I was by the INM offices, Cancun, today to submit my wife's final application- this time, for permanent residence! Some things had changed.... No longer are they giving turns to those in the line outside but, instead, have two lines to receive "turns". The first is outside, where you are simply waiting for permission to come inside. Then, there is a line inside, where you are waiting to receive a turn number. (At least you are in the cool, and seated, for this additional wait.) Following that, you wait again to be seen. I did this, and it took two hours to find out that there have been some important changes to what they require you include in your online application: now they want you to enumerate the documents you are submitting in support of your application in the comments section of the online form. (Formerly, it was enough to enumerate them in your letter in support of the application.) Learning this took two hours in line, sadly, and then they turned me away. I quickly prepared the new online application and brought it back but they told me they wouldn't receive it till Monday (it was about 3 PM when I returned). Some important points: they allowed people to line up, and be received, right up till 1 PM. Once inside, they will see you, no matter how long it takes. As before, it seems you will save time if you don't go early (I went at 11:50 today; I'll go later on Monday, having seen how it works): now, if you get there among the first in line it could be a different story but you'd have to put up with the negative emotions you'll experience watching the assholes cut in line in front of you, powerless to do anything about it. (Although I imagined a scenario in which I immediately cut in front of them with a comment to the effect that, "It's nice to see that there's no line for this." (Perhaps someone with a better imagination can come up with a better retort! Only a prick will cut in front of others who are waiting patiently to complete an unpleasant task but it seems there are plenty of them to be had.) Facing this ordeal, many have given up on doing it themselves but there are still about one in five who do, it seems.
INM, Cancun, is requiring proof of solvency for permanent residency, even if you have three prorrogas on your temporary resident card. The person at the desk that I spoke with said it was analogous to an application for permanent residency based on family ties- even though the law did not specify that evidence of solvency would be required, it nevertheless would be required. Anyone with three prorrogas on their temporary residence status should see a lawyer for help making the case if there is any question of your ability to meet the new, much higher standards for financial wherewithall. I believe it can be successfully done but would require a fairly sophisticated approach- perhaps more than most of the local lawyers could provide....
Reminder A reminder for those who've not yet gone through a renewal or other process since the new laws came into effect- a payment of 1,000 pesos is required to be made at the time you submit your application (this is in addition to the fee for the approved document, which is paid later). Once you've scored a "turn" number, you can get the form for the payment and go to Banercito next door to complete this task, return, and still have your place in line....
It's a nightmare over there. I left about the time V got there, after 3:45 hr/min, an hour and a half was waiting for them to find the file of the friend I went to help. They gave her the form to pay the balance due, I think $3815 but I was not paying attention. The next step was to return with the receipt and 2 copies. I dropped her off, thinking she could easily handle the fingerprinting and doc signing. BUZZER SOUND. She could but the very nice INM agent could not because some supervisor had failed to sign the form and had left for the day. She was told to report to the front door today, yes, a Saturday at 8 am and tell the Security dude to permit her to pass to see Agent ______. So I drug myself out of bed to transport my carless, not careless, friend. The two Security dudes looked at us like we each had two heads. We didn't. We persisited and he went and found someone, the wrong person, who said Agent _____ would be in later, maybe 8:30, or 9:00 or 9:30 but friend could not be printed today. Friend decided she would show up at 8 am on Monday, assuming that the nice agent had now known it was Friday when she said to come back tomorrow. Hard to believe that any gov't worker would not know it was Friday. I have done my own INM stuff the last 3 years with zero problems. I am hiring you know who this year as patience is not my strong suit.
I'm glad I'm done with this. Although I did finally get my address change authorised a month or two ago. Took 5 trips total - supposed to be simple.
T.J, Your friend Mari sends her regards and is sorry that she is no longer there to help. After four years of working her heart out she finally got a promotion and was promptly given the axe (by the way, any display of friendship toward cliental in the office may be misconstrued as "doing business"). New delegado with his own agenda of installing his crew from Sinaloa. Just a matter of time till a bigger player with another agenda sends him down the road... The inner workings of that place are truly appalling.
I went to INM at 9am and went inside within 30 minutes. Then, I would have been done in 30 more minutes, but they came up with the new requirement that V mentioned. You have to list your documents under the comments section on your online application. So, I had to go find a ciber to redo my app. Came back without getting in line and turned my documents in . I would've been in an out in one hour if not for the new requirement.
Given their penchant for losing documents, and even whole files at times, this is a modest step in the right direction, but it would have been nice to know about it ahead of time. Even inside the INM there was no poster advising of this new requirement, just a copy on the wall alongside the agents who receive the tramites of an application prepared by someone else, in a real case, in which this was done. It would be a mistake to ever submit an application without retaining a copy of each and every item in your application, just in case the worst happens. ______________________ The latest iteration of how they are moving people through the office, as I described in the first post in this thread, has the disadvantage of your having to wait to see anyone about anything. The previous edition had you in line to talk with a person who could advise you, answer your questions, provide forms, and direct you to the right line inside- better to my way of thinking than the present system. To offer further complaints, although they are going to some pains, now, to keep the lines orderly and prevent line jumping, agents and attorneys were playing "tag team" with single, numbered turns while I was waiting inside for my turn, tying up single agents for as much as 30 minutes at a time, during which no one else had access to them.
Notations required I arrived at 11:50 AM today. About twenty minutes later I had been admitted to the building to get in the second line I mentioned in the first post. A wait of ten minutes got me to the girl who gives out the turns. At the reception of tramites desk there were fifteen ahead of me, which looked like an hour additional wait. Because three people were not present when their numbers were called it went a little faster than I expected. At 1 PM I was leaving the building, having accomplished this first step. For those who may be submitting any tramites (applications) for anything, under this new administration, you will need to enumerate all attachments in the comments section of the online application form. The required language goes something like this: "Solicito cambio de condicion de temporal a permanente. Declaro bajo protesta de decir verdad que mi domicilio contenua sentido el descrito en esta solicitud. Anexos: (here is where you list your attachments, starting with your current migratory document)." What I attached, in my wife's case, were a copy of her passport, her letter requesting the change, copies of all the previous migratory documents she'd had (yes, we'd retained copies of each and every one), the original and copies of her paid receipt for the 1,000 peso initial fee, a copy of our most recent electric bill, copies of the last twelve bank statements which also showed periodic transfers of money from abroad for living expenses, evidence that we owned our condo, and evidence of accounts and investments abroad sufficient to meet the new standards for solvency. The clerk pronounced it complete, and sufficient, so that was that. Now we'll watch for notice that it's been approved, which is given on the INM website. Before leaving, I asked for the form with which to pay the fee for the permanent residency document, which is 3,815 pesos. When notice appears that it's been approved I'll pay that, then return to the INM offices for the next step. It feels good to know this is almost over for us....
