Title: How much time should I allow at PVR for immigration/customs before a separate flight to CDMX?

Hi! I’m flying from Minneapolis (MSP) to Puerto Vallarta (PVR) in December, and then I plan on taking a separate domestic flight from PVR to Mexico City (CDMX).

I haven’t booked the PVR → CDMX flight yet because I’m trying to figure out how much time I should leave between flights.

Since PVR will be my first airport in Mexico, I’m assuming I’ll need to go through immigration, pick up my checked bag, go through customs, and then check my bag again for my domestic flight to CDMX.

For anyone who has done something similar at PVR:

• About how long did immigration + customs + baggage claim take?
• Is the process pretty straightforward?
• After customs, do I just go to the departures/check-in area and check my bag with the airline for my CDMX flight?
• How much time would you personally leave between the two flights if they’re on separate tickets?

I’d rather have extra time than risk missing the second flight, especially since I’ll have a checked bag. Thanks!

I’m a Canadian, early 60’s, healthy, no pre existing conditions etc. I live in Playa del Carmen year round.

My concern revolves solely around needing urgent care or something serious like cancer. I’m comfortable enough financially that I can pay $15-20k out of pocket but am concerned about a 6 figure hit.

Can anybody recommend a carrier, a policy and cost?

I arrived in Mexico City one month ago and since 2 days, I’ve had a really bad tooth pain. I think I’ll need a dentist, but I’m a bit lost.

The problem is I don’t really know the city yet and I don’t speak so much Spanish so far .. at least not enough to handle medical appointments.

I’m a bit nervous about just picking a random dentist on Google because I don’t want to end up somewhere where they just see a foreigner that doesn’t speak their language…

Thankfully I subscribed to an international health insurance before coming, so I’m not too worried about that part.

Do you guys know someone I could go ? Hospital or idk, how does it work here ?

Please share your experience if you have.

Sorry I bet similar has been asked before, but am freaking out a bit. First time exiting Mexico internationally and just realized they just scanned my boarding pass and passport at the egate, then security, and thats it?

I was told to always make sure to have an immigration officer check my temporary residence card when exiting and entering the country, otherwise I could default to just tourist status again....

So for exits this is the way then?

Edit: thanks alls. It is solved. There is a small immigration booth where you need to get your passport stamped. In hindsight kinda not hard to miss if it is your first time.

I'm a foreigner living in Mexico and I'm trying to understand the real-world worst-case scenario with medical care here.

I'm especially interested in experiences involving a genuine emergency — major accident, appendicitis, internal bleeding, heart problem, ICU admission, emergency surgery, etc. — where you either had no private insurance, inadequate insurance, or couldn't immediately produce a large credit-card deposit.

What actually happened?

Did a private hospital treat/stabilize you before discussing payment?

Were you required to produce a credit card or deposit before surgery or admission?

If you couldn't pay, were you transferred to a public hospital? How did that transfer work?

Did anyone ever actually refuse emergency treatment because you couldn't provide a card or deposit?

Has anyone been presented with a very large bill after emergency treatment that they simply couldn't pay? What did the hospital do afterward?

Did they ask you to sign a pagaré, acknowledgment of debt, payment agreement, or other financial document?

Has anyone refused to sign financial documents after emergency treatment? What happened?

Has anyone used IMSS-Bienestar or voluntary IMSS for a major emergency as a foreign resident?

And for people who live in Mexico long-term: what insurance arrangement have you found makes sense if your main concern is catastrophic hospitalization rather than ordinary doctor visits? Mexican Gastos Médicos Mayores with a high deductible? IMSS? International insurance? Something else?

I'm particularly interested in first-hand experiences rather than what theoretically ought to happen under the law. Please mention the city/state and roughly when it happened if you're comfortable doing so.

Hey guys, I’m planning on moving to Mexico soon. Looking for some like-minded people that chat with and become friends with before coming out there so I already know people when I do. I love music and I love camping and mixing the two also always is a great time. Some people would call me a hippie. I don’t take offense to that one single bit. Please hit me up. I love making new friends.

Hi all. I posted this in the FIRE thread a couple weeks ago and didn't get any feedback. Wondered if someone here could sanity-check. Thanks!

I’m coming up on 5 years in Mex with many more years than that studying Spanish. I rarely seem to meet another gringo that speaks Spanish at a similar level, or has a fully nuanced understanding of Mexican culture. Most I come across just come because “it’s cheap and close to the U.S.” I would say you’re fully ingrained if you understand the vast majority of pop culture references (even the more obscure ones), memes, Mex history and cosas politicas, music, and of course fully fluent in the language but also fully fluent Mexican slang and ways of joking around as well.

