Mexico relocation guide, continually updated

Mexperience provides in-depth insights and local knowledge with extensive articles, guides, and cross-references and connections to help you discover more of Mexico, consider your lifestyle options, define your intentions, make a plan, and help you to avoid making material mistakes with your Mexico lifestyle plans.

Our guides are written by people who know Mexico intimately, are continually revised and updated—and they’re published free of charge.

Mexperience helps you through every step of the journey

Our detailed guides and insights offer you complete information throughout every step of your journey:

• Discovering the benefits and opportunities Mexico offers to live and work or retire.
• Detailed insights that help you to consider whether Mexico is right for you and your partner—and family if relevant.
• When you’ve determined that Mexico is right for you, we offer lots of practical advice to help you plan your lifestyle in Mexico.
• Mexperience also helps you to plan your move, settle-in to Mexico, cultivate your social and community networks and helps you learn how adapt to the country and its culture.
• When you’re settled here, our up to date articles and monthly newsletter help you to cultivate a fruitful home life in Mexico.
• Our homestead articles offer practical advice to help you manage your home in Mexico and its dwelling spaces.
• Our insights and local knowledge also help if you’re living in Mexico now but want to revisit your intentions and need guidance to help you settle, adapt, and reform your plans.

Take the next step: start here

Mexperience offers extensive insights, local knowledge, and connections, and everything we publish is free and open to all readers.

Begin your journey

Our Mexico Living & Lifestyles guide connects you to in-depth articles and information about living in Mexico. It’s continually updated, helping you to make considered choices and useful connections.

Help with lifestyle planning

Our regularly-updated section about Lifestyle Planning in Mexico shares insights to help you make informed decisions about your lifestyle choices in Mexico.

Calculate your living costs

Our detailed guide to the cost of living in Mexico helps you calculate a personalized budget based on your life stage and lifestyle choices.

Consider places to live in Mexico

We publish guides to help you consider places to live in Mexico, whether you come to live, work or retire.

Obtain your Mexico residency permit

Our detailed guide to applying for residency in Mexico shows you every step needed to qualify and apply for legal residency in Mexico

Real estate and property rental in Mexico

We publish a detailed guide to real estate in Mexico that shares practical insights when you’re buying, owning, renting, and selling property here.  We recommend you rent a house first before you buy, unless you’re familiar with the area you’re moving to.

Learn how to keep in touch when you’re in Mexico

Our comprehensive guides describe how you can keep in touch when you’re in Mexico.  Our local insights include learning about Mexico cell phone plans, how to dial phones, connecting to internet services including satellite services, and also learn about post and couriers… and the cost of utilities and communications.

Cultivate your home life

When you’ve made the move and you’re living here, our regularly updated articles about cultivating a fruitful home life in Mexico will give you insights, inspiration, and ideas to make the most of your everyday lifestyle.

Manage your money & finances in Mexico

We publish detailed, updated, information about managing your finances in Mexico, including bank accounts, money exchange, and money transfers.

Homestead care and management

Whether you’re renting a home or have purchased a property here, our regularly updated guides help you manage your home and dwelling spaces in Mexico, with tips and local knowledge to keep them well maintained and secure for you and your family.

Learning and improving your Spanish

We encourage you to learn Spanish to help you make the most of your experiences in Mexico.  We connect you to language courses, and our in-depth PinPoint Spanish series helps you to learn about the nuances of language usage in Mexico.

Driving, road trips and running a car in Mexico

Our guides and articles about driving and taking road trips in Mexico help you to prepare your longer road trips as well as dealing with everyday driving matters.

Free Monthly Mexico Newsletter

Sign-up to our free monthly newsletter about Mexico that is filled with inspiration, meaningful knowledge, helpful connections, and tips for better living, lifestyle, and leisure in Mexico.

Discover even more of Mexico

Our Discover Mexico section provides a constantly updated stream of articles and guides that share knowledge and keep you updated about opportunities in Mexico.

However, Mexico is especially attractive to retirees because some of these features and benefits can be especially helpful to people in retirement.

This article summarizes the key benefits Mexico offers to retirees and connects you to detailed information and local knowledge published here on Mexperience for further reading and research.

Agreeable climates

Climate affects us every day, and Mexico offers agreeable climates, often temperate or warm, and cold only at higher elevations in certain regions—and then only for limited times during the year.  Connect to a wide range of articles and guides on Mexperience for more details about climate, seasons and weather in Mexico.

Plenty of choices for location types

Mexico offers retirees choices in the types of places they can live in; from coastal locations that offer winter warmth, to mountain towns at elevation that offer year-round temperate climates.

Some places are more urbanized, others offer a countryside idyll surrounded by nature.  ‘Remote’ places popular with foreign residents tend to be within an hour’s drive of a large town or city that offer services and amenities retirees often seek, including healthcare services and major stores.

Our articles about discovering places to live in Mexico offer practical insights that can help you to consider the various locations on offer and discover potential places to live in Mexico so you can narrow your short-list according to your situation and considered lifestyle needs.

Fresh, locally produced food and drinks

Mexico’s shops and markets provide you with an abundant assortment of fresh food, especially visible at the vibrant, fragrant, local open-air markets here.

The year-round availability of delicious fresh fruits and vegetables, accompanied by a parade of colorful drinks and beverages made using them, makes Mexico one of the most attractive countries to be in if you enjoy good wholesome food that is also affordable.

Mexperience helps you to discover food and drink in Mexico as part of of your retirement research and planning.

Ample range of local products and amenities

Retirees coming to Mexico, especially those from the US and Canada, are likely to feel at home when it comes to obtaining many of the products, services, and amenities they have become accustomed to in their home country.

Mexico’s retail markets are extensive and well-developed; and there’s a large and growing selection of online shopping choices too.

Many products and brands foreign retirees are accustomed to seeing back home will be available in Mexico, either at one of the many supermarkets, through specialist retailers, or through online shopping options.

There are still some exceptions, for example, black tea, and alternatives for smokers are conspicuously absent; but Mexico today offers more choice and variety than it ever has before, and the range and selection of products and amenities continues to improve each year.

Local leisure amenities, including cafés, bistros, restaurants, gymnasiums, event centers, cinemas, theme parks, national parks and reserves, campsites, etc. are plentiful and readily accessible.

Affordable living costs

Retirees have different cost structures compared to people moving to Mexico who are of working age and perhaps with children to raise; for examples:

• they have no school fees to pay or children to ferry around and take on school trips;
• most have no mortgages and may also have no other substantial debts to service; and
• they might also be able to live in Mexico without a car, which can save costs.

However, retirees have costs to consider and budget for in other areas that younger people might not have, perhaps healthcare costs being the major expense, and other assistance services, including home help and specialist care services that might have to be considered and duly funded.

Accessible transportation and communications

Most retirees travel within in Mexico to explore the country, as well as take trips to travel back to their home country to see family and friends (or they might receive visits in Mexico).

Some people retiring to Mexico might do so part time, spending only part of the year in Mexico, perhaps to overwinter here.

It’s for these reasons that good transport links, including decent roads and access to international airports, becomes important.

Mexico offers a well-developed and reliable transportation infrastructure that enable you to travel and be near other people who are close in your life, as well as excellent communications networks that enable you to keep touch at a distance, affordably.

Ample choices in accommodations

Retirees coming to Mexico who want to rent will find an ample choice of property types to choose from; our article about the practicalities of renting a home is worth reading to get local insights about that. (See link below.)

A wider selection of property types is available to retirees seeking a home to buy; and engaging the services of local real estate agent is an effective way search and buy a home here.

The links to the articles below help you to consider your accommodation choices when you’re thinking about retirement in Mexico.

World-class health and wellbeing services

Healthcare services and the availability of medicines is often near the top of retirees’ needs and concerns when they plan a move to Mexico.

All of Mexico’s popular retirement destinations are well served by doctors, dentists, opticians as well as a range of clinical and hospital services, including emergency care and specialized medical professionals and services.

Thriving retirement communities

In addition to the ample variety of types of locations on offer, the more popular locations to live in Mexico offer thriving and well-established retirement communities that help newcomers and long-time residents to get involved in local groups, societies, and events.  This is especially helpful when you are endeavoring to settle properly into Mexico, long term.

Safety, and economic stability

Although media reports about security matters have put-off some people from visiting or retiring to Mexico, foreign residents of all life stages report that they feel safe in Mexico, and that the reality they live here every day is characterized by regular routines and being part of strong local communities where people look out for each other and work together to resolve issues if problems arise.

Retirees also enjoy stable lifestyles here, too—as the macroeconomics of the country are well-managed, markets work well, and there is a wide and regular availability of goods and services available, including increasing ranges of goods available through online companies that specialize in offering less common and imported products.

Warm, welcoming culture and language

Although English is widely spoken across Mexico, especially in the most popular retiree enclaves and tourist towns, learning or improving your Spanish language skills will help you enormously as you settle into your retirement in Mexico because it will give you deeper access to the local culture and enable you to integrate in ways that those who don’t speak Spanish cannot.

Mexico’s rich culture and its canny ability to assimilate foreign things without losing its own identity, offers retirees the opportunity of experiencing unusual celebrations and traditions which are nonetheless familiar.

