# Some questions



## chadnn (Jul 13, 2012)

Hi All,

I'm new here and have a few questions about moving to Mexico. 

I plan to fly to San Diego and then walk across the Boarder. Would like to live around the TJ area if possible. Once there I don't plan on coming back to the US.

My questions are:

1. What would I need to cross (passport, just ID or DL)? Last time I visited no one asked to see anything and I don't have a passport.

2. Would need to find some type of work as I'm not retired nor have an income without working. One thought I had was to be a tour guide. How would I go about working legally there?

3. How soon after getting there should I apply for immigrating? And how hard is it to do so? (I do have a 35+ yr old conviction).

4. Would there be a better place than TJ to live than is still cheap?

Any other information or help would be appreciated. Thanks.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

chadnn said:


> Hi All,
> 
> I'm new here and have a few questions about moving to Mexico.
> 
> ...


(1) You will need a passport to return to the US. 
(2-3) You will need a passport to get a visa for mexico. You will need a visa to work in Mexico. I don't know if you need passport to get a tourist's permit to visit Mexico.
You can spend 180 days in Mexico on a tourist visa. To qualify for a visa you either need to have a job or regular income. Jobs are not that easy to come by in Mexico. The unemployment rate is high to start with, and Mexico doesn't encourage foreigners to take jobs that locals can do. So you are restricted to jobs that require a special skill (native English speaker with teaching experience/credentials, highly technical skills, etc).
(4) Mexico is a big country. Practically everywhere some things are cheaper than the US. "Better" only you can judge. I find Tijuana not an unpleasant city, but many might say anyplace would be better.


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## conklinwh (Dec 19, 2009)

There is some debate whether you will need passport book or passport card for ground transit.
Would think only reason to live in TJ would be that you want to work in the US and live in Mexico. As stated, Mexico is very tough on foreigners taking jobs unless a real demonstrated unique skill. Mexico has many tourism schools so doubt that would be considered unique.


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## tommygn (Dec 2, 2011)

You will need a passport and a visa, as stated before.

You can got to the LA Azerbaijani consulate, here is their website

The go to the LA Mexican consulate, here is theirs

As for the place to stay, I am one of those who think there are far better places to live the Tijuana, which has a reputation of a rough town.

I think tourist cities have more jobs available than most cities.

You can try Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos, Cancun or Playa del Carmen. Remember Mexico is a big country, driving from Tijuana to Cancun probably takes about 3 days.

Always have all you documentation regularized, have a passport, work with a visa, stay legal.


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## Ken Wood (Oct 22, 2011)

I have been in TJ, Laredo, and many more smaller cities along the US / Mexican border. My best effort to describe them would be that a creative screenwriter, working on a remake of one of my top 5 all time movies, could do a marvelous version of Casablanca in any of these cities. The scenario is that a flood of desperate people, fleeing the demons of their homeland, must work their way through a bottleneck at the last stopping place before the U.S. I have had no problems in any of these cities, so I speak only from personal prejudices, but I've always felt that by increasing the number of desperate people in any given region, the odds of an encounter with one of them increases proportionately. Not to say that all emigrees are criminals, but, again, a proportionate number of them will be. If I had to choose between an evening stroll in Tijuana and a similar stroll in any number of cities farther south, I would have to opt for the southern cities.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

chadnn said:


> 2. Would need to find some type of work as I'm not retired nor have an income without working. One thought I had was to be a tour guide. How would I go about working legally there?


Consider the fact that there are many fine Mexican tour guides who might not appreciate competition from a foreigner. do you speak Spanish? Do you know the country well enough to be able to give tours? Have you done this kind of work in other countries?


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## chicois8 (Aug 8, 2009)

tommygn writes:
Remember Mexico is a big country, driving from Tijuana to Cancun probably takes about 3 days.

I guess if you are driving non stop you could do 4378 KM in about 50 hours.


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## tommygn (Dec 2, 2011)

chicois8 said:


> tommygn writes:
> Remember Mexico is a big country, driving from Tijuana to Cancun probably takes about 3 days.
> 
> I guess if you are driving non stop you could do 4378 KM in about 50 hours.


That´s how I roll, baby.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Mexican tour guides are licensed and have specialized training.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

RVGRINGO said:


> Mexican tour guides are licensed and have specialized training.


Thanks for posting this, RV. I forgot to mention this in my previous post.


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

RVGRINGO said:


> Mexican tour guides are licensed and have specialized training.


Well, there is lax enforcement of the licensing, from what I experience when moving about the country. Those I've met who appear to be licensed, and few people other than the people presenting themselves as guides will know their status with certainty, who I suspected lacked knowledge of the basics and have presented facts which are mostly fiction. These types work together to keep competition, so someone new, and in particular a foreigner, has a slim chance of doing this type of work.


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## chadnn (Jul 13, 2012)

*thanks*

Thanks for the help. Maybe moving there isn't right at this time. But to be honest the way the US government is going don't want to stay here much longer either.


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## ExpatPumpkin (May 30, 2010)

chadnn said:


> Thanks for the help. Maybe moving there isn't right at this time. But to be honest the way the US government is going don't want to stay here much longer either.


