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Mexican citizenship is acquired through a procedure called “Mexican Naturalization,” through which the Mexican state grants Mexican citizenship by delivering a document called a “Naturalization Letter” (Carta de Naturalizacion) to foreigners who meet the requirements established in the Regulations of the Nationality Law in Mexico. There is also the option for dual citizenship for those born to a parent from Mexico.
The goal here is to hold a Mexican passport. When you become a citizen of Mexico, you hold the same rights as others born in Mexico.
Some of the most important benefits are being able to vote during an election, not needing a fideicomiso when owning property in a restricted zone of Mexico, and not having to notify INM of a change of address, name, or job. There are other benefits, but these are some of the most popular.
The Different Ways You Can Become A Citizen in Mexico
There are different types of procedures to obtain Mexican naturalization, Mexican citizenship, or a Naturalization Letter. Some of them include
- Naturalization by first becoming a resident
- Dual citizenship by birthright if your parents were born in Mexico.
- Naturalization for having Mexican children by birth.
- Naturalization by marriage
- Naturalization for having carried out outstanding works in cultural, technical, artistic, sports, or business matters.
- Naturalization for being from a Latin American country or the Iberian Peninsula.
- Naturalization for Refugees
Dual Citizenship Through Mexican Parents
To acquire Mexican citizenship through this procedure it is necessary to meet the requirements of Article 17 Section I of the regulations of the Mexican nationality law, which literally says:
The foreigner descendent in direct line of a Mexican by birth must demonstrate the relationship with the certified copy of the birth certificate issued by the Mexican civil registry office or Mexican consular office of the Mexican parent and exhibit the original of the current immigration document issued by the Ministry of the Interior, which certifies legal stay. You must also show evidence of residence in the country for two years immediately prior to the date of the application.
For Dual citizenship, the process usually starts at a Mexican Consulate or Embassy near you. You will be required to show proof of the direct lineage to a Mexican parent with their birth certificate(s). It’s also important to note whether or not the country you were born in observes dual citizenship. U.S. and Canadian citizens can have dual citizenship with Mexico. Or you can also do this process in Mexico through Registro Civil.
If you qualify for dual Mexican citizenship and would like to apply, we recommend working with a reputable immigration facilitator who is familiar with this process. We do have a variety of excellent recommendations that have helped several of our clients obtain their dual citizenship. Some of our clients have found our recommended experts especially helpful because many do not have their parents’ birth certificates. Some of our recommended contacts have helped to locate birth certificates in Mexico.
When you buy our COMPLETE Mexico Relocation Guide, you get instant access to our directory of vetted and recommended contacts.
Basic Requirements for Mexican Naturalization
Regardless of how you qualify, there are basic requirements to cover. These include:
- Have a temporary or permanent residence card with a minimum validity of 6 months.
- Depending on the way by which you will obtain naturalization, the length of stay required in the regulations of the nationality law will vary. (Further down are the timeframes you must be in Mexico by eligibility type.)
- Have proof or certificate of non-criminal record issued by competent authorities, both local and federal.
- Must be in Mexico for the past 18 months out of the last 24 months. This means you cannot be out of Mexico for a period longer than 6 months out of the last 2 years.
- Submit an immigration history document showing the times you were out of the country and for how long.
- Foreign birth certificate apostilled or legalized by the country of origin.
- Application for Mexican naturalization completed.
- *Pass the exam on knowledge of Mexican culture and history. You can find the study guide here. (*If you are under 18 or over 60, you are exempt from taking the culture and history test).
- If you speak another language, take a test of knowledge in the Spanish language.
- Payment of Federal Processing Fees for submitting the application to obtain the Mexican naturalization letter. This is paid even if you do not pass the exam. (except for refugee foreigners)
Naturalization For Residents
This type of naturalization is obtained based on Article 16 of the Mexican Nationality Law.
It applies to foreigners who have completed 5 continuous years in Mexico. This means the foreigner has had a continuous temporary or permanent Mexican residency card without expirations.
Also, at the time of the application, your card must be valid for more than 6 months.
If you qualify for Mexican Citizenship and would like to apply, we recommend working with a reputable immigration facilitator familiar with this process. Check out our COMPLETE Mexico Relocation Guide for our recommendations.
Naturalization For Having Mexican Children by Birth
If a foreigner has a child in Mexican territory, the child will automatically obtain Mexican nationality, and the foreigner (father or mother) may request, in the first instance, permanent Mexican residence.
Once the parent has completed two years of continuous residence in Mexico, he/she will acquire the right to apply for the Mexican Naturalization process. This process is usually done within Mexico at your nearest INM.
Naturalization Through Marriage to a Mexican National
If a foreigner marries a Mexican or Mexican, he or she acquires a special right to obtain permanent residency or naturalize two years after having obtained the temporary residence.
You must also have proof of:
I. A copy of the marriage certificate issued abroad, translated, and apostilled. Or a copy issued by the Mexican Civil Registry office. In both cases, the date of the marriage must be at least two years prior to the submission of the application;
II.- To prove the nationality of the Mexican spouse, one of the following documents must be presented: a) a Birth certificate issued in accordance with the provisions of the applicable provisions; b) a Certificate of Mexican nationality; c) a Letter of naturalization, or d) In the absence of the evidentiary documents mentioned above, nationality may be accredited through any element that, in accordance with the Law and this Regulation, leads the Secretariat to the conviction that the assumptions were met.
