FAQ
1.) As foreigner, can I acquire Real Estate Property in Mexico?
2.) What if I want to acquire a property in the restricted area?
3.) When do I use a Real Estate Trust (Fideicomiso) to acquire Real Estate Property in the restricted area?
4.) When do I use a Mexican Corporation to acquire Real Estate Property?
5.) What's the information and documents needed to form a Mexican Corporation?
6.) Should I keep my FM-3 in my car?
7.) If I am going to travel to the U.S./Canada at least every 6 months, is it necessary to get an FM-3 or can I live here with only my tourist visa?
8.) Can I travel out of Mexico without turning in my tourist visa card?
9.) What about exiting the country with an FM-3 visa, Do I need to have it stamped each time I leave Mexico?
10.) Is it necessary to have a notarized letter if one parent travels alone with children?
11) How long does it take to get my Migratory form (fm2/fm3)?
12) Do I have to be in Mexico to close an operation?
1.) As foreigner, can I acquire Real Estate Property in Mexico?
Yes, you can acquire Real Estate Property as a Foreigner in Mexico.
Property in Mexico can be legally owned by foreigners. If you buy Real Estate property outside of the restricted zone (which is defined on article 2 fraction VI of the Foreign Investment Law as the area of the national territory located a hundred kilometers from the borders and fifty kilometers from the coastline) you are allowed to own the property and hold title on your name without a Bank Trust (Fideicomiso) or a Mexican Corporation.
This grants you nearly the same rights you receive when you purchase property in many parts of the world.
2.) What if I want to acquire a property in the restricted area?
Although, the Mexican Constitution restricts foreigners to directly owning property in the restricted zone; foreigners can acquire real estate through a Real Estate Trust (Fideicomiso) or a Mexican Corporation (articles 10 and 11 of the Foreign Investment Law).
3.) When do I use a Real Estate Trust (Fideicomiso) to acquire Real Estate Property in the restricted area?
Real Estate Trusts are formed only when the investor has residential purposes.
There are three parties that form this contract: The Trust Founder/Grantor (seller), the Trustee (Fiduciary, any Financial Institution in Mexico) and the Beneficiary (Buyer). The Real Estate property is transferred to the Trustee; the Beneficiary obtains the right to "use" the property and to obtain all the products and benefits from it.
To form a Real Estate Trust it is necessary to get a special authorization from the Foreign Affairs Ministry which takes approximately two weeks.
The duration of a Real Estate Trust is 50 renewable years. Also as part of the contract, substitute beneficiaries (heirs) are designated. They will assume the remaining time of the initial Real Estate Trust.
The Real Estate Trust allows the beneficiary to sell the property rights to another foreign or Mexican
The annual obligation of a Real Estate Trust is reduce to pay a yearly fee to the Trustee, which varies from one Bank to another. Most Financial Institutions will send the annual bill to the address provided when Real Estate Trust is established.
Corporate
4.) When do I use a Mexican Corporation to acquire Real Estate Property?
Mexican entities are incorporated only if the buyer has commercial purposes which include of course, the acquisition of a Real Estate property.
Under the 1993 Foreign Investment Law of Mexico, a Mexican business company is considered Mexican under said law, even if all the shareholders are foreigners. Thus, foreigner can acquire real property in the restricted area. This, however, is only for non-residential property (used for non-residential purposes), such as:
-Promotion and sale of timeshare rights of use to real estate (here no ownership of real estate is given but rather rights of use);
-For industrial, commercial or tourism activity that may simultaneously contain a residential component for the subsequent buyer;
-Real estate acquired by credit institutions, financial intermediaries, and auxiliary credit organizations to recover debts owed to them and in the ordinary course of business;
-Real estate used by entities in the course of their business consistent with sale, development, construction, subdivision and other activities included in the development of real estate projects, until these are sold to third parties that use them for residential occupation; and
-Generally, real estate destined for use in commercial, industrial, agricultural, cattle, fishing, forestry, or service related activities.
5.) What's the information and documents needed to form a Mexican Corporation?
Complete names of at least two shareholders, including their middle name to avoid any future identity problems (Entities are as well allowed to appear as shareholders, though different information may be required).
