Re legalisation of your documents then the key term is apostille. There are many companies that can arrange this for you for an additional charge but it is simple to do yourself, if you're currently in the UK. A good starting point (for UK citizens only) is below: Legalisation Regarding proof of income etc. for your Rentista FM2, depending on your circumstances you may find it easier to just demonstrate sufficient funds available, rather than proving a consistent regular monthly income. For my rentista I simply show a single savings certificate of funds held in a two year fixed bond and that has never been a problem. While I'm on the savings issue remember that non UK residents are entitled to receive gross interest on their savings so have a word with the tax office and also any banks where you may hold such savings before you leave. Apologies for not jumping in sooner to help out a fellow Brit, V did in fact cover almost all of it and there wasn't much I could add until now.
Noted, I would never have thought of the authentication issue and would have only discovered this upon application to INM, which as you say is too late. I will make sure I attend to that before we leave. V ... I am a not in a rush and want to take time to consider everything properly, and you and Steve's tips are invaluable. Steve, you say that proof of a sum on deposit is sufficient alone to verify income as a Rentista. This is great news as we were planning to live off interest from our savings alone, because income from my private pension wont kick in for a while yet and thus wouldn't show as regular income on any of our statements. I was wondering if this would be a problem, but from what you say it wont be. One final request please ... I came across a link in one of the posts here that took me to a company called MCI Mexico Investments | Merida Capital Investments who are offering 15% return on a 5 year investment bond. Now as you are probably aware the interest on investments or deposits here in the UK is pretty poor, so this looks very attractive as means of providing a good Rentista income. But, I am wrestling with the old addage 'if seems to good to be true - it probably is'. Does this ring any alarm bells with either of you, or is this sort of return common in Mexico? I would welcome your view.
Cash deposit or income stream? This quote is from the thread, "Navigating Immigration". When you apply for the FM3, the forms will suggest you must have an income stream, but cash on hand is acceptable as an alternative. It seems most of those I've met rely on the later to prove financial self-sufficiency. There may be some amount, even smaller than I've suggested be on deposit, that the INM would accept. I've never tried to test that end of the scale, and would be concerned about having problems getting an FM3 Visitante Rentista approved, if I did. Denis, there just may be posters who've placed some of their assets in Mexican bonds, or other Mexico based investments. We haven't, and I've never heard my friends speak of doing it, but that means nothing, probably. Higher returns typically suggest higher risks and I'm sure Mexico is no exception to that rule! _________________
No you shouldnt have a problem with showing funds held on deposit for your FM3/2 rather than demonstrating monthly income, we have done precisely that for the last 5 years without issue. Re the investment. I too have no experience of Mexico based investments such as this. I suppose it depends on your attitude to risk, it's not something I would invest in personally. The business model seems sound enough - using the funds to lend to people with no credit (rather than bad credit) at rates lower than the banks and requiring 50% deposit as security with the title held for the duration of the loan. Just that it doesn't seem to be backed by any large financial institution and the stated return does seem high, which is sufficient to put me off.
My two cents worth: No one has given you any incorrect info that I can see. 2. I am surprised how easy it was for my friend V to get his FM3 on his own. Many people love attorney Mauricio Mendoza who is both inexpensive and fast. His contact info is on page 2 of the Sticky, Local Services, on the page of this forum showing the various posts by their title. I have another attorney, Jenny Vance, that I use for many matters, including Immigration. She is not as fast as Mauricio and more costly but I am "brand loyal" to her. I have spoken with Mauricio and he knows his stuff and probably a good contact to have. I have no patience, which you need to live here, so I have always had my attorney handle my FM3. I just sign and pay. 3. I would say most landlords require you to have an FM3 but there are certainly many who do not. It's a crap shoot that could go either way. 4. You will get admitted on the FMM for "up to 180" days. If you get a nice officer when you enter, tell him or her that you are going to obtain your FM3 and could you please have the full 180 days that are permitted. If you get a jerk there is no telling how many days they will put on your form. If you get the jerk you can simply go to the downtown Immigration office and get the full 180 days. Do not even think of putting 180 in the block on the form. I did once and the jerk made me fill out a whole new form, admonishing me for not heeding the "Official Use Only" language. Then he entered 180 on the newly filled out form, stamped it and laughed with a "Bienvenidos a Mexico" greeting. 6. A foreingor can open an account at Scotiabank without an FM3. In my case, I have never proved income or its source, nor have I showed sufficient assets on hand to be self sufficient. The application more or less wants to see the most current 3 months of a personal bank statement, translated into Spanish, showing deposits totaling $5,000 US, so if annualized, you have money coming in of at least $20,000 US. And the three months need to be immediately before the date of your application. Once I arrived with them in hand a few days before the end of the month but my attorney got ill and applied early the first of the next month. They required that I submit with another statement since a month was void between the latest statement month and the date of my app. Good thing I could pull one online. Other: In London once I had a matter needing some attention and I went to the Mexican Consulate on Halkin. They were much more efficient than the Immigration office here. If you choose to get your FM3 there it must be authenticated here as I understand the process. Good luck.
