Legal Residency in Mexico: Residency-Related Fees for 2026

If you intend to apply for legal residency in Mexico or need to engage in some administrative process regarding your existing legal residency permit, you will need to pay some government fees to facilitate the procedures.

Mexican consular fees

When you apply for a visa at a Mexican consulate abroad, the consulate will make a consular charge of $56 US dollars (or local currency equivalent if you are not in the USA) for the visa processing service.

Residente Temporal fees

When you arrive in Mexico with your residency visa, you need to exchange this within 30 days for a residency card.

The fees for exchanging a Residente Temporal visa (sticker) for a Residente Temporal card, OR renewing an existing Residente Temporal card for additional year(s) are:

Temporary Residency Card	100% Rate (Mexican pesos)	50% Rate* (Mexican pesos)
1 Year	MXN $11,141	MXN $5,570
2 Years	MXN $16,693	MXN $8,347
3 Years	MXN $21,143	MXN $10,571
4 Years	MXN $25,058	MXN $12,529

*50% discount for some applicants

Residency related fees doubled in 2026, with a 50% discount if you are:

• Applying under the auspices of Family Unit (most commonly as a spouse of common-law partner of a Mexican national or existing legal foreign resident); OR
• Being sponsored by a company and your residency is tied to that formal employment contract.

First year of temporary residency

Your first Residente Temporal permit is always issued for only one year*. Renewals after the first year may grant an additional 1, 2, or 3 years of temporary residency – fees as above.

*Spouse of a Mexican national or foreign resident: If you’re applying as a spouse of a Mexican national or an existing foreign resident see this article for details about time scales.)

Residente Temporal Estudiante card fees

People applying for a Residente Temporal Estudiante (temporary resident permit as a student in Mexico) are charged the consulate fee (see above) but there are no charges to exchange the visa (sticker) for a card, and there are no charges to renew the card for additional year(s). However, note that temporary residency as a student carries additional restrictions which other temporary residents do not have.

The card fee if you change your status from Residente Temporal Estudiante toResidente Temporal are as described in the table above, plus a change of status fee—see section below.

Permission to work

If you wish to apply for permission to work with your Residente Temporal status, there is a fee of $4,341 Mexican pesos.

Note: If you hold a Residente Permanente card you don’t need to pay this fee, but you must inform the immigration office about any changes to your work arrangements.

Residente Permanente fees

The fee for exchanging a Residente Permanente visa (sticker) for a Residente Permanente card is $13,579 Mexican pesos; or $6,789 Mexican pesos if you are doing this under the auspice of a Family Unit application.  This is also part of the fee when you convert a temporary residency card to a permanent residency card, see next section.

Fee for converting Residente Temporal to Residente Permanente

If after 4 consecutive years living in Mexico under the auspice of Residente Temporal or Residente Temporal Estudiante you apply to convert your temporary residency status to a permanent residency in Mexico, you will need to pay a ‘change of status fee’ of $1,847 Mexican pesos in addition to the fee for the Residente Permanente card, see previous section.

Exit/Re-entry permit fees

If you need to leave Mexico while a residency-related procedure is in-train, you will need to apply and pay for an Exit/Re-entry permit, as you will not be in possession of your residency documents while the procedure is administered. The fee for an Exit/Re-entry permit is $591 Mexican pesos.

Exit/Re-entry permits last for 60 calendar days.  You must return to Mexico within the 60-day period; if you don’t, your filing will be cancelled and become void.

Important! Note that if you are in the throes of a ‘regularization’ procedure (e.g., expired, or lost residency card—see below), you cannot get this permit and you must remain in Mexico until the regularization procedure is complete.

Residency card replacement fee

If your Temporary or Permanent residency card becomes damaged or lost, you will need to apply for a new card and pay a replacement fee.  This replacement fee is currently $1,780 Mexican pesos.

Residency card replacement procedures depend on whether you lost your card in Mexico or abroad, and you will need to enter a specific procedure depending on the circumstances to get it replaced.  Consider using our Immigration Assistance Service to help you.

Fees for change of immigration status in Mexico

If your situation allows you to exchange a Visitor Permit (FMM) for a residency permit in Mexico, you need to pay pay a ‘change of status’ fee of $1,847 Mexican pesos in addition the corresponding resident card fee listed above.  You might also have to pay a fine that will range between 20 and 100 days of UMA. (See next section.)

Situations where a FMM can be exchanged for a residency visa in-country include:

• Application for residency under Family Unit rules.
• Change from Residente Temporal Estudiante to Residente Temporal or Residente Permanente.
• Applying for residency in Mexico on Humanitarian grounds or via some other special procedure.

Fines for residency-related procedures

Fines might be charged in addition to the fee schedule (see above) if your immigration status has become ‘irregular’ and/or if you failed to notify the immigration office about changes in your status.

Fines range between 20 and 100 days of UMA. The level of fine depends on the circumstance of the situation.

‘Regularization’ procedures tend to be complex so consider using our Immigration Assistance Service to help you.

Fee for “SAM” procedure

If you are the parent or legal guardian of minor children (aged under 18 years of age) who are Mexicans and/or foreign legal residents in Mexico and the child(ren) need to leave Mexico unaccompanied by at least one parent or guardian, you must file for a permit at a local immigration office known as the SAM Procedure.  They will not be allowed to board a flight without this permit.  The fee for this permit $294 Mexican pesos.