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sancho
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2524
Registered: 10-6-2004
Location: OC So Cal
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Read of a guy on the Baja fishing board 4 weeks
back or so, asked at TJ Immigration for a free
7 day fmm, was told they would issue him 1 as
long as he was going no further so. than
Rpsarito Beach, 12 so. of TJ, if going further than Rosarito
he would
need the $20 fmm, yes things change but to drive
400 mi into Baja wiht no fmm is not what I call prudent.
These IMM offices seem to make their own regs
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Udo
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6364
Registered: 4-26-2008
Location: Black Hills, SD/Ensenada/San Felipe
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Mood: TEQUILA!
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Bajahowodd
Oy Vey. Seems to me that it wasn't too long ago that the official word was that if you don't get it at the border you be in BEEG trouble.
Over the years, especially with the GN office, it has been hit and miss, and all over the place.
I have to chime in with the folks who advocate getting it at the border. Unless you feel like you need some potential "adventure".
Even as Shari noted, if you find an IMM guy at the GN office, and you are there during banking hours, it is a couple of miles drive to get to the
bank. Just seems like wasted time if you can get it all done as you cross the border. |
 
Udo
Youth is wasted on the young!
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Sprocket
Junior Nomad
Posts: 67
Registered: 1-3-2012
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Stopped to get fmm for the family didnt know my kids needed passports not passport cards. Went back to the car to tell wife we were just going to wing
it at the check point, She makes me go back in the office I get a diffrent guy who says no problem here you go and stamps and signs everything. Done
deal. That said Iam 8 for 8 crossing at GN never been stopped in 13 years other than my $20.00 peso for spray.
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chuckie
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6082
Registered: 2-20-2012
Location: Kansas Prairies
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Mood: Weary
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Better yet, get a pre-paid FMM. 3 minutes at the Tecate crossing and you are on the road...
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BajaDove
Nomad
Posts: 194
Registered: 11-23-2008
Location: La Paz
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"No problema"
means maybe there's a problem or why would you think of saying 'No problem'
If its not where it is, its where it isn\'t.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65307
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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| Quote: | Originally posted by chuckie
Better yet, get a pre-paid FMM. 3 minutes at the Tecate crossing and you are on the road... |
Besides Discover Baja in San Diego (and maybe Vagabundos near Sacramento), where else can you easily get a pre-paid tourist card?
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Mulegena
Super Nomad
Posts: 2412
Registered: 11-7-2006
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Who knows the rules anymore?
Last week my friend presented to the Migration desk in the Tijuana Bus Terminal for her FMM visa.
The officer on duty asked her destination (Baja Sur) and length of stay (7 days).
He proceeded to stamp her passport and informed her she did not need a visa as her visit was only one week. He would not issue her a visa.
"Raise your words, not your voice. It's rain that grows flowers, not thunder." ~Rumi
"It's the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." ~ Aristotle
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65307
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Location: San Diego County
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It really isn't a 'visa' but actually a "Tourist Card" allowing you to be anywhere in Mexico for a limited period of time for vacation. Just what was
stamped in the passport (if not a visa)?
Technically any stay more than 72 hours or any trip south of the 'Border Zone' requires a Tourist Card (FMM, formery FM-T).
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Mulegena
Super Nomad
Posts: 2412
Registered: 11-7-2006
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Just to clarify, and confuse, the issue
| Quote: | Originally posted by David K
It really isn't a 'visa' but actually a "Tourist Card" allowing you to be anywhere in Mexico for a limited period of time for vacation. Just what was
stamped in the passport (if not a visa)? |
The stamp of the Mexican migra office, an official emblem, was
rubber-stamped permanently into her passport and dated, I believe. He gave her a dated application form for an FMM with the instructions to "get ye to
an immigration office, pay and obtain a card" if her visit in-country exceeded her anticipated one week stay. He did not suggest she visit an
immigration office to receive an exit stamp in her passport, btw.
| Quote: | | Technically any stay more than 72 hours or any trip south of the 'Border Zone' requires a Tourist Card (FMM, formery FM-T).
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Yes, this is what I've known to be the letter of the law, too, but... that wasn't my friend's experience
last Sunday morning when she crossed in.
"Raise your words, not your voice. It's rain that grows flowers, not thunder." ~Rumi
"It's the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." ~ Aristotle
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Bajahowodd
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9274
Registered: 12-15-2008
Location: Disneyland Adjacent and anywhere in Baja
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And, the prepaid cards, which cost more than you would pay at the actual IMM office, are technically not valid if you don't get them stamped.