Please tell me what it is about the US government that's making you leave. I'm so curious.


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## anoutlaw (May 13, 2009)

ExpatPumpkin said:


> Please tell me what it is about the US government that's making you leave. I'm so curious.


probably refering to big brother behavior with no end in sight.


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## Isla Verde (Oct 19, 2011)

anoutlaw said:


> probably refering to big brother behavior with no end in sight.


For example ???


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## chadnn (Jul 13, 2012)

*questions*

Big Brother = health care law that tax you if you don't have it, passing laws that take away our rights in the name of terrorism, sending troops to overthrow other governments, and on and on.

No government is perfect, but the US was close.


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## Ken Wood (Oct 22, 2011)

chadnn said:


> Big Brother = health care law that tax you if you don't have it, passing laws that take away our rights in the name of terrorism, sending troops to overthrow other governments, and on and on.
> 
> No government is perfect, but the US was close.


The government of the United States is a government selected by a majority of the people who care enough to vote. It just doesn't get any better than that. Obviously, the elections don't always go like we wish they would, and, subsequently, the actions of the incumbents don't always please those whose votes went to the losing candidate. However, it is a reach for me to understand how someone can actually leave the US and come to Mexico for reasons related to the stability of, and the actions of, the sitting government. 

As to the invasion of the foreign countries, there are no easy answers, but I am convinced that it has nothing to do with oil, that is just an easy way to incite people. I am coming around more each day to the belief that the world will always have conflict, it always has and always will. If our elected officials can keep it off our shores, then I say God bless 'em...and I'm not a religious person.


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## edgeee (Jun 21, 2012)

chadnn said:


> Big Brother = health care law that tax you if you don't have it, passing laws that take away our rights in the name of terrorism, sending troops to overthrow other governments, and on and on.
> 
> No government is perfect, but the US was close.


IMO, never close to 'perfect', but i'm the guy who thinks 'perfect' is actually nothing more than a concept.
it doesn't really exist, any more than 'free' does.

the USA was founded as a republic, democracy came later.
however, it shares a lot with the history of all great civilizations.

right now we are doing a pretty fair imitation of the fall of Rome, and believe it or not, i'm glad.
by living through the current state of affairs, we may wake up in time to prevent what the French endured before their revolution.

the trick that has never been performed is for a society to NOT collapse under it's own weight as it grows.
notice, i said society, not government. any government is what the society says it is.

to simplify it to it's essence, society is centered around two things:

1. what the masses demand.
2. what the masses deny.

and all societies have huge numbers of people who disagree with the masses.
but, i still agree with W. C.

_It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried._
Sir Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965)

Americans have led the parade of consumption and gratification for more than two centuries and it's starting to bite them where it hurts.
while humans all over planet aspire to our way of life, we squander it.
the snake is swallowing it's tail, and we are choking on our own greed.

but so much of Europe and Asia has copied our example, that the world hangs in the balance.

IMO it's gonna get worse, a lot worse, before it gets better, but it will get better.

but no matter when or where you live, life is and always will be what you make it.


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## anoutlaw (May 13, 2009)

Examples: 

Drones over U.S. get OK by Congress - Washington Times
Terrorist Tracking Could Open Europe To US Spying | TechWeekEurope UK

designed for in the name of one purpose and will without a doubt be used for more.

UK is no better though

GCHQ: Big Brother plans to let state spy on websites, emails and texts to cost YOU £2bn | Mail Online

Intentions may be good but without a doubt it will be abused.


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## Longford (May 25, 2012)

chadnn said:


> Big Brother = health care law that tax you if you don't have it, passing laws that take away our rights in the name of terrorism, sending troops to overthrow other governments, and on and on.
> 
> No government is perfect, but the US was close.


Taking away whose rights? Those of us who are paying for people who can't or won't get health insurance which results in those of us who do paying higher costs and premiums to compensate for them? And the healthcare issue is related to terrorism? If you're speaking about what "W" Bush did to attack our way of life, values and weaken our national security ... I'm there with you on that score. If you think badly of the USA government I suspect you're horrified at what you see in Mexico.


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## ExpatPumpkin (May 30, 2010)

chadnn said:


> Big Brother = health care law that tax you if you don't have it, passing laws that take away our rights in the name of terrorism, sending troops to overthrow other governments, and on and on.
> 
> No government is perfect, but the US was close.


Hahaha, you'll LOVE Mexico. You know, with their UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE (funded by taxpayers, obviously), strict adherence to proper policing protocol, and their AMAZING human rights records (government treatment of indigenous groups, for example). 

Anyway, no country is perfect. Except maybe Norway, but it IS cold there and they did have one home-grown terrorist.

Oh well, hope you find your utopia in Mexico. Many have


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## mickisue1 (Mar 10, 2012)

anoutlaw said:


> Examples:
> 
> Drones over U.S. get OK by Congress - Washington Times
> Terrorist Tracking Could Open Europe To US Spying | TechWeekEurope UK
> ...


I'm not so sure I'd rely on the Washington Times as a source of actual news reporting.


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