Retirees get a front-row seat to all this culture and the events that surround it, and while others may dream of visiting Mexico in-season to experience these events, they are part of everyday life here for retirees in Mexico.  It’s an enormous, and often overlooked, benefit of living here.

Further research and resources

Mexperience offers you a comprehensive online resource of information and local knowledge to help you discover Mexico, explore choices, find opportunities and plan a new life in Mexico.

• Articles about lifestyle planning in Mexico
• Latest articles about retirement in Mexico
• Discovering potential places to live in Mexico
• Cultivating your home life in Mexico
• A regular Mexico Newsletter you can subscribe to for free

Whether you’re importing your personal goods to Mexico for the first time, relocating your home situation within Mexico, or moving out of Mexico, our associate can alleviate one of the most significant physical burdens of your move—the packing, shipping, storing, and delivering of personal goods from your home country to Mexico, to a different home in Mexico, or abroad.

Choosing a reliable removals company

Whether you’re moving across town, across Mexico, or across the world, your personal goods matter.  While insurance can reimburse you in the event of mishap, some things carry sentimental value that cannot be easily replaced by substitution.

Thus, you ought to consider carefully who you will entrust to:

• visit your home;
• pack your personal belongings;
• care for them during shipment;
• manage them through international Customs procedures; and
• deliver and unpack them safely at your new destination.

The removals company should be experienced, discreet, and highly professional in the way they handle, pack, and ship your personal belongings.  They should also be fully insured to mitigate the risks of any unforeseen circumstances.

Connect with an experienced removals specialist

The relocation company we refer readers to is an experienced specialist in home removals, transportation and shipping, storage, and integrated logistics.

Based in Mexico City, the company has a scrupulously selected network of agents and removals partners across the country, and across the world, to ensure the highest standards of service and efficiency with every removal job they manage.

Our associate has experience helping individuals, couples, and families to plan and realize their national or international home removals, managing the entire process to ensure that the physical move of your personal belongings to, from, or within Mexico is stress-free.

Our associate offers you:

• An established removals company based in Mexico City with over 20 years of experience managing home removals.
• A meticulously planned and fully project managed removal service regardless of the size of your intended shipment.
• Access to a trusted and experienced network of movers that can ship your personal goods professionally and efficiently when you’re moving to Mexico from abroad, within Mexico, or from Mexico to another country.
• Professionally trained removals teams who are fully vetted and insured
• Advice about the Customs (import/export) rules and management of the paperwork to facilitate your shipment’s swift passage through international ports of entry, including assistance with your Menaje de Casa
• Personalized quotation based on your individual needs and shipment size.

Complete the request form to get a quote

Complete the request form below and our associate will contact you personally to discuss your situation and provide a no-obligation quote for your home removal.

Some people who know Mexico and have been visiting here for many years may have a clear idea about where they want to live.  The place is known to them, they might already have an established network of acquaintances, friends, and contacts there; they are probably familiar with the location and the areas surrounding it, and they might even own a home there already which they have been using for extended visits without having moved to Mexico to live full-time.

Others may have some outline thoughts and ideas about the different regions, and some limited experience of having visited some places in Mexico. Some people will be approaching Mexico for the first time, with little or no prior knowledge of the country.

This article highlights and explores key factors and choices to contemplate as you consider short listing potential places to live or considering whether places you already know will be suitable for your lifestyle needs.

Key factors to consider when you’re researching places to live in Mexico

For many people, choosing a place to live in Mexico can be something of a blank canvass.  Our detailed article about matching your lifestyle needs with your location provides helpful foundational guidance that will help you to consider places beyond their notoriety or current popularity.

Key factors are summarized in the section below; and by connecting to our related articles and guides, you’ll be able to begin your search in earnest for potential places to live here.

Our series on places to live, work or retire in Mexico summarizes a list of specific locations to discover and consider.

Local climate and seasons

The climate and seasons are key factors you should consider when you’re exploring potential places to live in Mexico.  Places you visited on vacation might be fine for short periods, or during certain seasons; ideally, seek out locations that offer climates which will be agreeable to you and your intended lifestyle activities year-round.  Our article, land of three lands, describes Mexico’s three principal climate zones, and our article, hot coasts, cool colonial cities, describes the contrasts between living along the coastal plains and living in the highlands.

Consider the local topography

Also consider the topography—the terrain matters because it affects climate, accessibility, and practical matters like getting around and adjusting to living at elevation.

Mexico’s beautiful mountain towns are quaint and picturesque, but some of them are literally built-in to the side of a mountain and feature steep roads and sidewalks. In some mountain towns, houses are constructed on several ‘terraced levels’ to compensate for the steep terrain on which they are built.

The beautiful colonial cities of Guanajuato and Taxco are good examples of this.  If you have or develop any mobility issues, these sorts of places can be, or become, physically challenging to live in.

You might also to consider how you will cope with living at elevation; most people can adjust to living in thinner air, but you ought to keep this in mind if you’re moving from a low-elevation area to living a mile or higher up on a mountain.

Choosing between urban, semi-urban, and rural locations

Another key element to consider is whether you want to live in an urban, semi-urban, or rural location in Mexico.

Mexico’s cities offer all the services and amenities most foreign residents need and are also the most crowded.

Semi-rural locations are generally small or medium sized towns within a 30-to-60-minute drive of a big town or city.

Rural Mexico is unlike rural towns and villages in the US and Europe, for example; it offers some outstanding opportunities for picturesque countryside living, but it will require you to make some compromises and organize your lifestyle routines somewhat differently than if you are in a larger town or city.

The value of good a real estate agent

Working with a local real estate agent, especially when you’re buying a home, can be a worthwhile investment. Well established realty agents carry a wealth of local knowledge, and the best ones have lived and worked at the location they represent for several years or more.  A good local agent can apply their experience to give you invaluable insights and assistance in finding a home, and settling-in by connecting you to local contacts and helping you to make new acquaintances some of which might evolve into new friendships.

Speaking Spanish is important, regardless of location

It’s quite hard to live in Mexico and operate effectively on a day-to-day basis if you don’t speak at least some Spanish.

Living in or near a community of foreign residents will provide you with an immediate support network and there will be people there who can ‘show you the ropes’ and interpret for you if you are new in Mexico and speak little or no Spanish to start.  However, not all places that you might want to live in Mexico offer this, and so being able to converse in Spanish becomes essential.

Being able to converse in the local language offers access to the culture and enriches your overall experience of any foreign country. You will enjoy Mexico a lot more if you take some time to learn, or improve, your Spanish language skills.

Mexperience offers resources including an entire series of articles that help you to get acquainted with the context and nuances of Mexican Spanish language in everyday usage, and shares connections to language learning online, and at schools in Mexico.

Choosing between expat, local, and gated communities

When you have chosen a location to move to in Mexico, you will have three broad choices regarding the type of community and neighborhood you live in; these are:

Expat community locations: to live among other foreign residents, in well-established locations that are popular and often concentrated with other foreign residents; or

Gated communities: to live as part of a gated community that is most likely to be home for a mix of foreign residents and Mexicans; or

Traditional neighborhood: to live in traditional local Mexican neighborhoods.

Expat community locations

If you choose to live in a location that is popular and well-established with other foreign residents, —Lake Chapala, San Miguel de Allende, and Puerto Vallarta are prime examples— you’ll likely find yourself living in a neighborhood or area that has a relatively high concentration of other foreign residents living there, too.

This can provide excellent social and practical support, especially during your settling-in period, and can be enormously helpful as you begin to make new acquaintances and friends and need advice about contacts for services and amenities that you want or need locally.

You also have the advantage of moving into a mature community that has well-structured and organized groups and local societies that address many of the needs and interests of foreign residents.  They also provide helpful opportunities to meet socially with people who share your language and culture.

Many foreign residents move to these well-established places and cultivate thriving lifestyles there. The higher demand for these locations means that you are likely to pay a premium for property—whether you rent or buy.

A potential risk of creating a dependent lifestyle in these places is that you might settle yourself into some form of ‘lifestyle bubble’ that is somewhat removed from everyday Mexico and by design limits your social circles—but it doesn’t have to be this way: plenty of people enjoy the benefits of living in communities heavily populated by foreign residents and integrate constructively with local people, culture, and events; learning (or improving) your Spanish is a key skill in this respect.

Living in gated communities

Regardless of whether you live in a location that has an established community of foreign residents already living there, or somewhere less popular with foreigners, most towns and all cities offer the choice of living in a ‘gated community’—a private complex of residential homes that might also feature some shared spaces for social gatherings and other residential amenities like swimming pools, children’s play areas, sports facilities, gyms, and roof gardens.

Most condo units are part of a gated community. Our Guide to Real Estate in Mexico describes the types of homes available in Mexico, including those inside gated communities.

These gated communities offer several advantages, especially regarding management and security, as most of the matters related to maintenance, utilities, and upkeep are managed on behalf of the owners (or tenants) in exchange for a monthly Homeowners Association (HOA) fee.

