BajaNomad

FMM for month long trip to east cape

steve5555 - 8-3-2023 at 09:10 PM

Hey everyone, I see in other posts that sometimes it is hard to get the FMM at the border. Mostly due to lack of interest on their part. I plan to cross at Tecate ~0800-0900 on a week day. If the office is closed or the admin gone should I stick around and get the FMM vs just blowing it off?

Im very willing but how much effort do I need to put into getting the document? If I end up not getting the FMM will be a problem for me down the road? Pun intended.

We have a truck camper and will be beach camping while wing foiling.

Thoughts??

steve

advrider - 8-3-2023 at 09:47 PM

I've gotten it several time and gone without many more times. It's the law in Mexico, so probably a good idea. Some say it's required for Mexican insurance but that's not true for many companies.
In Tecate we often park and walk across to get our FMM if we are in a car. If on motos we turn up the first one-way street on the right (going the wrong way) and ride 25 feet and park (area of cones) and walk in and get our FMM. It's never taken more then 30 minutes in the past.

Maderita - 8-4-2023 at 02:15 AM

Hola Steve,
Definitely get your FMM when going south of the immediate border region. Bring your US Passport. The Tecate office will be open during those daytime hours.

Go up the steps and inside to have the officer fill out the form. You will then go outdoors to the banking window (banjercito), at the northern corner of the same building. Pay there in pesos (only). If you don't have pesos, there is a (private company) money exchange to the south, across the street. 687 pesos currently = about $42 USD at the current exchange rate. Then go back in the office to have your FMM stamped.

The officer may have you pay him directly in dollars at the desk. Somehow, I suspect that those dollars never make it to the government coffers ;)

On a weekday morning in Tecate, with pesos in hand, the process should take <15 minutes.

The list of potential problems, sans FMM, may be lengthy, including:
Getting turned back at a checkpoint.
Penalized by military at a checkpoint for a "fine" (mordida).
Increased vulnerability to a shakedown for mordida by police.
Stuck down south with an urgent need to fly home, yet unable to board an aircraft.

PaulW - 8-4-2023 at 06:56 AM

Don't worry about the few that had an issue.
I have never had an issue at the east crossing.

David K - 8-4-2023 at 06:56 AM

Hi Steve, good to read of your upcoming trip. The advice above is spot on. Tecate will have their INM officer waiting for you, so don't worry. While I have always paid in cash, I read that plastic works, too.
Do check in to let us know how it went for you. As mentioned your passports or passport card must be valid for the duration of your time in Mexico.
Viva Baja!

wilderone - 8-4-2023 at 08:58 AM

Get some cash exchanged at the little convenience store just up the hill from the border so you'll have pesos for the FMM fee in hand. And don't forget insurance - you can get it there too if you need to, but online is better. And remember to come to a complete stop at every single stop sign driving through Tecate - watch closely for stop signs as sometimes they're faded or obstructed.

Lee - 8-4-2023 at 09:37 AM

Not too many reports being asked for FMM at the Ag checkpoint. They use to check all the time. Or, being asked entering La Paz, and maybe being turned back.

Getting the FMM at Tecate is a no brainer. 8am is a good time. Just do it.

AKgringo - 8-4-2023 at 02:13 PM

I am sure it will happen some day, but so far I have never been asked for one anywhere when I was not flying.

David K - 8-5-2023 at 12:53 PM

Quote: Originally posted by AKgringo  
I am sure it will happen some day, but so far I have never been asked for one anywhere when I was not flying.


During my eight Baja Bound research/ mapping trips (2016-2018) adding about 15,000 odometer miles, and always with a valid FMM (three of them), I was never once asked to show it. So, yes, it is a bit disppointing to do the right thing and not get a thanks or smile from an immigration officer on the peninsula! LOL

There was a time, at the booth you drive past, just south of the state border/ Eagle Monument, you were asked to show it.
I think the last time the officer looked at mine was in 2012.
In 2015, there was an officer sitting in it and as we drove up, he waved us on, not interested in looking at them.
In 2017, nobody was there the times I went past. One trip, I took the airport road into Guerrero Negro to see how it was, so that bypasses the checkpoint, but as I said, it was abandoned that year.

