Applying for Temporary Residency in Mexico Through Marriage
Posted: February 24, 2025 | Tagged: Mexico
The process for applying for Temporary Residency in Mexico through marriage at the Immigration Office in Polanco, Mexico City, was pretty straightforward. It's just a process and if you have all the documents they require, I had my 2-year Temporary Residency card after 90 minutes.
Step-by-Step Guide for Applying for Temporary Residency in Mexico Through Marriage
It all seemed very daunting, but the pre-application process and the actual process on the day, was very straightforward. If you have all your documents in order, there is nothing to fear. It is just a process. You are not interviewed as to why you are applying for residency, no questions about how you met your partner or anything.
So, I will talk you through the process:
So, I will talk you through the process:
Open up the: immigration webpage.
The first part is to fill in the application form:
Click on the Solicitud icon:
Make sure you select these two options:
- Change regular immigration status
- Specify: Change to temporary resident by Family Relationship
Then fill in all the details as requested. It's all pretty straight forward.
You need to save the completed form and get it printed out. You are NOT submitting the form online.
Then go to the REQUIREMENTS and click on the Citas en Linea icon (you can see part of the official list of the documents required below):
You need to save the completed form and get it printed out. You are NOT submitting the form online.
Then go to the REQUIREMENTS and click on the Citas en Linea icon (you can see part of the official list of the documents required below):
This will open the following page:
You need to have proof of your current stay in Mexico by getting the details of your arrival. You can NOT apply this way if your temporary stay (aka tourist visa) has expired. The MULTIPLE DIGITAL MIGRATORY FORM - FMMD form is this proof. You need to enter all the details, save it and get it printed out!
You need to create an account. Click on the Immigration Procedures Online Appointment icon ( 2 photos above) to do so. Once you have your account, you can make your appointment.
Then, go back to the Welcome to the Service Portal page and click the Portal of Services, Multiple Migratory Form, Pre-registration Online Payments icon, and you upload your passport.
Then, go back to the Welcome to the Service Portal page and click the Portal of Services, Multiple Migratory Form, Pre-registration Online Payments icon, and you upload your passport.
Documents Required to get Residency Through Marriage
- Passport and Copy
- Marriage Certificate and Copy
- ID of spouse and Copy
- Application Form
- Print out of appointment
- MULTIPLE DIGITAL MIGRATORY FORM - FMMD
I got married here in Mexico so my marriage certificate is in Spanish and a legal document here. No need to have an apostille!
If any documents, bar the passport, were issued outside of Mexico, they need to be apostilled in the country they were issued and translated in Mexico.
2 separate payments need to be made. By far the easiest way is to pay at the immigration office. They accept both credit and debit, VISA or MASTERCARD but NOT American Express.
First payment:
Payment of fee for receiving and processing the application and, where appropriate, for authorisation of change of status: 1,780.00 MXN
Second payment:
In case of a positive decision, payment must be made in accordance with the requested and/or authorised period.
Payment of fee for receiving and processing the application and, where appropriate, for issuance of the immigration document:
Temporary Residency for one year (DRT) 5,570.00 MXN
Temporary Residency for two years (DRT) 8,347.00 MXN
Temporary Residency for three years (DRT) 10,571.00 MXN
Temporary Residency for four years (DRT) 12,529.00 MXN
Note:
When applying for temporary residency through marriage, you have the option to pay for 1 or 2 years. After 2 years of Residencia Temporal, you can apply for permanent residency!
Application Day
My appointment was at 9 am. We arrived with plenty of time to spare. Rush hour on the metro is manic, so we left home at 7. From the Polanco Metro Station, you can take a bus all the way up Av. Horacio. Then it's just 2 blocks away, in the direction of the Soumaya Museum. The Instituto Nacional de Migración is next to the Decathlon store.
Use the side gate on Calle Séneca. Show the security guard to say that you have an appointment "Tengo una cita". At 9 am we are led through the side entrance and told to sit. After a while we are taken to the registration area, where you are processed. My wife came with me, but her presence was not needed but I was grateful for the moral support.
Hand over all the documents and just be patience. Beyond the questions on the application form, were about my education, if I had a degree of anything. Remember, it is not an interview where you are grilled for your reasons for wanting to get residency. It's a processing of your documents.
At some point you will be asked to pay the fees, have finger prints taken (remove rings) and have 3 head shots done (remove earrings) and finally you need to sign to give you an digital signature that will be put onto your residency card.
There is no need to hire a facilitator to help you. My Spanish is still pretty basic and I survived.
Hand over all the documents and just be patience. Beyond the questions on the application form, were about my education, if I had a degree of anything. Remember, it is not an interview where you are grilled for your reasons for wanting to get residency. It's a processing of your documents.
At some point you will be asked to pay the fees, have finger prints taken (remove rings) and have 3 head shots done (remove earrings) and finally you need to sign to give you an digital signature that will be put onto your residency card.
There is no need to hire a facilitator to help you. My Spanish is still pretty basic and I survived.