The ratio of foreigners to Mexicans living in gated communities varies greatly and depends on the location, the locale, and the gated community itself.  If there is a strong contingent of foreign residents living there already, you might find connections there to expat groups, societies, and events through meeting your neighbors and local notice boards or private online social media groups run by the residents.

In gated communities where foreign residents are not highly concentrated, you can still make new connections and get involved in local community activities through meeting your new neighbors, kindling acquaintances, and developing new friendships.  Being neighborly is also an ideal way to improve your Spanish and many Mexicans enjoy talking with foreigners so that they can practice and improve their English.

Living in local Mexican neighborhoods

Some foreign residents seeking a place to live in Mexico might consciously make a choice to avoid places that already have strong contingents of other foreign residents living there; choosing instead to seek less popular places and to live in traditional Mexican neighborhoods where few other foreigners are likely to live in the immediate vicinity.

Most (but not all) foreigners who choose to live within the heart of a local Mexican community will know Mexico already, and their choice of community will come about either through knowing the location where you’ve chosen to live, or perhaps through having rented a home locally for a while and explored potential local options before deciding.

Some people who move to Mexico are more intrepid and carry within them the motivation and character to beat a new path for themselves and thrive without the need for a location already established by foreign residents, or within the managed structure of a gated community.  They might or might not know Mexico well; and some might live with Mexican partners or family here, which facilitates a move into a traditional Mexican neighborhood environment.

Property prices (rentals and purchases) are generally lower in local Mexican communities than in locations already settled with a high concentration of foreign residents.

Cultivating a lifestyle within a Mexican local community will require you to have a good-enough command of the Spanish language to be able to operate, especially regarding finding a house to rent or buy locally and maintaining that property—that you will also have to manage yourself.  Our guide about home maintenance and security offers in-depth practical tips for doing that.

You’ll also need to assimilate Mexican social culture more quickly, and possibly without the aid of other foreign residents nearby providing their personal experience and guidance; our free guide to social etiquette offers an excellent primer.

Factors that may influence your location shortlist

When you have considered what is influencing your choices about a places to live and undertaken some research of specific places to live, the next logical step is to compile a shortlist of places that you would consider moving to in Mexico.

Most people’s shortlist will likely be influenced by these significant factors:

Familiarity

Familiarity of the location(s) and area(s) is important.  If you have visited the location before, and recently enough, —perhaps on vacation— you will already have a feel for the place, and possibly a sense about whether it might be suitable as a place to live, work or retire.  Some additional research to discover its year-round climate (not just the seasons you have experienced there) and how it compares to your lifestyle intentions and requirements, will help you to determine whether any places already familiar to you in Mexico might be potential options for a location to live.

Environment type

Having established whether you want to live in an urban, semi-urban, or a rural location, you can further refine your options and filter your list on that basis.

Coastal plain or colonial highland

If you have decided that you want to be on or near the coast, or living inland at elevation, then that will provide another filter to narrow your choices; if you are open to coast or inland (highland) living, then your ultimate choice is likely to be determined by other factors —for examples, the availability of local services and amenities, and community connections— instead of climate.

Health, amenities, accessibility, communications, and schools

Other key factors you ought to consider include local access to health and clinical services, (especially if you have an existing medical condition and may require urgent assistance); access to local amenities that are important to you, e.g., stores, gyms, leisure or local community facilities, art and culture centers; proximity to transport hubs if you intend to travel a lot (e.g., airport); access to reliable telephony and internet services, especially if you intend to work professionally from home; and the availability of educational establishments if you have school-age children.  Our article about matching your location with your needs describes these things in detail.

Exploring places to live in Mexico

Our series about places to live and work or retire provides a list of key locations to discover and consider.

The references below offer further connections to helpful and insightful articles and guides that can help you to carefully consider significant matters as you discover and explore places to live in Mexico, consider key decision-making factors and, using that knowledge, compile a shortlist of locations for review.

Further research and resources

Mexperience offers you a comprehensive online resource of information and local knowledge to help you discover Mexico, explore choices, find opportunities and plan a new life in Mexico.  Resources include:

• Articles about lifestyle planning in Mexico
• Discover places to live in Mexico
• Principal routes to legal residency in Mexico
• Latest articles about lifestyles in Mexico
• A regular Mexico Newsletter you can subscribe to for free

This article explores typical profile patterns of foreign residents who come to Mexico to live and work or retire, and also describes the key considerations which influence people’s level of commitment when they come to live here.

Foreign residents’ commitment levels vary

While everyone’s situation has unique aspects, people who come to Mexico to live and work or retire tend to fall into one of these profile patterns—and reviewing these can help you to consider what level of commitment you might have.

Full-time residents, fully committed to Mexico

Foreign residents who are fully committed arrive to live and work or and/or retire full-time and settle permanently in Mexico.  They usually sell their home abroad and move all their personal goods to Mexico.

They might already own a home in Mexico, or will purchase a home, perhaps renting somewhere for a time while they scout for and find the property they want to buy.

Some people might commit to Mexico this way and rent a home instead of buying; for example, if they have sufficient income to rent, but insufficient capital to buy—or if they prefer the flexibility that renting a house offers.

These types of retirees tend to visit family and friends in their home country at least once a year; and family and friends may also come to Mexico to visit them.

Our article about considering choices for accommodations in Mexico shares further insight about whether to buy or rent in Mexico.

Full-time residents, partly committed to Mexico

Foreign residents who are partly committed arrive to live and work and/or retire full-time in Mexico, but tend to keep their home and other significant assets abroad.  They either rent long term or buy a home here if they don’t own a home in Mexico already.

They will likely make regular annual trips back to their home country, perhaps at certain times or seasons of the year, to be with family and friends they have outside of Mexico.

Part-time residents, living in Mexico for defined periods

Foreign residents who arrive to live and work and/or retire in Mexico part-time, for defined periods are not fully committed to Mexico and tend to hold considerable assets and perhaps work and family commitments abroad.

When and how long these types of foreign residents stay in Mexico varies, and dates and seasons might depend on individuals’ own circumstances and commitments they have ongoing here, and elsewhere.

Foreign residents who overwinter in Mexico are commonly termed as “snowbirds”—who typically arrive in November and leave in April or May of the following year.  They might own or buy a home in Mexico, or they might rent a house here—and they’ll probably keep a home abroad.

Frequent shuttling or short stints in Mexico

Some foreign residents, especially (but not exclusively) those who live near the southern US border, might shuttle frequently between a home in the US and their home in Mexico.

Others might live most of their time in their home country (or another country) and live in Mexico for a short stint or stints: either for a single, defined period during the year, or through several shorter periods in weeks or months peppered throughout the year.

These types of residents will almost certainly own a home in Mexico, although some might have long term rental arrangements in place.

In years past, foreigners who arrived in Mexico to live this way would not bother getting a residency permit and stay in Mexico using a visitor permit instead.  However, with changes to the way foreign visitors are admitted, it’s prudent to apply for a residency permit in Mexico.

Considerations that tend to influence commitment levels

How long you spend living in Mexico, and how much commitment you make to cultivating a life and lifestyle here, will depend on many things and is ultimately  determined when you define your intentions for moving to Mexico to live and work or retire.

This section describes key considerations that tend to influence people’s decision-making.  Contemplating these these as you make your own deliberations can be helpful as you think about your move to Mexico, or making changes to your current arrangements if you already live here.

Your social and family ties

The choice about whether to live in Mexico full-time or part-time is oftentimes influenced primarily by people’s social and family ties back home.

If you have strong friendships, children and grandchildren that you are close to and want to see them more often than through occasional visits, then you might choose to make Mexico a part-time living place.

Most people who live in Mexico part-time choose to live here during the months of the year when the climate is least agreeable in their home country—and for most that’s the late fall and winter months in the northern hemisphere, when foreign residents arrive to overwinter in Mexico.

Attachment to your home country

Another key influencing factor is how attached you (and your partner and family as relevant) feel to your home country.

For example, some people find the notion of selling the family home —where children were raised, and lifetime memories were engrained— difficult. It’s easier for some people to let go, and more difficult for others.

As you contemplate this, consider your partner’s feelings about the matter; as we noted in a related article about setting out your intentions for moving to Mexico, moving abroad when a one partner is enthusiastic and committed and the other is lukewarm or unpersuaded can break relationships—even long-standing ones.

The distance between Mexico and your home country

Consider how long it takes you to travel between Mexico and you home country.

If your home in Mexico is close to the US-Mexico border and your other home is in the southern US, this might be relatively inconsequential.

Conversely, if your home country is Europe or Japan, your travel time between the two countries will be substantial.

Most Americans and Canadians that fly home will have to travel for between 6-12 hours to get to/from Mexico, door-to-door.  Most Europeans will need to travel for between 24-30 hours to shuttle between Mexico and their home country, door-to-door.

Aside from the time, effort and financial resources you’ll need to expend to travel between Mexico and your home country (especially if you continue to have significant ties to your homeland), there is also a psychological aspect to take into consideration that’s also related to your commitment level (see first section, above).

If you’re only living in Mexico part time and your home country is far away and you have significant commitments and attachments there, this is likely to eventually take a toll on you even if you are able to fund the continual traveling.

Logistics, financial resources, and personal energy

Persistent traveling may become more burdensome for some as they grow older.

