Entering a new country by land with an RV

When travelling to any new country, there is always a lot of homework that needs to be done before you ever leave home. Travel from Canada into the USA is easy for us because we have more experience. This was our first time entering Mexico by land with an RV.

Air travel is much easier when entering Mexico. They give you the forms you need and you follow the crowd through the lines to the immigration and customs booths and soon you find yourself on the sidewalk outside.

I won’t go into all the details about entering Mexico by land with an RV because there are many websites that explain things quite well that will be up to date. I will highlight the essentials. The links I used will be included with a few tips we observed as we crossed the border into Mexico from Arizona at Nogales Mariposa Truck Crossing. We chose this crossing because the roads are more manageable with an RV.

Essential Documents when entering Mexico by land with an RV from (Canada) USA

• Passport
• FMM (Multiple Migratory Form)
• Temporary Vehicle Importation Permit (TIP)
• Mexican vehicle insurance

FMM

The FMM is a visitor permit for citizens from countries that don’t require a visa to enter Mexico. This includes Canada and the United States. You can complete it online and print it ahead of time. It is best if you know when you are crossing the border. I don’t know if the date of entry is essential but I didn’t want to have to pay twice if my online paperwork was not accurate. It cost about $40 CAD online.

You still have to stop at immigration and have the online document approved and stamped. They will keep half of it and give you the other half. Put it away somewhere safe as you have to return your half to Mexican immigration when you leave.

You can complete and pay for the FMM at the immigration office if you choose. It is generally good for 180 days but immigration officers can choose to make it for less time so check it before you leave.

TIP–If you leave Mexico by air after arriving by land, you have to get your FMM stamped at the immigration booth at the airport before surrendering it to the airline prior to boarding. In Guadalajara, this booth was downstairs before the security escalator. When you return by air, you will complete another FMM on the plane. The price of the ticket includes the FMM.

Temporary Vehicle Importation Permit (TIP)

If you are travelling in the Free Zone along the border, the TIP is not necessary. This permit discourages you from leaving your vehicle in Mexico or selling it without importing it into the country. The Import Permit for your vehicle can be completed online but can only be done 10-60 days before crossing the border. We didn’t plan more than 10 days ahead so we had to complete this permit at the border office. Use the information online to have everything you need, and copies of everything required. Many people in line had to leave to go make copies. We had everything we needed.

If your vehicle has a lien on it from a financial institution, the list of documents calls for permission from them to take your vehicle out of the country. I don’t know if this is just an American requirement, but I did not have that document and there were no issues at the border. I will look into this when we get home and update this information.

Be prepared to spend some time getting this paperwork ready and then more time at the border. You will have to pay for the document and also leave a deposit of $500 by cash or credit card. This permit is good for 6 months for vehicles and 10 years for RVs. You will receive the deposit back when you leave Mexico.

TIP– Only one person could present the TIP documents. ItThey have to have their name on the registration. A Canadian driver’s licence is acceptable. Mexico does not require an international licence.

Mexican Car Insurance

Insurance from Canada and the USA does not cover you in Mexico. Even if you are just visiting for a day, you must purchase Mexican insurance before entering the country. We used Lewis and Lewis who had an online application form and quotes from several companies. Check the prices and coverage carefully. Some policies were cheaper for 3 months than for 1. Insurance for our 2018 truck was $327 USD for 3 months. Our 5th wheel was too old and they would not insure it.

TIP– In Mexico, if you are involved in an accident, call the insurance company immediately. The adjuster comes to the scene. If there are injuries, then call the police as well.

Money

Pesos are the currency in Mexico. It is a country that functions primarily on cash. Some of the large grocery stores, Walmart, Auto Zone, etc will take credit cards. Some smaller businesses will take them but add a 3-7% fee for use. Many smaller places, including the toll roads, will only take pesos in cash. The resort areas may be different.

Our bank in Canada needed a week’s notice to order pesos. A bank in Arizona was the same so we took American dollars from the ATM and then used the money exchange at the immigration stop at km 23 south of Nogales. Apparently, there are ATMs you can access in Nogales, just over the border, but with a trailer, we were unsure of the accessibility for our unit.

TIP-When using the ATM, select English. It will ask if you want to use the conversion calculated on the screen or let your own bank do the currency conversion. DECLINE. We found it saved about $32 on a $300 withdrawal by using our bank’s conversion. Also, be aware that ATM machines often run out of money. Try withdrawing a smaller amount, or find a different machine. The machines have a daily withdrawal limit and the fee is the same to take out a small amount or a larger one. Different banks have different fees and allowable withdrawal limits.

There are currency converting apps for your phone that make the transition easier to learn. As the Canadian dollar is worth about 16 pesos, like a mile is 1.6 km, the conversion works much the same as km/hr to miles/hr. 100 pesos is about $6 CAD (like 100 km/hr is like 60 mi/hr). Just picture your speedometer.

Nogales Mariposa Truck Crossing to enter Mexico

Mexico Customs

When we cross from Canada into the United States, and vice versa, the Immigration and Customs departments are together. When entering Mexico, these two departments are many km apart.

We passed through some booths soon after crossing into Mexico. It was challenging to know which was the RV lane. We were waved through at the first set of booths. Stay to the left towards Hermisillo. The right lane goes into the town of Nogales. There is a toll booth that accepted American dollars soon after the border crossing. Sometimes this toll booth is not occupied.

At the next stop (customs) we followed the truck sign. Guards waved us over, although this was a random stop. They checked our truck and RV registration. They took a quick look inside our trailer and asked where we were going and for how long. Personal belongings are acceptable in an RV. They are really checking to see if you are importing items or extra people. We were on our way to Immigration.

Mexico Immigration KM 21

While this should be the easiest part of the trip, it is not. The challenge of signs in a new language, new terrain and a pile of paperwork made this part a little stressful. The address of the Immigration offices are vague. At least the distances and speeds are measured in km.

KM 21 is the address of the immigration office and also the location to get your TIP and dollars exchanged for pesos. We watched a YouTube video of a dashcam view of the trip. After the yellow overpass, the road curves to the right and there is a slight pull off into the the parking lot. The entrance is a dirt road and the buildings do not look like other official border crossing offices.

The man in the office carefully scrutinized our online FMM forms. He divided them in half and gave us our part to keep.

TIP– Print the copies double sided. Pay for each separately if you have more than one person in your group and keep the receipt accessible on your device.

Temporary Vehicle Importation Permit (TIP)

It took us about 20 minutes, which was faster than most of the other people who had to go to the copy office on site and pay for the requested copies. There are benches available as the other members of your group wait.

We also exchanged American dollars for pesos at the exchange booth on site. Pesos or American coins were acceptable for use in the bathroom if you needed toilet paper and paper towels.

We were at the Aduana-TIP for about 50 minutes after arriving at 11:30 on a Tuesday morning in January.

Our journey continues… Stay tuned.