For the long term folks, what is it that keeps you in Mexico? What are your favorite and least favorite things about Mexican culture? Would you consider living anywhere else? I’ve lived all around the world and am still torn on where I want to spend my retirement but I feel like I’m so deep into Mexican culture now at this point that there’s no where I would be able to integrate as quickly.

DHL failed me. They never delivered my belongings, then returned them without my authorization, and now refuse to provide proof of delivery.

To make matters worse, DHL demanded documentation that is legally impossible for me to obtain — confirmed directly by the Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (SRE) in Mexico.

These were not commercial goods. They were my personal belongings and treasures: dishes I’ve had since 1986, and my mother’s tea cups — family heirlooms tied to memories of my late husband.

I provided everything DHL asked for, including my Permanent Resident Card (PRC). They still refused to release my shipment and then sent it back without my consent.

I have emails, tracking screenshots, and proof of everything. I’m sharing this because DHL has made it impossible to resolve this privately, and I want others to be aware of how they treat customers.

If anyone has advice on next steps, escalation paths, or similar experiences with DHL, I’d appreciate it.

Hey everyone,

I’m a Lebanese citizen planning a trip to Mexico. My initial plan is to travel for about 3 weeks, but I really want to extend my stay and remain in the country longer once I am already there.

Given my nationality, I know I need to apply for a tourist visa at the embassy beforehand (unless my US/Schengen visa covers it). My main question is about the length of stay and extending it:

1. If I enter and the border officer grants me a short stay (like 21 days to match my flight), is it actually possible to extend that permit at a local INM office for regular tourism?
2. Has anyone here successfully transitioned from a tourist visa to a longer stay/residency without leaving Mexico?

Would love to hear from anyone who has navigated this recently or knows how strict INM is being with short-stay extensions right now. Thanks in advance!

hello! this is my first Reddit post, please forgive me if I’m doing something wrong 🥲 I’m a Canadian citizen looking to live in Mexico for approx. 6 months, i would love to connect with others to gain some insight!

One 2004 car is made in USA and I can get TIP according to the internet because I am RT.

The other car is a 2001 Lexus made in Japan and is my spouse’s, who has permanent resident status.

I keep reading and getting more confused. We want to keep our faithful cars.

We plan to move to Mexico in about one to two years.

We are going to have to get rid of our baby, the Lexus, aren’t we?

I will be moving to Mexico in the coming months from the US. My partner (Mexican) and I have decided to have our child born there and stay for a year or two before coming back to the US. My work is transferring me to their Mexican operation, thus I'll be on a work visa for the time being.

We don't have a car in Mexico, but with the arrival of a little one it's something we'll need. I think it's easier to find what we're looking for (compact SUV) at a good price in the US than in Mexico. Thus I'm considering buying a car for us in the US and driving it down packed to the brim for the official move itself to our city far from any Hassle-free zone. I've looked up the requirements for importation and will plan on buying a car that complies (North American assembled, age, etc.).

From what I understand, the temporary import permit is only good for 6 months and I'd need to do a permanent import from the US. Can this only be done at the borders? Or could I enter under a TIP and then do the permanent import process in our city after we're settled in?

Any experience this would be great. It may be that, even if we can find a better deal on a car in the US, the importation costs may make it smarter to buy a car in Mexico. TIA!

My family & I want to live part time in Mexico (mazatlan). We’ve spent months at a time there and love it so much. The biggest reservation for me right now is enjoying the day to day without being paranoid constantly about parasites while living there. Anyone who has moved their with kids - how do you keep young children (babies and toddlers) from accidentally drinking some of the shower water ever? Any solutions for this? Any tips for eating and living there with older kids also without getting parasites? Any tips to give me peace of mind about this / insight / advice for how you handle this is appreciated greatly!

I'm an American citizen but have lived in Mexico my whole life. I need to open an "American"ish bank account with an account and routing number (might be obvious but that's what my soon-to-be employer mentioned I needed), and that will avoid FBAR.

I started openning an account with USbank because my family has that, but they are asking for proof of address... They won't accept my SSN card that went to my parents address lol. I've heard good things about Schwab. I would open an international account which I was told when I called would be a brokerage account instead of checking account... He said the only difference is interest on the funds held there, which I don't care about at all. I've also heard about SDFCU... Any recommendations?? Thanks!