Living part-time in Mexico and part-time elsewhere every year requires you to manage at least two sets of homes, two lifestyles, and two ‘lifestyle structures.’

The logistics become even more complex if you must rent out one house or the other as part of your income needs.

Shuttling between two countries requires considerably more financial resources and moreover it demands time and energy from you personally every time you shuttle.

Consider the impact this will have on your finances longer term and, more importantly, on your body and well-being: as we grow older, constant moving becomes less attractive, and ultimately less viable.

Offspring’s perceptions and concerns

People who come to to live, and especially those who come to retire, often have grown children (and grandchildren) living in their country of origin, or in a country other than Mexico.

Most adult children concern for their parents as they age, and if you choose to live in Mexico, it’s sensible to share those intentions with any children you have and express to them how long and what level of commitment you might make to Mexico in the longer term.

Some children might be quite comfortable with the notion of their parents living or retiring abroad in Mexico; others might see it as fancy experiment that will be short-lived, while others might express worry or fears—especially if the parents are ‘selling-up’ and moving to Mexico full time.  These personal family connections can become significant influencers in the decision-making.

If you intend to commit to Mexico long-term and make Mexico your ‘primary home’ then be sure to communicate this intention with your close family; and consider the longer-term impact, including estate planning and, related to that, senior care services and end-of-life planning.

Some people retire in Mexico with the intention of living out the remainder of their lives here and if you become unable to make decisions it’s helpful to have a (legally-binding) plan in place that may prevent others from acting against your wishes and moreover facilitate the implementation of yours and your partner’s wishes.  Hire a Notary Public in Mexico to talk about living wills, or consult with a professional financial advisor or attorney.

Further research and resources

Mexperience offers you a comprehensive online resource of information and local knowledge to help you discover Mexico, explore choices, find opportunities and plan a new life in Mexico.

• Articles about lifestyle planning in Mexico
• Defining your intentions for moving to Mexico
• Matching your location with your lifestyle needs
• Discovering potential places to live in Mexico
• A regular Mexico Newsletter you can subscribe to for free

Before you can assess whether Mexico is right for you and your situation, the matters concerning:

• your approach to retirement in Mexico;
• defining your intentions to move here; as well as
• factors that may influence your choice of location; then
• taking the time to settle-in properly to Mexico; and
• finding balance in your day-to-day lifestyle in Mexico…

…are entirely relevant to potential retirees as well as anyone else considering a move to Mexico—see the links in the box titled Further Insights below for more details and articles on these topics.

In essence: If Mexico as a country to live in is right for you (and your partner, and family where relevant), then it’s highly likely that Mexico will suit you for retirement, and that you will be able to cultivate a healthy, wholesome, and fruitful retirement lifestyle here.

Conversely: However attractive or suitable Mexico might appear to you in terms of its climate and environment, amenities, services, and cost of living, if you (and/or those close to you) cannot adapt to Mexico —and create a retirement lifestyle here on Mexico’s terms— then you are unlikely to find contentment in retirement by being here.

Mexico offers an ample variety of places and benefits that can be especially attractive to retirees the resources for retirement in Mexico here on Mexperience help you to consider practical matters and compromises that future or budding retirees may have to consider as part of their deliberations and planning for a retirement lifestyle in Mexico.

Further research and resources

Mexperience offers you a comprehensive online resource of information and local knowledge to help you discover Mexico, explore choices, find opportunities and plan a new life in Mexico.

• Articles about lifestyle planning in Mexico
• Latest articles about retirement in Mexico
• Discovering potential places to live in Mexico
• A regular Mexico Newsletter you can subscribe to for free

Under international trade agreements, there are strict limits on goods that individuals can move across borders (usually restricted to a few hundred dollars’ worth of items per crossing) and anything over this limit requires import duty and sales tax to be paid on the value of the goods.

One-time tax-free import of personal goods

To help individuals, couples or families who have legal residency in Mexico, a special process exists to move their personal things here.

This article describes the rules and procedures, what’s allowed and disallowed in your shipment, how to begin the process, and what you’ll need for Mexican Customs to release your shipment once it arrives in Mexico.

The application process

You must have legal residency in Mexico (or be a Mexican who has lived abroad for at least six months) to bring your personal goods to Mexico under this tax-free arrangement.

If you need to apply for a formal Menaje de Casa (inventory of goods) this must be requested via a Mexican Consulate abroad.

Types of Menaje de Casa

There are different categories of Menaje de Casa, depending on the type of legal residency you have in Mexico, or if you’re a Mexican national:

Temporary Residents in Mexico

If you’re a foreign resident with a temporary residency permit and intend to stay in Mexico for between 1-4 years, you can bring your personal goods to Mexico while you hold temporary residency.

When you hold a temporary residency permit (Residente Temporal), you don’t need to apply for a formal Menaje de Casa at a Mexican consulate abroad and instead you must present Mexican Customs with:

• A copy of your passport.
• A copy of your temporary residency card (not the visa sticker).
• A signed letter declaring that the goods you are bringing are your personal property, more than six months old, and none of which are in the list of prohibited items (see list below of prohibited items).
• If your temporary residency visa was issued by way of a formal job offer, the company sponsoring your residency permit also needs to complete a letter for Customs.

Permanent Residents in Mexico

If you hold permanent residency in Mexico, you must apply for a formal Menaje de Casa at a Mexican consulate abroad before you can import your household goods.  Items imported under this regime are deemed a “definitive import” and do not need to be returned to their point of origin.

If you hold a permanent residency permit (Residente Permanente) and want to import your goods to Mexico you must present Mexican Customs with:

• A copy of your passport.
• A copy of your permanent residency card (not the visa sticker).
• The original “Certificado de Lista de Menaje de Casa” that is applied for and issued by the Mexican consulate abroad.
• A signed letter declaring that the goods you are bringing are your personal property, more than six months old, and none of which are in the list of prohibited items (see list below of prohibited items).

Mexican Nationals

A special category of Menaje de Casa exists for Mexican nationals living abroad who wish to bring back their goods and any work tools to Mexico.  The Mexican national applying for this must have been living outside of Mexico for at least six months, and the Menaje de Casa must be requested at a Mexican consulate abroad.  Items imported under this regime are deemed a “definitive import” and do not need to be returned to their point of origin.

Other types of Menaje de Casa

If you are working in the clergy, for a national government, or in the diplomatic service, other types of Menaje de Casa might apply to your circumstances.  Other specialized classifications also exist.  You should seek advice from the Mexican Consulate, or your removal company—experienced removal companies are well-versed in the rules and provide practical help to facilitate the smooth crossing of your personal goods into Mexico.

Documentation required for your Menaje de Casa

If you need a Menaje de Casa from a Mexican consulate abroad (see notes above) you will need to complete some documentation.  If you are using the services of a professional removals company, they can assist with some of this.

Here are the documents you’ll be asked for:

• An application form, available from the Mexican consulate, duly completed and signed.
• Original of your current passport and four copies of the information page.
• A typed letter, addressed to the Consulate General of Mexico, requesting the Certificado de Lista de Menaje de Casa (Household Goods Import Certificate).  The letter must include the date of travel, the intended port of entry in Mexico, and must also include the current address where the goods are located and the address where you will be living in Mexico.  It must be signed by the applicant.
• Your current Permanent Residency card (not the visa sticker) and four copies of this.
• Mexican nationals will need to show their Mexican passport and may be asked for copies of their INE card.

Your household inventory

You will need to present the Mexican consulate with a detailed inventory of all the goods you want to ship to Mexico.  The inventory needs to be presented in Spanish in a specific format. (Ask the Mexican Consulate or your removal company about the format required for the inventory.)

Each item must be numbered sequentially, and include a description, the quantity of each item, a marque (brand), model, and serial number if relevant.  All electronic goods must have their corresponding serial number on the list.

Some items may be grouped together, but we recommend you get advice from a removal company about this, as grouping the ‘wrong’ things together can cause problems with the import process.  See also the green and red boxes below about allowed and prohibited items.

Other documentation

The consulate and/or the removals company if you use one (recommended) may ask you for additional documentation to be completed to facilitate the shipment of your consignment of goods to Mexico.

Application fee

The Mexican consulate will charge you a fee of about US$150 (or local currency equivalent).  Removal companies may charge additional fees for paperwork preparation—ask your chosen removal company for details.

Request submission and acceptance

The Mexican Consulate will process your application and issue you with a certificate.  The original certificate must accompany your shipment.

Items that are allowed and disallowed

There are rules about what constitutes ‘personal household goods’ and you will not be allowed to import any goods which are new, or restricted.

Shipping your personal goods to Mexico

You can either self-move and ship your own goods to Mexico, or you can hire a removals company.

Self-move your personal goods to Mexico

If you ship your own goods, you might need to use a Mexican Customs Broker to help you get the shipment across the border, submit the required paperwork including your certificate from the Mexican Consulate, and then onward-transport the shipment yourself.

Some people drive their goods to the border in a self-hire moving truck with the required paperwork and letters.  Some may be allowed in although we have also heard about people being turned back.

If you hire a removals company, they must pack and ship your goods as they co-certify your shipment through customs.  You cannot self-drive your goods to the border and then hire a removals company to take it from there.