Scratching my head here, because, most likely in retaliation for what our guys are doing NB, getting a "visa" at the SY crossing seems to take much
more time than it used to, simply because they want to inspect every vehicle that pulls into the parking area. My feeling is that actually getting
your "visa" stamped anywher other than at the border is really hit and miss.
So, if you get a prepaid one, and go into the SY office, you may as well have just applied there. And it will cost you less.
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65307
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Bajahowodd
And, the prepaid cards, which cost more than you would pay at the actual IMM office, are technically not valid if you don't get them stamped.
Scratching my head here, because, most likely in retaliation for what our guys are doing NB, getting a "visa" at the SY crossing seems to take much
more time than it used to, simply because they want to inspect every vehicle that pulls into the parking area. My feeling is that actually getting
your "visa" stamped anywher other than at the border is really hit and miss.
So, if you get a prepaid one, and go into the SY office, you may as well have just applied there. And it will cost you less. |
This is so true (at Tijuana)... but not as easy at Tecate or other borders without a 24/7 bank window to pay.
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gnukid
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4411
Registered: 7-2-2006
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At TJ, you can park on the US side, walk across and get your visa and walk back then drive through to avoid parking in the inspection parking lot.
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bajalou
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4459
Registered: 3-11-2004
Location: South of the broder
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From Wikipedia
"A visa (from the Latin charta visa, lit. "paper that has been seen")[1] is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for
which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more
commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport. Some countries do not require a visa in some situations, such as a result of reciprocal
treaty arrangements. The country issuing the visa typically attaches various conditions of stay, such as the territory covered by the visa, dates of
validity, period of stay, whether the visa is valid for more than one visit, etc."
No Bad Days
\"Never argue with an idiot. People watching may not be able to tell the difference\"
\"The trouble with doing nothing is - how do I know when I\'m done?\"
Nomad Baja Interactive map
And in the San Felipe area - check out Valle Chico area |
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gnukid
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4411
Registered: 7-2-2006
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It is legal to arrive at any port of entry within a limited time frame of entering the country and request a visa. Meaning people do arrive to GN, La
Paz, Cabo, etc... and get Visas while having driven down, and without paying a fine. One must demonstrate that you made your best effort to comply
(e.g. original port of entry INM was closed) and you made your way directly to your destination and the nearest port of entry.
People who do not make their way immediately to the port of entry are fined. It's a fine line and is determined by your statements related to your
actions.
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Sweetwater
Senior Nomad
Posts: 915
Registered: 11-26-2010
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Mood: chilly today hot tomale
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November 2010...we were stopped in GN, no FMM's between the three of us....Baja Mill chasers.....fine was $50 US + $25 for the FMT....
Next, February 2011, armed with FMT we were waived through GN on motos with no undercarriage spray applied....20 days between BC and BCSur without any
request to see documents.
February 2012, picked up current FMM's when crossing at Algodones, probably 30-40 minutes spent....no guards at GN.......asked for "papers" twice on
the trip north......at military check points.....the one near the construction in Baja Sur, north of Rosarito on H1....and again at the military
checkpoint north of San Felipe on H5....both military checkpoints were more rigorous than previous trips and only heading north.........
FWIW, I recommend getting your papers at crossing if possible...fee was $26 in Algodones.........
Everbody\'s preachin\' at me that we all wanna git to heaven, trouble is, nobody wants to die to git there.-BB King
Reality is what does not go away when you stop believing in it. -Philip K Dick
Nothing is worse than active ignorance. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe(1749-1832, German writer, artist and politician)
When choosing between two evils, I always like to try the one I\'ve never tried before. - Mae West
Experience is what keeps a man who makes the same mistake twice from admitting it the third time around.
