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Mexico Temporary Resident Visa by Economic Solvency: 2026 Thresholds, Consulates, Documents, and the 4 Year Path

How Mexico's economic solvency visa works for US passport holders: the 2026 income and savings thresholds, where to apply, what to bring, and how 4 years of temporary residence leads to permanent residency.

Panorama over the old town of Guanajuato, Mexico.
Photo by Abraham P V, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Published: 2026-10-16 · Last verified: 2026-10-16 · Numbers apply to US passport holders

Rules change. Confirm the current rules with the official sources linked below before you apply, pay a fee, or book travel around a date in this guide.

The numbers first

Mexico sets the solvency thresholds in days of UMA (Unidad de Medida y Actualizacion), not in pesos or dollars. Visa guidelines published in the Diario Oficial on July 25, 2025 replaced the old minimum wage basis with UMA. INEGI sets the UMA once a year. The 2026 value, in force since February 1, 2026, is MXN 117.31 per day, MXN 3,566.22 per month, and MXN 42,794.64 per year. Every threshold below is a multiple of that daily figure.

Worked example on the income option: an applicant with one dependent spouse needs MXN 79,770.80 + MXN 25,808.20 = MXN 105,579.00 per month, for 6 consecutive months. You only need to meet one option, income or savings, not both. The savings figure is a balance you hold. It is not an investment in Mexico, and no money has to be paid into Mexico.

Why consulate figures differ

Consulates convert the UMA amounts into local currency themselves, so the published figures vary from one consulate to the next. Two US consulates show the spread. The Saint Paul page lists an average balance of USD 69,450 over the last year, or net monthly income of USD 4,410 over the last six months. The New Orleans page lists a minimum average balance of USD 70,237.51 over the previous 12 months. The figure that counts is the one your chosen consulate publishes on the day you apply.

Which consulate to use

The SRE's federal page for this visa says you can apply for it directly at any Mexican consular office. You do not have to use the consulate for your home address. Consulates do ask applicants who are not nationals of the country where they apply for proof of legal stay there. For a US citizen applying in the United States, that requirement does not apply. A US citizen applying at a Mexican consulate in Canada or Spain, for example, should expect to show their legal status in that country.

You book appointments through the MiConsulado system, online at citas.sre.gob.mx or by phone at +1 (424) 309 0009. You attend in person for the consular interview and biometrics. You have to apply before you travel. The tourist (FMM) status cannot be extended or converted into residence from inside Mexico in the ordinary case, so the consular step comes first. Visitor stays and other routes are compared on the Mexico country page.

Document checklist

The core list is the same across the official consulate pages we checked. Each consulate can add its own details, so check your consulate's page before the appointment.

Timeline from interview to resident card

Costs, 2026

Card fees come from Article 8 of the Ley Federal de Derechos, 2026 amounts: MXN 11,140.74 for 1 year, MXN 16,693.36 for 2 years, MXN 21,142.58 for 3 years, and MXN 25,057.22 for 4 years. The 50 percent card discount applies to family unity, job offer, and institutional invitation cases, not to solvency applicants.

Path math: a 1 year first card plus a 3 year renewal costs MXN 11,140.74 + MXN 21,142.58 = MXN 32,283.32. The permanent residence change then adds an MXN 1,847 application fee and an MXN 13,578.96 card fee, MXN 15,425.96 in total. Government fees over the full path come to MXN 47,709.28 plus the USD 56 visa fee. Other renewal splits, such as 1 + 1 + 2, change the total.

The 4 year path to permanent residency

After the first 1 year card, you renew for 1, 2, or 3 more years, up to a maximum of 4 years as a temporary resident. After 4 years you either change to permanent resident or leave the category. The change is filed inside Mexico at the INM on form INM-03-010-B. Four years of uninterrupted temporary residence is the qualification, and you do not have to prove solvency again. The official processing time is 20 business days. Permanent residence never needs renewing.

Mexico's points system for permanent residency exists in the law, but the INM states that it has never been implemented, so you cannot apply under it. Naturalization requires 5 years of legal residence in total. Temporary and permanent years both count toward that total.

Work and tax

Mexico has no digital nomad visa. The SRE states that this visa lets the holder work in Mexico as long as the salary is paid abroad. Working for a Mexican employer requires a separate INM work permit.

Mexican tax residence has no day count. Under Article 9 of the Federal Fiscal Code, you are a tax resident once you establish your home (casa habitacion) in Mexico. If you also keep a home abroad, you are a Mexican tax resident when your center of vital interests is in Mexico. That test includes earning more than 50 percent of your total income from Mexican sources or having your main center of professional activities in Mexico. A resident card does not decide this on its own. Your housing and income pattern do.

Before you apply

UMA values change every February, and each consulate republishes its converted amounts on its own schedule. Before you book, confirm the current threshold, document list, and fee on your chosen consulate's official page and on the SRE and INM sites listed below. Route comparisons, including the direct permanent residence visa for retirees, are on the Mexico country page.

Country pages

Official sources

Facts in this guide last verified against the sources: 2026-10-16