If you’re moving using a foreign-plated vehicle, you’ll also need an import permit for that, too, known as a TIP (Temporary Import Permit).

Using a removals company

We highly recommend that you use the services of a removals firm to ship your goods to Mexico. There are specific reasons why using a removals company makes sense:

• They have professionally trained packing teams who will help to minimize damage to your goods while they’re in-transit.
• They know the best and most cost-efficient routes to ship based on your point of origin and final destination in Mexico.
• They know the detailed import rules and procedures for importing goods to Mexico.
• They’ll ensure that the required paperwork is present and properly completed. and that your consignment of personal goods will clear Mexican Customs as smoothly and quickly as possible.

Leaving Mexico with your personal goods

If you’re living in Mexico (full time or part time) and decide to leave and take your personal goods with you, you’ll need to check with the country you are traveling back to about the requirements for import of your personal goods.  A removals company can assist with this as they tend to have alliances world-wide.

The documents you will need to export your personal goods from Mexico include:

• A copy of your passport.
• A copy of your permanent or temporary residency card (not the visa sticker), or exit permit if you don’t have a residency card anymore.
• An inventory list for Mexican Customs in a specified format that details all your personal goods being exported from Mexico.
• Paperwork required for the destination country—this varies depending on where you are going. Contact the country’s Customs agency for details. or hire a removals company for assistance.

Useful resources and contacts

Here is a list of useful contacts and resources related to importing your personal goods to Mexico.

Mexican consulates: Applications for a Menaje de Casa, if you need one, must be made through any Mexican Consulate abroad.  Contact your nearest Mexican consulate to ask for details of their Menaje de Casa procedures.

Removal companies: We recommend you use a professional removals company to help you ship your personal goods to Mexico,  You can begin your search here (Google) and also consider requesting a no-obligation quote from our home removals associate.

Bringing your pets: Read additional information about procedures and paperwork needed to bring your pets to Mexico

Temporary vehicle imports: Useful information if you plan to use your foreign-plated vehicle to move your things to Mexico.

Mexican Customs: If you want further advice, visit the Mexican Customs website

Customs brokers: If you decide to self-ship, you might consider contacting a Customs Broker for advice and help to get your consignment through Customs. You can begin your search here (Google)

Two calculations are required

There are two calculations you will need to make to determine the financial means you will need to have at your disposal to retire in Mexico:

• the first calculation is related to the financial requirements to qualify for a residency permit in Mexico, and
• the second calculation is related to your real living costs in Mexico that will be determined according to your individual circumstances, personal choices, and lifestyle plans.

Income or savings/investments required to obtain a residency permit

The financial requirements to qualify for a residency permit have risen in recent years as Mexican consulates have not adopted the ‘UMA’ measure (that replaces Minimum Wage) as a means of calculating qualification criteria. Learn more about UMA as part of residency qualification.

Monthly income —v— savings/investments to qualify

Unless you intend to lead a ‘high octane’ lifestyle, the monthly income required to qualify for residency in Mexico is considerably higher than the typical costs of living in Mexico.

A corollary of this is that some people who want to retire in Mexico don’t have sufficient monthly income to qualify but do have sufficient income to live here.

If your pension income doesn’t meet the current income requirements, you can instead qualify based your savings/investments—and many people who have been saving throughout their lives will have sufficient savings and investments to qualify, even if their monthly income does not meet the minimum threshold.

The links in the box below contain detailed information to guide you about this. The include information about the current amounts of income or savings/investments you need to demonstrate to qualify for residency under the auspice of ‘economic solvency’ as well as other routes to residency besides ‘economic solvency.’

Income required to sustain your retirement in Mexico

The second calculation you’ll need to make concerns working out your real living costs in Mexico, and these will be determined by your individual circumstances, your intentions, and your lifestyle choices.

The question: “How much does it cost to live in Mexico?” has no specific answer because the amount of money you need to live and sustain yourself here will depend on an assortment of factors, the most common of which include:

• where in Mexico you choose to live: the most popular places also tend to be the most expensive to live in—from rents and house prices to everyday living expenses;
• whether you will rent or buy a home in Mexico;
• whether you have homeowner association fees to pay in addition to other expenses;
• the state of your general health and well-being: healthcare insurance premiums are higher for those with previous ailments, and while medications are less expensive in Mexico, they are still a cost and might have to be paid out of pocket;
• whether you’ll have a car or other vehicle(s) in Mexico to run and service;
• how often you travel, including trips back to your home country;
• what lifestyle choices you make including things like how and where you shop, how often you eat out, how much alcohol you consume (alcohol prices have been rising steadily in recent years), how much you spend on non-essentials, how much you spend on healthcare matters and medications, etc.;
• how much home help and other domestic assistance services you want or need: for example, whether you hire a housekeeper (and how often), a gardener, someone to maintain your swimming pool, if you have one, and other home services, e.g., nurses, or in-home care givers;
• how often you intend to travel within Mexico as well as how often you travel back-and-forth between Mexico and your home country.

Our guide to the cost of living in Mexico is a comprehensive resource that explores real living costs in Mexico and helps you to step back, make an assessment of your situation, and formulate a budget based on your individual circumstances.

Further research and resources

Mexperience offers you a comprehensive online resource of information and local knowledge to help you discover Mexico, explore choices, find opportunities and plan a new life in Mexico.

• Comprehensive guide to living and lifestyles in Mexico
• Articles about lifestyle planning in Mexico
• Articles about living costs in Mexico
• Learn about obtaining residency in Mexico
• Latest articles about retirement in Mexico
• Is Mexico right for your retirement?
• Benefits Mexico offers to retirees
• Discovering potential places to live in Mexico
• A regular Mexico Newsletter you can subscribe to for free

This article explores motivations as well as the fundamental choices you’ll need to make as you begin to paint (or repaint) your lifestyle canvass in Mexico.

Key themes and motivators for moving to Mexico

Common themes that motivate people to move abroad, and to Mexico in particular, include:

Reorganizing life situations: part of a long-term strategy of reorganizing a life situation for an eventual retirement, or semi-retirement, abroad—often when children are grown-up, debts paid, and spare time is available.

Culture and living environment: a desire to experience a different culture: for themselves, or as part of giving their children a wider perspective of living, lifestyles, and culture as they grow up.

Quality of life: the pursuit of a better quality of life, influenced by factors including the cost of living, the climate and natural environment, cultural nuances, and reasons related to health and well-being.

Working and professional reasons: a work placement or secondment that brought them to Mexico by way of their employer’s request for them to move here; or a desire to relocate an independent/freelance workstyle to Mexico.

Confidence of familiarity: the desire to move to a place that is familiar and geographically close to their home country—many Americans and Canadians know Mexico through vacations or family trips they have experienced here throughout their lives.

Pursuit of a new calling: a need to create a change in their life circumstances; perhaps as a response to some major life event, e.g., divorce, illness, or some sudden or unexpected loss or shift that caused the person to reexamine their lifestyle needs and choices.

Simplification and down-sizing: some people come to a point where they realize that their life situations have become enormously complex and challenging; and moving to Mexico becomes part of an effort simplify, down-size, and focus on a carefully considered set of redefined priorities—see the next heading in this chapter for more details about this;

Reflection through recuperation or sabbatical: to convalesce after an illness, or to take time away on sabbatical to reflect on how to make significant lifestyle changes and experiment with what these changes might look and feel like.

Simplifying your lifestyle situations

Simple living is concerned with recognizing your priorities, defining what is most important to you, and reorganizing your life to focus on those things and, in tandem, release the excess and superfluous elements and situations which are crowding or impairing your life.

A surprising number of people cite ‘creating a simpler lifestyle’ as one of the key intentions that propelled them to move abroad to start over with a fresh perspective on life.

Mexico offers choices for people who want to live more simply, and we have published articles that address matters related to creating simpler lifestyles for themselves and their partners/family here, and if that’s what you’re seeking, you don’t necessarily have to wait for retirement to consider pursuing a simpler lifestyle in Mexico.

The fundamental choices of your decision making

Most of the detailed choices that you’ll make as you consider a move to Mexico tend to be ‘peripheral’ matters; that is, they are everyday minutiae that are most often defined by specific circumstances and in most cases will not influence or impact the overall strategy and rationale for moving here.

Periphery matters might include things like whether to bring certain domestic appliances, accessories, or furniture with you or whether you’ll buy new when you get here.

However, some choices are fundamental, and, like the foundation stones of a building, these choices will determine what you can subsequently build within your framework from here on; and if you discover after the fact that you made a sub-optimal choice concerning something fundamental, it could cost you a lot more time, effort, and money to reorganize.

It’s therefore prudent to consider the fundamental choices you need to make as you consider a move to Mexico. While everyone’s situations and lifestyle priorities have distinct characteristics, there are a handful of matters which tend to be universally fundamental early in the decision-making cycle, and these are summarized below:

Timescales and your level of commitment

If your move to Mexico is intended to be tentative or experimental, or only part time —perhaps to get away from the cold during the winter months, or as part of a period of reflection in your life— you are likely to maintain ‘structures’ in two countries: for example, you may own a home and rent in Mexico, returning to your home country for certain seasons; or you might avoid making certain types of commitments in Mexico, e.g. buying a house here. Beware that this type of to-and-fro lifestyle takes good planning, as well as considerable effort and resources; moreover, it can become tiring over time.