Morning. Sorry more questions. 1. I have managed to confuse myself by perhaps researching too much. V, I noted that you said it would be a good idea to get certificates ( eduction, birth, marriage etc ) apostilled before leaving the UK a a precaution in case I want to work at some stage in the future. Do I need to apostillise marriage, and birth certificates for a Rentista FM3 ie retirement only. 2. I have been Google searching for typical appartments/houses to rent in Cancun Centro and noticed they all seem to be 12 months minimum rent and not that many are furnished. If we wanted to live here for 6 months and then 6 months back in the UK ( which is one option we are thinking of doing for the first few years due to family commitments here ) then we would need furnished accommodation for 6 months only. Are there any Real Estate Companies which you can recommend who could hep us with this, or are we going to struggle to find 6 months lets. Thanks Denis
Regarding point one, to apply for an FM3 Visitante Rentista, you need only your last three months' bank statements if you're going to rely solely on sums on deposit to prove financial self-sufficiency: they do not have to be certified, or apostilled. Regarding point two, there are landlords who will rent to you without your possessing an FM3. Here is a contact for you to begin with, if you wish, for properties available fully furnished, and short to medium term. "Maggie Rodriguez" <cun5star@aol.com> If it's your goal to rent only during what amounts to high season, here, you will have more trouble finding places, and have to pay more, as a rule. Expect to pay, ballpark, at least 8,000 pesos/month for a two bedroom, fully furnished and air conditioned apt in good condition- rented for six months- anywhere near the center of Cancun. Many cost even more. There is one available in SM20 (a very good central location), in good condition, from August 1 for four to six months, perhaps longer, for 8,000 pesos/month. PM me for that one. T.J. wrote: Part of it has to do with the fact that I read the requirements very carefully, and make sure I have met them. Then, I have the time and patience to go through the process. But, none of this makes me unique. The INM office is full of people, every morning, who are doing their own. Some of them post to this forum, and one said she'd been doing it herself for 23 years! _________________
1. Probably not purely for purposes of FM3. I did but mainly because I'm married to a Mexican and even though that isnt part of the FM3 criteria I was applying for it kind of adds weight to the case. There may well be other things that crop up where you may need apostilled documents - better to have them and not need them than need them and not have them. 2. Please dont use the Internet for purposes of finding a place to live here. Anything that's marketed on the net is aimed at foreigners and priced accordingly. I'd suggest planning on a hotel stay for a couple of weeks and then just exploring the areas you fancy looking for rental signs and browsing the local newspaper classifieds ads. Make sure you look at at least 4 or 5 places. There is a huge disparity in accommodation quality at the same price bracket.
It would be our intention to rent from around Oct through to March or even Sept to Feb. I note from your reply that we will not need to apostillise Bank Statements for a basic Rentista, which is good news, and from reading your other posts on the Forum it appears death, marriage certificates are not required for the FM3 Rentista application. Thanks once again for you patience.
Thanks Steve, yes I agree its better safe than sorry later, its just a bit of additional stiff to do, but I suppose I am being lazy and wanting to minimise the myriads of things I will need to do ahead of the move. Also I heed you comment about using the internet to find property. I was doing this only to get an idea what was available. We did intend to hotel it for a few weeks, as you say, but I wanted to be sure our plan of renting for only 6 months wasn't flawed in principle.
