Once you have made your decision to move to Mexico, there will be a substantial amount of planning and organizing to do before you leave your home country and arrive to settle in Mexico.
The guide presumes that you have made a firm decision to move to Mexico and you are in the final planning stages of leaving your home country and physically moving you, your family and your possessions to Mexico.
Here is a checklist of items to be organized three months before your planned departure date:
Ensure that you and all members of your family have passports and that you have applied for your visa to live and work in Mexico. Some employers will take care of the visa documentation for you, but if you are moving independently, or to retire in Mexico, then you will need to take care of this yourself. You should be in touch with your local Mexican Consulate about the forms to complete and the fees required. Be sure that you can fulfill the requirements needed to qualify for a living / work visa in Mexico. You may also want to contract the services of an Immigration Lawyer.
Your passport(s) should be valid for at least one year when applying for a visa; if they are due to expire, you may need to renew them before you submit them to the Mexican Consulate for visa processing.
Driving License: Mexico does not require you to have an International Driver’s License, so you can take your home country license with you. Once you are in Mexico, you may apply for a Mexican driving license if you want to; the procedures to apply for a Mexican Driver’s License vary from state to state; for example, in Mexico City, you simply complete some forms, present your immigration visa, and pay the fees and your driving license will be issued in due course.
If you have cars, trucks, boats, motorcycles, et al, then you need to consider what you will do with these. If you live in the USA or Canada, then its feasible to move some or all of these to Mexico if you feel it’s worthwhile; if you live in Europe, you will probably leave these behind; the exception might be a sailboat you may want to sail (or have sailed) to Mexico. If you plan to sell your vehicle(s), then have them serviced and prepare to get them advertised after your visas are confirmed.
Here is a checklist of items to be organized two months before your planned departure date:
Once you have decided what you will be taking and leaving behind, and have created a list of the things to move, contact at least two, and ideally three, moving companies and ask for a quote to have your personal items moved to Mexico. Choose well-established companies with a strong presence in the market; you may want to ask friends, colleagues or family if they know of good companies. It is a good policy to always ask for references — and check the references out. If you live in Canada or the USA, the goods will be shipped by road; if you live in Europe, then you will need to choose whether your goods will travel by sea or air freight. The latter is considerably more expensive.
Begin to segregate the things you will be keeping (for storage or transportation) from the things you will be disposing of. Begin to advertise items that you no longer use and which may take longer to sell.
Before you start to spend money on removals, travel arrangements, etc — and before you begin selling all the things you use regularly back home — be sure to get your visas confirmed. Also, get-together all of the important documents that you will need to take with you such as birth certificates, passports, marriage certificates, professional qualification certificates and diplomas, etc.
Consolidate Your Financial Arrangements: You may want to consolidate any financial arrangements you have in place; for example you may want to pay-off or cancel certain credit cards, close bank accounts (or open new ones to support your activities in Mexico, e.g. savings or investments). Any paperwork you dispose of containing personal or financial details should be shredded to avoid someone potentially stealing your identity. Any bank cards and check books you no longer need should be shredded, too.
Financial Documents and Tax Affairs: If you are retiring, be sure to have all of your pension and investment papers organized and to hand: the Mexican authorities may ask for proof of your income. If you are employed (or run your own business) have bank statements and recent pay-slips to hand as they may be required at some point during your visa application or renewal process. Share certificates, bonds, and other financial instruments should be carefully stored or carried with you in your hand luggage. Note that you must declare the import/export of cash and other negotiable monetary instruments if the sum exceeds US$10,000; there is no limit on the amount of money that may be imported or exported from Mexico but if the amount is over US$10,000 you must declare it. If you are traveling via the USA into Mexico, you will also need to make a separate declaration of amounts over US$10,000 to US Customs. Your home country, if not the US, may have a similar requirement when you leave.
This is going to be a busy month. All of the preparation work you have been doing over the last sixty days will begin to come together very quickly over the next three weeks. Your last week (see next section) will be one of the busiest in you have experienced!
You should be selling or donating all of your unwanted goods by now. The items which you are keeping should be kept separate (perhaps in a spare room or garage) and you should have the removal and, if appropriate, storage of the items arranged and booked with the removals company. If you are moving yourself, you should ensure that your vehicle will safely transport all of the items you are planning to keep or arrange to rent a vehicle that will. Return any borrowed goods to friends, neighbors and other family members.
Confirm with your moving date with your removals company, cleaner, and any other critical service providers (e.g. your rental agency). If you are not taking your pets, begin preparations for their move to their new home; if you are taking your pets, be sure you have all of the paperwork in place and that you have the correct type of carry box or kennel to transport the pet(s).
Everything has to come together this week; and you need to organize matters so that your move out of your property goes smoothly.
Separate all of the personal items that you will be taking with you in your luggage (i.e. not being removed by the removals people); ensure that you have sufficient clothes to get by while you wait for your shipment if you are transporting most of your clothes via the shipping company; also check that what you want to take fits into the cases you have available and that you are within the airline’s weight limits if you are flying. All high value items such as jewelry and items of high sentimental value should be taken with you as hand luggage.
If you have young children, arrange for someone to look after them on moving day. Older children can help with the move! Your removals company should arrive early and empty out the house of all items you are not carrying with you to Mexico. if you have hired a professional cleaning firm, they should arrive early too and begin a thorough clean of the property. You should give yourself plenty of time to vacate the property if you have sold it, or renting. It may be a good idea to officially vacate a rented property the day after your moving day, to give the removals and cleaning plenty of time to do a proper job. Try to build in some time in the late afternoon / evening, the day before moving out, to simply relax. You may want to move in to a hotel locally.