Some people decide to make a ‘clean break’ with their life situation in their home country, sell their home if they have one, and their personal goods, and move to Mexico in earnest as means to motivate themselves to make things work: problems and challenges will inevitably arise, and being committed is a constructive way to find pathways through the difficulties.

Being clear about your commitment level and timescales will help you to focus on what is important and will also influence some of the other fundamental decisions you have to make.

Choice of location to live in Mexico

Where in Mexico do you want to live? Mexico offers a wide variety of locations, which in turn offer distinct types of topography, climate, and amenities.

Pausing to carefully consider the location you will go to is time well spent and patience well applied—especially if you intend to buy a home.  Part Three of this guide summarizes a list of key locations to discover and consider.  Also review the links in the Further Insight section, below, about matching your location with your lifestyle needs, and connect to Mexperience guides and articles about choosing a place to live.

Seeking legal residency

Some people have been staying longer term in Mexico as ‘perpetual visitors,’ using a visitor permit to live here indefinitely.  However, recent changes to the way visitors are admitted is making this more difficult, and perhaps impossible in some cases.

Exploring your routes to legal residency is therefore a fundamental aspect of your decision-making, and you ought to be clear about what type of residency permit you would like to apply for, (considering also what type you may qualify for), before committing to move here.

Accommodations

When you’ve chosen a location to live, you’ll need to arrange suitable accommodations locally.  Options include:

• Choose to rent for a year or two before you commit to buying a home in Mexico.
• Take a temporary rental for a brief period (usually a few months) while you scout for a home to buy locally.
• Choose to make an investment in a home purchase right away.
• Move to Mexico and rent a home long-term, instead of buying a property.

Renting gives you additional flexibility but carries drawbacks in terms of choice of property types available and protocols —many rentals don’t allow pets, for example.

Buying enables you to find a place that is more precisely suited to your lifestyle needs and encourages you to settle in the location you have chosen. It might also be sensible to buy sooner in a place where the market is buoyant, and prices are rising; or if you have patient capital and are prepared to hold on to property for a longer period, perhaps renting it out, even if it transpires that the location is not ideal for your needs.

Local services, amenities, and connections

Depending on your life stage and lifestyle choices, the services, amenities, and connections you want, or must have, can vary tremendously—but it’s essential that you identify them.

Read our article about matching your lifestyle needs to your location for details about this; key matters to consider are:

• the location you choose to live and rent or buy a home in (and the locale within that location) should have the key services you identified you need close-at-hand, for example, medical care if you have a pre-existing condition that may require immediate assistance;
• amenities you want or need regularly should be nearby too: this could include stores, restaurants, social centers, or other places of interest that form key parts of your life’s activities and priorities;
• if you have children, you should consider what they need in terms of schooling, sports activities, and community events—and ensure these are available and not too far away from where you live;
• the location should suit your need for community connections: local interest groups—whether those are with other foreign residents, Mexican neighbors, or both;
• if transport links are important to your lifestyle, you should consider these too: some places to live in Mexico are idyllic but remote, especially more rural places—so plan accordingly.

Whether you will work in Mexico

If you’re not planning to move to Mexico to retire, you’ll need to consider whether you intend to work here, in what capacity, and how.

Getting a work permit without a formal job offer from an established company is not easy. Self-employment options are available.  Our articles about working and self-employment in Mexico provide detailed insights and guidance.

Cross-checking your choices

When you have taken time to consider what is motivating you (or what events or situations are driving you) to move to Mexico, and you have made decisions concerning the fundamental choices, you should consider your intentions and priorities.

Key matters to cross-check in your deliberations include:

Having realistic motivations

Are your motivations realistic and driven by a desire to create a new lifestyle based on the things that are important to you and those closest to you?  Making choices based on fear or misunderstanding, on a desire to run away from something, or through refusing to face matters and issues that will inevitably follow you to Mexico (or some other location in Mexico if you’re already here), does not create a good foundation for cultivating a new lifestyle abroad, in any foreign country.

Considering your partner and family

If you’re in a relationship, or have a family that will move with you, it’s important to take their needs and emotions into consideration as these issues can fracture your lifestyle intentions and even break relationships without consideration at the planning stage.

Two helpful questions to ask:

Is your partner feeling comfortable about the idea of moving to Mexico and the choices you are making? Some couples might assume that the other person’s desire to move to Mexico is as strong as the one leading the intention; and couples might also find that one partner adapts much more easily to Mexico than the other, even when both partners have genuine intentions about moving here.

How will you support your children through the changes?  If you have minor children, the decision is ultimately yours, but you will need to be mindful of their needs and prepared to support your offspring through the changes and the inevitable challenges they will face as they join new schools, make new friends, and grapple with Spanish perhaps as a secondary or foreign language.

Will your location choice be a suitable place for you?

Will the location you have settled on suit your lifestyle needs and intentions?  Places that are great to visit on vacation might not be the place you want to live. Locations that appear ideal in the rain season might be quite uncomfortable in the dry season.

If you chose a place that doesn’t have any secondary schools suitable for your (now) young children, that can cause logistical challenges when they grow a bit older.  Our articles about matching your location to your needs and discovering places to live in Mexico address these types of issues and help you to consider your choices.

Suitable accommodations for your needs

What type of accommodations are you considering?  Whether you rent or buy, finding the right house in the right location and moreover in the right neighborhood can strongly influence how your experience unfolds in Mexico—especially in the early years.

Choosing your accommodations is a fundamental choice.  You home will ideally be a place you can feel comfortable in, situated in the right location for your lifestyle needs and surrounded by the services and amenities you need and want, as well as having easy access to things you have identified as being most important for your lifestyle—for example, social connections, community, schools for your children, transport links, etc.

Your readiness to adapt to Mexico

It’s helpful to ask yourself how adaptable you (and your partner and children if relevant) are.  Moving to a foreign country will place unique demands on your patience and your social skills, as well as test your ability to compromise and adapt amidst changing situations.

As part of your adaption process, you’ll need to make an effort to settle-in to your new life here, cultivate social networks locally, and find purpose and balance in your everyday life situations.

Our series about essential skills for expats addresses the key matters foreign residents should consider as they move and settle into a new life in Mexico.

Further research and resources

Mexperience offers you a comprehensive online resource of information and local knowledge to help you discover Mexico, explore choices, find opportunities and plan a new life in Mexico.  Resources include:

• Articles about lifestyle planning in Mexico
• Discover places to live in Mexico
• Principal routes to legal residency in Mexico
• Latest articles about lifestyles in Mexico
• A regular Mexico Newsletter you can subscribe to for free

If you’ve been living in Mexico a while, and you decide to move home within Mexico, whether that’s across town or across the country, there’s less paperwork to deal with than there is for an international move, but there are other considerations to take into account.

This article helps you to consider key aspects of a physical to or from Mexico, as well as domestic removals within the country.

Choosing your removals company

When you’re planning to move your personal goods, whether you’re moving across town, to a new city in Mexico, or across borders, it’s important to choose the right moving company.

If you know someone who can provide a recommendation, perhaps someone who has used a company before, perhaps through one of the many social or business networks in Mexico, that is ideal. Otherwise, search for a company that is well established locally, and always ask for references of other people they have moved prior.

Domestic removals

In Mexico, moving companies are referred to as “Fletes y Mudanzas.”  It’s common to see trucks and vans on the street and traveling on highways labelled with this and the corresponding firm’s name, e.g., “Hermanos Sanchez: Fletes y Mudanzas.”

If you are moving within Mexico and intend to hire a local firm you will need to be able to speak Spanish, or get someone to interpret for you, to make the arrangements.

Some of the larger and more expensive international removals firms based in bigger cities might have some English-speaking staff on hand to assist, but the majority of local removals firms based in Mexico are unlikely to speak much English.

Removal firms work in teams and offer a sliding scale of services; from entire house packing, removal and reinstallation in your new home, to a simple ‘lift, move and unload’ service.  Some firms offer storage services in case your goods cannot be transferred to your new home right away.

Fees and charges for home removals in Mexico

Fees and charges for domestic removals from one place in Mexico to another place in Mexico vary depending on:

• the level of service you require—from a basic ‘lift, move and ship’ of packed items, through to packing, moving, and unpacking at the destination;
• how many things will be moved, and whether there are any special items—this is usually calculated in cubic meters, and extraordinary items like fine art, statues, and antiques may require special handling;
• the distance between the point of original and the delivery location—Mexico is a big country and it can take days for a truck to transport your goods between some towns and cities;
• whether they will be a delay in the time between your goods being removed from their point of origin and their delivery destination, requiring storage.

There are too many variables involved to give an ‘estimate’ of removal costs.  The best way to find out is to contact a removals company, describe your situation, answer the questions they will ask you, and then get a quote from them based on your individual circumstances.