mtgoat666 - 8-5-2023 at 01:29 PM

Just get the fmm. It’s required. It’s cheap (you know how expensive it is to apply for tourist visa to usa? Mexico is a bargain!)

steve5555 - 8-6-2023 at 09:02 PM

Hey great, thanks for the replies. Got some peso's and I want to do the right thing. Still , thanks for the info.

steve

pappy - 8-7-2023 at 06:48 AM

Was recently in sur.at the ag checkpoint just one guy asking if you want to get the spray or not for a couple bucks.on way back north he just waved us through.a little different than last time I went through there.there was one time at that spot we were headed back to states and the checked for our fmm papers one in our group of 4 didn’t have one.they were going to send us to la Paz to get one.after a lengthy back and forth we paid around 40 dollars maybe 60, and we were allowed to head on our way.

On recent trip I was never asked for the fmm at any checkpoint

BeachSeeker - 8-12-2023 at 09:41 PM

Two questions: I've heard about this spray at the Baja Sur boarder. You make it sound like it isn't mandatory, if it isn't, then why would you get it?

Second, is there any official word if you can get an FMM for the full 6 months and use it for multiple crossings? The lady at the Mexicali crossing said they are only good for 1 crossing, but I've heard some people say otherwise.

SFandH - 8-13-2023 at 08:17 AM

Quote: Originally posted by BeachSeeker  
Two questions: I've heard about this spray at the Baja Sur boarder. You make it sound like it isn't mandatory, if it isn't, then why would you get it?

Second, is there any official word if you can get an FMM for the full 6 months and use it for multiple crossings? The lady at the Mexicali crossing said they are only good for 1 crossing, but I've heard some people say otherwise.


You're overthinking this. If there is a guy at the state line spray facility, get the spray; if not, don't.

FMMs when driving or walking across can be used multiple times, regardless of what the rules say. I walked into TJ yesterday, and the guy in front of me had an FMM he had previously purchased. He flashed it to the official, who didn't read it, and away he went. Get one for 6 months and after it expires, get another if needed.

Over the years, I've been asked for my FMM twice by a Mex immigration officer.

surfhat - 8-13-2023 at 09:19 AM

The more relative question should be, why not get the spray if you are asked?

We are visitors to their country for the most part, and even if we live there, why not get the spray?

Respect is deserving of showing a little respect. haha

A couple dollars worth of pesos? Roll up the windows and know you are helping in small degree. I can't confirm whether the spray is really doing anything to control the spread of bugs, but it costs me nothing to respond positively when I am asked. Why would anyone resist such a small ask?

That they give us the choice to be spray or not be sprayed is curious.



Don Pisto - 8-13-2023 at 09:46 AM

give em an extra couple pesos and have em hit the windshield and back window....probably just water anyway:D

thebajarunner - 8-13-2023 at 10:30 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Don Pisto  
give em an extra couple pesos and have em hit the windshield and back window....probably just water anyway:D


A highly reliable source assures me that it is cat urine:cool:

SFandH - 8-13-2023 at 10:55 AM

Quote: Originally posted by thebajarunner  
Quote: Originally posted by Don Pisto  
give em an extra couple pesos and have em hit the windshield and back window....probably just water anyway:D


A highly reliable source assures me that it is cat urine:cool:


:lol:

And how do they collect the cat urine?

I think your source reliably pulls your leg.

BeachSeeker - 8-14-2023 at 09:41 PM

Quote: Originally posted by surfhat  
The more relative question should be, why not get the spray if you are asked?

We are visitors to their country for the most part, and even if we live there, why not get the spray?

Respect is deserving of showing a little respect. haha

A couple dollars worth of pesos? Roll up the windows and know you are helping in small degree. I can't confirm whether the spray is really doing anything to control the spread of bugs, but it costs me nothing to respond positively when I am asked. Why would anyone resist such a small ask?

That they give us the choice to be spray or not be sprayed is curious.





I fully understand your sentiment, but it is indeed curious why they give a choice. If it was official, then wouldn't it be mandatory? I've read a lot about the checkpoint, and it seems only tourists get asked to get the spray, and some even say upon closer inspection, the badge the guy wears is obviously fake. There is a similar scam like this in La Paz I've seen where a guy with a backpack sprayer tries to charge you to spray your tires. It all seems very fishy, and I really don't want someone spraying random stuff on my truck.