by land, you will get, and pay for, an FMM if you don't have a visa.
Entering by air, fill out the FMM and be sure not to lose it. The cost is part of your ticket.
Leaving Mexico with a visa, you will fill out an FMM form and keep the stub for your return. If you still have an FM2 or FM3 booklet, be sure that it gets stamped in and out.
Leaving Mexico with an FMM requires that you turn it in at INM's airport booth, if flying, in order to get a boarding pass. If leaving by land, the FMM becomes invalid when you leave.

Whenever you leave with a vehicle, you are required to have Aduana remove the sticker and issue a receipt. You should keep that receipt forever and have it available whenever you cross the border.


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## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

playagrandma said:


> I figured out my own confusion about all this and a fee for an fmm. If you enter mexico driving-I believe it cost for to get an fmm. Could someone please clarify that for me? I only entered once that way but that was over 5 years ago and I cant remember. Then of course, procedure stays the same-when you fly out, it has to be turned back in. When coming back to Mexico you will receive the form on the plane to fill out-no cost invovled.


Correct, in a way. The old "FMT" or present FMM have had a fee forever, or at least I can vouch since 1988 when I first went to Mexico. And you pay the fee always, whether driving or flying. It's just that when flying, most airlines pay it and build it into the cost of your ticket. They usually do the same with departure tax although I seem to remember having to pay departure tax myself up until the late 90's. 

Just because no cash is collected on the plane doesn't mean there is no fee. If you dig into your reservation you can find the various fees. You wouldn't believe how many there are. Here's a sample reservation I just looked up from Houston to Cozumel.

1 Adults (age 18 to 64) $268.00
Additional Taxes/Fees* $103.80
Total Price $371.80

U.S. Federal Transportation Tax $16.10
U.S. Security Service Fee $2.50
U.S. Passenger Facility Charge $3.00
U.S. APHIS User Fee $5.00
U.S. Immigration User Fee $7.00
Mexico Departure Tax $33.07
*Mexico Tourism Tax* $21.03


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## playagrandma (Apr 24, 2009)

I am really confused now. If I have an fm3 and enter mexico by land-I will need to pay for what? Not an fmm. Also I have never seen this mexico tourism tax on any ticket I have bought-I have seen a departure tax but thats it. Maybe all the above you mentioned are included.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

If you have an FM3 (the old booklet), you should have had it stamped on the 'Salidas' page when you left Mexico.
When you return, you must have it stamped again, on the 'Entradas' page.
Nobody tells you to do this; it is your responsibility to seek out the INM office and have it done. Sometimes, the border officials don't know much about these documents & new officials may never have seen one. So, you often have to insist that they stamp it; and open it to the correct page.
After May 1st, 2011, all of the FM2/3 booklets will have been replaced by the new plastic 'credencial'. With those, you will exit Mexico with a two part FMM, keeping the stub for re-entry. Eventually, that card will have a magnetic strip, making it easier to keep track of our movements. That may take a while to implement.


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## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

playagrandma said:


> I am really confused now. If I have an fm3 and enter mexico by land-I will need to pay for what? Not an fmm. Also I have never seen this mexico tourism tax on any ticket I have bought-I have seen a departure tax but thats it. Maybe all the above you mentioned are included.


It is not usually itemized on a paper ticket or your itineray but all those taxes and fees add up to the one lump sum for taxes. Maybe they print departure tax on the ticket so the airport knows not to collect it when you leave? I've heard that airlines from some other countries don't include it so the airport officials need to know who has prepaid and who has not.

You'll pay the tourist tax automatically when you purchase a plane ticket, whether you are a tourist, a FM3, or even a Mexican citizen. I don't know if there is a way you can request a rebate on the tourist tax if you don't owe it but you certainly can't avoid initially paying it when you buy your ticket. That's just how it works.


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## makaloco (Mar 26, 2009)

Part of the confusion is that the FMT was only for tourists or other short-term visitors, so it was natural to equate the Tourism Tax with "paying for the FMT". The FMM serves multiple purposes, and acting as a tourist permit is only one of them. All foreigners, including residents of Mexico, use the FMM, but only some pay the Tourism Tax. The charge is really for the visit, not for the form.


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