Some practical tips when you’re moving within Mexico

Most good removal companies in Mexico —even the local ones— work hard to provide a high standard of service; they work in teams of three of more people (depending on the size of the job) and are respectful and helpful in all aspects of the removal process.

Here are some tips to take note of when you’re moving your personal goods from one location in Mexico to another.

• When the removals team arrives at your house in Mexico, be sure that there is some space reserved on the street for the truck if they cannot drive onto your property.
• If you live in a gated community or condo complex, be sure to let the gate guards know about your move date, and liaise with your neighbors and/or Home Owners Association as may be appropriate.
• When the removal vehicle arrives, check all of the paperwork thoroughly, and be clear about what is to be removed.  Ask the removal company about the vehicle and team that they intend to send, including vehicle license plates.
• Make a note of the vehicle and its license plates when the moving team arrives. If you become suspicious about anything when the moving truck arrives, telephone the removal company’s offices.
• If you or anyone in your household doesn’t speak Spanish, be sure to have an interpreter at your home on the day of the removal and on the day you expect to take delivery at your new address.

Moving home and arriving to or leaving from Mexico

If your move to or from Mexico involves an international border crossing, you will need to contract a company that deals with international removals—small local firms are unlikely to be of assistance to you in this situation.

Additional requirements, paperwork and restrictions apply

If you are moving personal goods to Mexico from abroad, or if you are leaving Mexico after having lived here for a time and want to take your goods with you, there are additional requirements, paperwork, and some restrictions to consider as part of your move.

Moving to Mexico from abroad: If you are moving to Mexico from your home country (or a third country where you are resident) you will need to have a residency card and, if you are a Permanent Resident,, you’ll need to apply for a a Menaje de Casa (Household Inventory) from your local Mexican consulate.  For details about this, read about Moving your personal goods to Mexico.

Leaving Mexico with your personal goods: If you’ve been living in Mexico for a while and move with your personal goods, you will need to complete some paperwork for Mexican Customs to clear your goods as they leave Mexico and you’ll need to fulfil the Customs requirements of the country you are moving to. A professional removals company will be able to advise and guide you.

How international removals work

International removal companies work as part of an affiliated network.  If you are moving your goods from the US to Mexico, a US-based removal company will arrive at your home there and receive your items and will subsequently transfer your items to a Mexican removals company for delivery to your home in Mexico.

Mexican Customs clearance of your goods will usually be undertaken by the Mexican removals company, who will ensure that all the paperwork is in order and liaise directly between you and the Customs officials about the status of your shipment.  (If you are moving from Mexico to the US, for example, the process is the same in reverse.)

As with domestic removals, service levels vary depending on your needs, with fees charged on a sliding scale, accordingly, although read our guide about moving your goods to Mexico, as many of the rules (for example, the need to leave boxes unsealed if you pack them) are also relevant when you leave Mexico.

Useful resources and contacts

Here is a list of useful contacts and resources related to importing your personal goods to Mexico.

Mexican consulates: Applications for a Menaje de Casa, if you need one, must be made through any Mexican Consulate abroad.  Contact your nearest Mexican consulate to ask for details of their Menaje de Casa procedures.

Removal companies: We recommend you use a professional removals company to help you ship your personal goods to Mexico,  You can begin your search here (Google) and also consider requesting a no-obligation quote from our home removals associate.

Bringing your pets: Read additional information about procedures and paperwork needed to bring your pets to Mexico

Temporary vehicle imports: Useful information if you plan to use your foreign-plated vehicle to move your things to Mexico.

Mexican Customs: If you want further advice, visit the Mexican Customs website

Customs brokers: If you decide to self-ship, you might consider contacting a Customs Broker for advice and help to get your consignment through Customs.  Removals companies work with Customs Brokers too, so if you hired a removals company, they usually liaise between you and the Customs officials. You can begin your search here (Google)

Taking care of your home in Mexico

Mexperience publishes guides and articles to help you maintain and secure your house, home, and dwelling spaces in Mexico.

• How to import your personal goods to Mexico
• Protecting your home from burglars
• Latest insights about Home Maintenance in Mexico

How you approach a potential move to Mexico, or approach changes to your lifestyle if you’re already here, will usually depend on your personality and the evolving priorities of your life situation.

Approaches to living in Mexico

Some people may throw caution to the wind and make an impulsive move to Mexico; others might pass through the logistical mechanics of a move here without carefully considering what propelled them to do so in the first place—perhaps due to extenuating or serendipitous circumstances.  Some people make a detailed plan, perhaps years in advance.

Taking a step back to reflect on what is motivating you to consider moving abroad, and Mexico in particular —and through that, defining your lifestyle intentions— will help to underpin some of the most important choices you make in relation to your move.

If you’re already living here, this exercise can serve a means to reflect upon and redefine your priorities and reorganize your situations in Mexico, if necessary.

Whether Mexico will suit you depends on a range of factors; some you might be able to foresee, and others you will not be able to grasp until you come here and begin to settle in and cultivate your new life amidst the charms and challenges that Mexico will present to you.

Familiarity helps

To have some idea about how you might cope with living in Mexico, you ought to have visited the country, probably more than once. Although there are success stories involving ‘love at first sight’ situations and impulsive decisions that led to a successful long-term residency and settlement here, don’t underestimate the effort it takes to adopt Mexico as your home country and settle-in here.

For some, the move is propelled by work situations: perhaps your company is relocating you to Mexico. If this is the case, the resources here on Mexperience will help you to get a thorough grounding in Mexican culture and prepare you for your move to Mexico.

Choosing a place to live in Mexico

If you know Mexico already, then you are likely to have a clearer impression about what location or region you might prefer to live in.

Some people are clear about the location where they want to live in Mexico through previous knowledge of being there, local connections they have, or simply a ‘gut feel.’

If Mexico is new to you, and you don’t have any friends or family here, then your approach will require more research, or your ability and willingness to experiment and adapt to new environments.

Another approach is to spend a few months or perhaps a couple of years traveling to various places in Mexico, renting homes along the way, to find a place that feels right.  This approach consumes more time and resources, but can be part of an adventure, or a sabbatical period of reflection to help you consider your life situation, needs and priorities.

The ‘structured approach’ is to research potential places to live, including recommendations from friends or family if you have those connections here, make a short-list, visit the places on your short-list for a time, and afterwards decide which one to move to for the longer term.

Mexperience publishes articles that help you to consider your location in regard to your lifestyle needs, as well as a series that helps you to discover and explore specific places in Mexico for living and working or retirement.

Financial considerations

Some foreigners approach a move to Mexico as a way of simplifying their lifestyle and reducing their living expenses.

While you can live simply and affordably in Mexico, financial reasons ought not to be the primary concern propelling your decision. Mexico can be affordable and offers good value but it’s not the ‘cheap’ destination paraded by some magazines and websites.

Our detailed guides to the cost of living in Mexico help you to get in-depth insights and plan a sensible and realistic budget based on your life stage, lifestyle choices, and your own unique life situation.

Learning Spanish is important

Spanish is Mexico’s official language, and although English is widely spoken in certain places, to get the most from your lifestyle experiences in Mexico —to get full access to the culture, and to ultimately settle-in properly— you will need to learn Spanish.

If you plan to live in Mexico, regardless of your approach to the change, you ought have or develop at least a basic conversational level of Spanish, and there is no better place to learn or improve your Spanish than by being present here in Mexico.

Mexperience connects you to helpful resources for learning Spanish including our detailed PinPoint Spanish series and connections to Spanish language courses.

Further research and resources

Whether Mexico is right for you and your lifestyle, only you and your partner/family can know—and you’ll probably need to come here and live for a while to learn the answer to that question.

Through research you can begin to make informed choices and commit to or abandon certain approaches with more confidence—and Mexperience offers you wealth of local insights and knowledge as well connections to people who can help you.

• Matching your lifestyle needs with your location
• Your motivations for moving to Mexico
• Influencing factors as you choose a place to live
• Finding your place in Mexico
• Discover places to live in Mexico
• Resources for planning a lifestyle in Mexico
• Principal routes to legal residency in Mexico
• Simple living in Mexico
• Learning Spanish
• Latest articles about lifestyles in Mexico

This article describes how to find house keepers in Mexico, how they work, and the responsibilities that come with having a housekeeper or other domestic helper working at your home.

Common types of domestic helpers in Mexico

Housekeepers are the most commonly-hired home help.  They typically attend a home for one to six days a week, depending on the household’s needs, and some housekeepers live-in at the home.

Gardeners, part-time or full-time, are common at larger homes with extensive gardens to maintain, and at gated communities and condominium developments that have green areas requiring constant attendance.

Pool maintenance helpers are also common in gated communities and may also be hired to maintain a pool at a larger private home.

Some domestic helpers provide practical living assistance to help people with their daily home routines.  These workers are especially helpful to people who are are elderly, have low mobility or need extra care at certain times, perhaps during a period of convalescence.

Wealthy households might have live-in housekeepers who work full-time six days a week, although most people hire a housekeeper only part-time—typically for up to one or two days a week.

Finding a reliable housekeeper in Mexico

Finding a reliable housekeeper in Mexico most often requires you to use your social skills and people networks.  Most reliable housekeepers are found and hired on a referral basis. Here are some tips for scouting for a housekeeper to help at your home in Mexico.