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sancho
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2524
Registered: 10-6-2004
Location: OC So Cal
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| Quote: | Originally posted by bajalou
"A visa 1] is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was |
With you on that, this arguing the definition of a Visa is
pointless, the Mex Govt uses the the term Visa to describe an fmm,
for ALL intent, an fmm is a visa, permission to be in the country. I remember a post here, a guy boarded a Volaris
out of TJ, was told he did not need an fmm for his short
stay in Cabo, go figure. Why 1 would pay approx $59 for a
prepaid fmm. $25 to join, approx $34 for the fmm as
opposed to $20 at the border to save 3 min in the bank
line escapes me
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LaPazGringo
Nomad
Posts: 237
Registered: 2-28-2012
Location: La Paz
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Just FYI, Last summer I finally talked my parents into coming out and riding down Baja with us to La Paz. Things turned out that we didn't get visas
in TJ or Ensenada so we were going to wing it and just get them at GN if required. Well, we got the very "official" immigration woman who sternly told
us that we were being held until we paid the 1200 pesos fine per person and got the visas. It was literally 15 min before the bank closed in GN and we
were racing thru town to get there, 110F outside, got there and they had just locked up. Begged our way inside and proceeded to have to use the ATMs
while we all got enough out to pay the fines. Needless to say, the bank manager who was anxious to leave was very frustrated with the process of
having to do each passport/fine one at a time. When we got back to Immigration we told the lady that we thought it was terribly heavy-handed that this
fine was also charged on the three smaill children. Doing 7 of those fines/tourist cards took 2-1/2 hrs while my parents whose vacation had just
started sat in the hot car. The total cost was $900.
Now, I'll be the first to say that ignorance is no excuse and the law's the law and don't complain when you get caught. But the whole experience
seemed heavy-handed, especially considering that Mexico is in terrible need of dollars.
The suspension of that fine can only be a good thing for BCS.
[Edited on 2-28-2012 by LaPazGringo]
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 65307
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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| Quote: | Originally posted by LaPazGringo
Just FYI, Last summer I finally talked my parents into coming out and riding down Baja with us to La Paz. Things turned out that we didn't get visas
in TJ or Ensenada so we were going to wing it and just get them at GN if required. Well, we got the very "official" immigration woman who sternly told
us that we were being held until we paid the 1200 pesos fine per person and got the visas. It was literally 15 min before the bank closed in GN and we
were racing thru town to get there, 110F outside, got there and they had just locked up. Begged our way inside and proceeded to have to use the ATMs
while we all got enough out to pay the fines. Needless to say, the bank manager who was anxious to leave was very frustrated with the process of
having to do each passport/fine one at a time. When we got back to Immigration we told the lady that we thought it was terribly heavy-handed that this
fine was also charged on the three smaill children. Doing 7 of those fines/tourist cards took 2-1/2 hrs while my parents whose vacation had just
started sat in the hot car. The total cost was $900.
Now, I'll be the first to say that ignorance is no excuse and the law's the law and don't complain when you get caught. But the whole experience
seemed heavy-handed, especially considering that Mexico is in terrible need of dollars.
The suspension of that fine can only be a good thing for BCS.
[Edited on 2-28-2012 by LaPazGringo] |
So so true... taxation of tourists (like anything) reduces income to the people.
They only hit up travelers on Hwy. 1 crossing into Baja Sur... There are other roads that cross the border with no such government theft or even
personal. Mordita to the 'rich gringos' who innocently didn't know the procedure for getting tourist cards at the Mexican border (there are no signs
informing tourists what is required if they drive south of Maneadero or San Felipe).
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Bajahowodd
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9274
Registered: 12-15-2008
Location: Disneyland Adjacent and anywhere in Baja
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There is another thread here started by DENNIS that asked about what could be done to increase tourism to Baja and Mexico.
IMHO, the visa thing is among the least annoying aspects considering what many other countries do, including the US. If a Mexican wishes to get a visa
to enter the US legally, they have to fill out tons of paperwork, and pay literally hundreds of dollars that is non-refundable if the visa is denied.
Given the relatively easy process to obtain legal documents to enter the foreign nation of Mexico, it just seems to me that anyone who figures they
can play games with their system deserves penalties.
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LaPazGringo
Nomad
Posts: 237
Registered: 2-28-2012
Location: La Paz
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Bajahowodd
Given the relatively easy process to obtain legal documents to enter the foreign nation of Mexico, it just seems to me that anyone who figures they
can play games with their system deserves penalties. |
I totally agree but what do you think we deserved as a penalty? $9? $90? $900? $9000? It seemed very heavy-handed to pay $900 to obviously confused
tourists, especially when a big part of that was for three children who did nothing to evade the visa law. It was the first day of our vacation, I had
spent years trying to convince my parents to come to Baja and then that. Yeah, ultimately it was my fault. But I think the fines were
counter-productive to the Mexican economy and in the first place, I was perfectly willing to pay for the tourist visa when required at GN.
What's fair is the suspension of the hefty fines and I'm glad to see they wised up.
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