Marital Status, Nationality, Occupation, Address, Place and Date of Birth, telephone and fax number, cell phone and email.
Three options in order of preference to name the Mexican Corporation.
Purchase price (if any).
Percentage of ownership of each shareholder in the corporation.
Main purpose of the corporation.
Administration of the corporation (who will be its legal representative).
Immigration
6.) Should I keep my FM-3 in my car?
Unless you are traveling, you should keep your original FM-3 in a safe place at home. It is not an easy process to obtain a replacement should yours be lost or stolen. Always keep a copy of your FM-3 in your car, along with a copy of your passport. For further validity, you could get a Mexican notary public to certify the copy, although many people do not choose to do so. Some people make reduced and colored copies that are the same size as the FM-3 document to always carry in their purse or billfold.
7.) If I am going to travel to the U.S./Canada at least every 6 months, is it necessary to get an FM-3 or can I live here with only my tourist visa?
Theoretically, a foreigner could enter Mexico with a tourist visa and live for an extended period of time, renewing every 6 months, however doing so does not comport with the intent of Mexico's immigration law. In addition, Mexican law requires tourists to return their FMT tourist card upon leaving the country, which means that every time you depart Mexico you would have to turn in your FMT card and reapply upon returning to Mexico. Also, the duration of the tourist card is discretionary, and there is no guarantee that the immigration officer will grant entry for the full 6 months. FMT cards only allow you to bring a very limited amount of goods into Mexico (one computer, clothes, and similar items). Finally, if you bring down a U.S. car with an importation permit tied to an FMT, you will have to take your car to the border and obtain a new sticker each time that you are issued a new FMT.
8.) Can I travel out of Mexico without turning in my tourist visa card?
Mexican law requires visitors to return their tourist card (or the FMN for business visitors) upon leaving the country, subject to fines or other penalties. In many cities within Mexico, however, an immigration officer is posted outside the gate area and will not let travelers exit to their boarding gates unless they relinquish their FMT/FMN or submit another type visa (FM-3 or FM-2) to be stamped.
9.) What about exiting the country with an FM-3 visa, Do I need to have it stamped each time I leave Mexico?
An FM-3 visa holder (and an FM-2 visa holder) must have their visa stamped by an immigration officer each time that they exit or enter the country. For every exit, you should be able to show an entry stamp, and vice versa. The immigration officers at the Cancun airport for example will apply fines and more stringent punishments if they examine an FM-3 of an international arriving foreigner that does not contain an exit stamp.
While driving across the Mexico - Texas border, the stamps are most easily obtainable at the 26 kilometer mark, and not at the actual border. If you are driving a car with Mexican plates, it is common that the border guards will wave your car through and not ask to see your documents. Albeit contrary to the immigration rules, this allows foreigners to leave and return to Mexico by car without having their FM-3 stamped.
10.) Is it necessary to have a notarized letter if one parent travels alone with children?
Several years ago, an international treaty required a parent to have a notarized letter of consent to travel between the U.S./Canada and Mexico with his or her children. Many U.S and Canadian citizens experienced being stuck at a U.S. and Canadian departure points, often with unhappy young children in tow, because we forgot to get a notarized permission letter from the other parent to travel into Mexico. The requirements of that treaty are no longer in effect.
Although the law is no longer valid, kidnappings by estranged parents and criminals are a concern at an international border. Many international parents continue to travel with a permission letter signed by the other parent, simply to avoid added scrutiny and confusion at the border crossing or entry points. Parents employ similar letters if their minor children are to travel internationally with other adults.
Likewise, there is no such rule to travel alone with your children within Mexico. However, because international families are subject to heightened scrutiny, many parents who travel alone with their children prefer to always take permission letters. For the interior, documents that are signed and notarized under the authority of the U.S. or Canada must technically go through the apostille process to be valid in Mexico. www.visasmx.com/apostille.html
11) How long does it take to get my Migratory form (fm2/fm3)?
Fm2: From 3 to 4 weeks
Fm3: From 2 to 3 weeks
12) Do I have to be in Mexico to close an operation?
No, if you are not planning to come to execute your contracts we could do it in your stead once you grant a power of attorney in our favor.
We can guide you to properly do it before an anglo public notary or before a Mexican consul.