Finding housekeepers through previous owners and occupiers

Housekeepers working at a certain property might have been attending that home for many years. If you are moving into a rented house or buying an existing home, you might be asked if you wish to employ the housekeeper that already works there, or you may ask the property owner or house seller about any housekeepers they know who are looking for work.

If you are buying a house, it’s not uncommon for the previous owners to offer to introduce you to any existing home helpers they might hire, most commonly a housekeeper and/or gardener.

Helpers referred by property owners or previous occupiers is an ideal way of getting introduced to potential new housekeepers (and other helpers), because workers who have been ‘with the property’ for some time tend to be the most reliable; they live locally, they know the property and have a history with the previous owners or occupiers. Loyalty that has been built-up, perhaps over many years, can reflect in reliability for you.

You will, however, need to negotiate terms and cultivate your own relationship with the people who you hire to help at your house and be able to express to them (in Spanish) what you require.

Finding a housekeeper through other referral channels

If you want to hire domestic help but don’t have the convenience of a previous owner or occupier’s reference, common ways to find a housekeeper include:

• Asking your neighbors, friends, and work colleagues for connections to people they know.
• Sometimes a neighbor who hires a housekeeper one or two days a week may be able to refer you to their housekeeper who might be looking for an additional day(s) to fill in their work week.
• If you live in a gated community or condominium development, ask the Home Owner Association about any housekeepers they might know, or post an ad on the community notice board.  Gated communities usually operate WhatsApp groups, which are another way to ask for referrals.
• Visit any local community centers you may attend to look for ads on notice boards, and ask community members for references or referrals.
• Search and ask on online community groups related to the location in Mexico where you live. Sometimes community members will post a notice if their housekeeper (or someone they know) is looking for additional work
• If someone you know (or is part of a local community group) is moving away, they might want to help the housekeeper find new employment.
• Sometimes a neighbor, friend or work colleague may have a housekeeper who has a friend or family member looking for work.
• Some people put a notice on their front door asking for a housekeeper—although that’s less common now than it used to be.  This ought to be a last resort effort, as it’s always preferable to hire by referral.
• If the referral is not a direct contact from someone you know and trust, carefully interview the candidates to get a feel for them and their previous experience, ask about others homes they help (or have helped) and ask for references.

How day-visit housekeepers and some other domestic employees work in your home

Most housekeepers and other domestic employees (e.g. gardeners, pool maintenance people) only visit for some hours during the day.

Housekeepers’ schedules

House helpers, whether day-workers or live-in housekeepers, work a maximum of six days a week. Under Mexican Law, all laborers are entitled to one day a week off work, and most people take Sundays off to be with their family.

Some housekeepers might work all day, others may work a half day or only 2-3 hours if the home is small.  In cases where they work less than a full day, housekeepers will usually want a nearby neighbor to hire them on the same day, to make their commute worthwhile.

Gardeners’ schedules

Depending on the size of your garden, gardeners might attend for a a few hours, or work at your property one or more days a week. Properties with large or well-developed and manicured gardens may have a full-time gardener.

Pool maintenance

If you have a swimming pool at your property (your private residence or gated community) the pool maintenance people will usually come at least one or two days a week; some will attend daily—their visits tend to be short as they will be managing pools for several properties in the area where you live.

Arrival and departure times

Schedules will vary, and are by negotiation.

Housekeepers

If you live in Mexico City, or some other large city in Mexico, housekeepers might have a long way to travel to your house and therefore may not be able to arrive very early in the morning; however, they might stay later into the evening or night before finishing their day.

Ask your housekeeper about their commute and essential family routines so that you can be sensitive to their needs in regard to and arrival and departure times; for example, some housekeepers may have children to drop-off at a local school before they travel to your home.

Gardeners and pool maintenance

If your gardener only comes periodically, e.g. every two weeks, or once a month, they will likely arrive on the agreed date, but arrival times may vary.  If your gardener has a regular schedule one or more days a week, they will likely arrive in the morning at or around an agreed time.

Pool maintenance teams will either attend the property daily, or periodically as agreed with the owner.  Most pool maintenance teams work in defined areas and go to several properties for an hour or less each day; they may stay longer if the pool has a specific issue, e.g., the rains cause the water to turn green.

Providing refreshment for day-helpers

Housekeepers who attend your home during the day ought be given an hour’s break if they work the entire day, or short breaks if they are working part day. It’s appropriate to have water/juice available for them.  Gardeners ought be provided with a reliable supply of fresh drinking water, as a minimum.

Meals for housekeepers

Not all people provide a meal to their housekeeper, but it’s appreciated, good practice, and we recommend you do. A common practice if the housekeeper will do some cooking as part of their routine is for them to eat part of the food they prepare for you and your family.  Otherwise, ask what they enjoy eating and have some of those fresh ingredients stocked so that they may prepare a meal for themselves.

Errands and shopping

Some housekeepers will be prepared to go out and do simple shopping for you.  If you ask them to do this, be sure to give them enough cash for the purchases you ask for, as well as their public transportation to the market/store, and back.

If what you ask them to buy is going to be heavy or bulky, e.g., a large order of fresh fruit and vegetables, you ought to pay for a return cab.

Live-in housekeepers

Live-in housekeepers are not as common as they were in bygone eras, but there are plenty of housekeepers who continue to live-in at homes to provide day-long support without having to commute back-and-fro to their home each day.

Some housekeepers prefer a live-in arrangement as it provides regular full time employment, one day (usually Sunday) plus public holidays to rest, and no need to spend time and money commuting each work day.

If you hire a live-in housekeeper in Mexico, you will be expected to provide suitable and comfortable accommodations (most larger houses and condos in Mexico have housekeeper’s quarters) as well as all meals and usually a uniform or other suitable work clothing.

Live-in housekeepers can expect one day per week off work as well as all Mexican public holidays off and may require extra time off for family emergencies and exceptional occasions (e.g., weddings, funerals).  The family unit is an important concept in Mexico and it’s therefore appropriate to ask your live-in housekeeper about their family routines and and be sensitive to their personal and family needs as these arise.

Rates of pay for housekeepers and other domestic helpers in Mexico

Check with your neighbors and/or friends and colleagues about the current daily pay rates for housekeepers in your area.

Housekeepers and domestic helpers working in larger cities (especially Mexico City) are paid more in good part because they often have a long commute involved in getting to and from your home.

The Aguinaldo

A Christmas bonus (Aguinaldo) is expected and required by law, equal to at least two-weeks of their pro-rata pay, and it’s appropriate to pay four weeks.

For example, if they work for you two days a week, and you want to pay two weeks bonus, the bonus is four day’s pay (2 days x 2 weeks); if they work for six days a week, the bonus is 12 day’s pay (6 days x 2 weeks).

Many households will pay four weeks’ equivalent pro-rata pay as a Christmas bonus, especially to long-serving housekeepers and other helpers. In the examples above, this equates to a payment equal to eight days’ pay (2 days x 4 weeks) and 24 days’ pay (6 days x 4 weeks), respectively.

Making payment

Most payments to housekeepers and other domestic helpers are paid in cash, although some housekeepers might accept payment via local bank transfer.

Day-helpers: Housekeepers (and others) who work one day a week in your home are paid daily on the day they attend; if they attend two your home two or more days a week, you may pay them on the last day of that week’s work.

Live-in housekeepers: Most live-in housekeepers are paid every 15 days and some are paid weekly.  Some may ask to be paid in cash, although others might accept payment via local bank transfer, especially when you’re paying every two weeks.

Employment law, healthcare, and well-being

Changes in Mexico’s laws now stipulate that people who hire domestic employees (housekeepers, gardeners, etc.) register at the Mexican Health Service website.

By doing this, the housekeeper/other helper receives health and medical coverages from Mexico’s social security institute, the IMSS.  The employer (homeowner) is also required to pay a tax to cover this cost, based on minimum salaries.

In practice, many housekeepers in Mexico, particularly those who only work a day or less per week at the house, continue to be informally employed by private homeowners (as well as those renting homes) as neither they nor the people employing them register.

Full-time and live-in housekeepers are most likely to be registered under the scheme as they are effectively a full-time employee of the household they work for.

If your housekeeper is informally employed by you, there is a tacit understanding (culturally) that you are responsible for medical costs (including medicines and medical equipment, where required) caused by any injuries which might be sustained while working in your home.

Furthermore, many householders who hire housekeepers, informally or as full-time housekeepers, and live-in housekeepers, contribute to their housekeeper’s well-being in a variety of ways, including, for example, giving some support to them or their families in times of exceptional need (medical, emergencies) as well as remembering their children’s birthdays and other special occasions, e.g., wedding of their children.

Taking care of your home in Mexico

Mexperience publishes guides and articles to help you maintain and secure your house, home, and dwelling spaces in Mexico.

• Registering your housekeeper/home-helpers with IMSS (Spanish)
• About Mexico’s IMSS health service
• Learn about Quincenas: Pay-days in Mexico
• Learn about the Aguinaldo: the Christmas bonus
• Home insurance: covering third party liabilities
• Latest insights about Home Maintenance in Mexico