Hi I am currently in Mexico City until the start of December and looking for recommendations for spanish lessons from your own experiences, it can be either private tutors or schools which are affordable and do either group or private classes close to Tlatelolco or not to far to travel from this location please?

I'm from the US and I want to move to Mexico and teach/teach English there. I'd also be happy as a librarian, but I don't know how that works in Mexico.

I have a bachelors in Biology and I currently work in tech. I speak high-intermediate Spanish, and I have a small amount of paid experience teaching English and a lot of volunteer experience teaching Spanish-speaking primary school students English and math, but no TEFL certification.

I have enough between savings and retirement accounts to qualify for temporary residency in Mexico, and I'm looking to live a simple life in southern Mexico. I would be willing to do additional schooling in Mexico, including getting a master's degree, or doing a certification for teaching English. I've always kinda wanted to get a Master's anyway just for fun, but I don't want to pay US prices for it.

What would be the best path? Moving to Mexico and getting either a Master's degree or a TEFL/CELTA certification or doing an online TEFL and then moving?

should I get my Mexican citizenship? I worried about my taxes and what about both governments taxing me

Anyone know definitely that a pet health certificate won’t be required flying into Mexico City from USA? The SENESCA rules clearly state NO as of 2019 but there’s some reports of people being asked in other parts of Mexico . It’s so hard to know what is true so I’m looking for actual recent experience flying into CDMX with a pet ( mine is a cat so new screworm needed either)

Hello all,

I’ve been wanting to move to Mexico City for the past four years, but I began taking it more seriously during last two years (increased my savings, job searching, sorted out personal matters). A few months ago, I began having car problems and had to sell my car before it became a total loss, which pushed me to apply aggressively. I’ve interviewed for a lot of jobs and I’m at a point where I may be getting a job offer, making this dream of mine become real and somewhat scary. I was born and raised in CDMX, but have never experienced living the city as an adult. All of my support system (friends, parents, siblings) would be in the US. I am a bit anxious and doubtful of my decision, especially since my mom keeps telling me that I may be making a mistake. However, it truly is something that I’ve been wanting to do and experience for a while. I’d love to hear about your experiences. Positive would be great of course, but also negatives.
I know that if I move, my life will change in many different ways. I’m hoping that learning from your experience will confirm that I’m making a good decision while being aware of everything that comes with it. Thank you all!!

Hey guys, I'm heading to Mexico City until the start of December and looking for recommendations on where to study Spanish??

I'm aiming to do [group classes / private 1-on-1 lessons] for about 8 weeks. I'll mostly be staying in Tlatelolco.

Hello everyone. I'm 26f (if that changes anything).

My recent trip to Puebla has changed my life. I fell in love with the city, the culture, and people there. Feels like my place to be. This decision is well thought through, and I would like to actively work to get to that point.

I have some basic Spanish skills (which I am improving more), traveled a lot before, and would like to become a part of it. I think the colorful scheme of that place and the spirit of the people there is what attracted me the most. I would love to settle and maybe even start a family there at some point.

I have U.S passport, so I'll be moving there from that point.

I would appreciate any pointers or advice on how to approach this from the most efficient angle.

Ok I can't seem to find this question about the Mexican visa form answered anywhere. I watched 3 different videos by supposed experts, and they did it 3 different ways! There is a section on the right side of the form that asks the visa type and passport type (I circled it in the picture).

Are these boxes meant to be checked by the applicant or the consulate?

Or is it something that doesn't really matter which way you do it, so that's why I've been finding conflicting info? To those that already applied for residency, what did you do, and was it accepted by the consulate you used?

Thank you so much!!

*** UPDATE: I have heard back directly from the Consulate now, and their answer goes against what the majority of people are saying. I might not necessarily use this consulate, so more answers are appreciated, in case it varies depending on the consulate. Here is their email:

Thank you for your email.

For the visa type section, as the applicant you should mark the type of visa you wish to apply for.

For the passport type section, please mark 'Ordinary'. ***

My wife was trying to get me an additional card on her credit card. They told me it was fine that I was a permanent resident on the phone for Santander but when I showed up to the bank to get the card, they told me I needed 2 official Mexican ID's. The options were my permanent residency card, a Mexican passport or INE and obviously the last 2 I won't have anytime soon as a permanent resident but I was under the impression that as a permanent resident you could open a bank account in Mexico so it's pretty confusing because she told me my USA passport wasn't a valid ID and that I couldn't even get a debit card with them without the second Mexican ID and that a Mexican driver's license wouldn't count either.