IV.- Declaration under oath of truth, signed and presented personally by the Mexican spouse, that they live together and have established their marital domicile in national territory for at least two years immediately prior to the date of application.
V.- Present an original of a valid official identification with a photograph and signature of the Mexican spouse, including the Mexican passport, voter’s card, professional card (INE), National Military Service card, consular registration certificate, and citizen’s identity card.
This process is usually done within Mexico at your nearest INM.
If you qualify for Mexican Citizenship and would like to apply, we recommend working with a reputable immigration facilitator familiar with this process. Check out our COMPLETE Mexico Relocation Guide for our recommendations.
Other Types of Naturalization
Naturalization Through Outstanding Work in Science, Sports, or Arts -This type of naturalization is very rare since it depends on some Mexican authority for it to be granted. The foreigner who obtains this type of Naturalization is practically exempted from all the requirements for obtaining Mexican Citizenship. We are talking about people who have contributed significantly to the country.
Naturalization For Citizens of Other Latin American Countries or the Iberian Peninsula– Mexico, as a symbol of brotherhood among the Latin American peoples, grants a quick modality of obtaining citizenship to those born in a Latin American country, the Caribbean, or the Iberian Peninsula (Spain or Portugal).
The special requirement in this modality is to have completed only 2 years of legal immigration stay in Mexico.
In addition to the basic requirements, you would also need to prove:
III.- In the case of a foreigner who is originally from a Latin American country or the Iberian Peninsula, the origin of the current immigration document issued by the Ministry of the Interior must be shown.
My wife gave birth to our youngest daughter in Mexico, so we obtained Mexican citizenship and passport for the baby, and permanent residence for us and our other children.
In this situation, we can become eligible to apply for citizenship if we live 18 months in Mexico out of the 24-month period before the application. We are allowed to be out of Mexico up to six months, total, in those two years.
So the article seems wrong to say that you must live in Mexico “continuously and uninterrupted” for two years yo upgrade the permanent residence to citizenship. That’s not what we were told by employees at the Secretaria de Relaciones Exteriores, nor by our visa consultant Adriana Cruz at Mexperience, just last month. Thank you for your great website!
I see how my wording could have been confusing. What I meant by uninterrupted is that you must not have let your residency expire.
You can leave the country for up to 180 days in the past 2 years to be eligible to apply for citizenship. I’ve reworded my article to sound a bit more clear.
Dose a person lose Mexican citizenship if they were a permanent resident and then became a naturalized citizen? Thank you. This has not been duplicated
I don’t think I understand the question? If you were a Mexican citizen you wouldn’t need to have residency in Mexico?
Hello
I hope this finds you well.
I have an apartment in Centro PV.
I am a Canadian citizen and will spend July and August in Toronto and want to apply for either temp residency or full residency.
I want to start the process asap.
Can we work together to achieve this?
Can you tell me what I need to do in Canada and in Mexico?
With Kind Regard
Hi Jan!
We would be happy to help you with the residency visa process.
If you want help with your residency visa process, we include the steps in our COMPLETE Mexico Relocation Guide. But because we know Mexican bureaucracy is hard to navigate on your own, we also include our directory of immigration facilitators in Mexico.
When you buy the guide, you get instant access to the easy to follow steps, and also our complete directory.
Find out what’s included here https://mexicorelocationguide.com/guide/
Is there a sample language test on line?
Not that I know of
I need to get a copy of my deceased mothers Mexican birth certificate from the State of Vera Cruz, for an application for dual US/Mexican passport. The local consulate in California says her birth certificate is not in SIDEA. They told me to get the Registro Civil Vera Cruz to upload the birth certificate to SIDEA, Called Vera Cruz and they were not interested in doing it. Who or how can i have that done without having to fly 6000 miles round trip and not knowing when they will get to it? Do i Need an attorney or facilitator In V.C. ? How do I find one? Any advise will be so greatly appreciated.
Thank you, Renaldo Espinosa
Hola Renaldo
Sorry you are getting stonewalled. We do have a couple of facilitators that have helped our customers with this kind of thing before. However, they are not in Veracruz. They are in other states like Jalisco, Baja California Sur, or CDMX. I have had several clients with a similar situation and have referred them to our recommended immigration facilitator in Guadalajara who is incredibly well connected across Mexico.
If you’d like to work with our recommended contacts check out our COMPLETE Mexico Relocation Guide- mexicorelocationguide.com/guide/
Hi. My husband and I are considering moving to Mexico in the next couple of years. My husband is Hispanic but was adopted shortly after birth by a white family. He was born in Texas, but both of his bio-parents were born in Mexico and later immigrated to the US. He is in contact with his bio-mom (bio-dad is deceased). Is this a feasible path to pursue for residency or is it too complicated due to his adoption? Thank you.
What process do you have to follow if you were born in Mexico and after many years in the USA became a naturalized American citizen, but now want to relocate to Mexico?
Hola Laura! You will always be a Mexican citizen if you were born in Mexico.
If you have your Mexican passport, you just have to bring that to your nearest Mexican Consulate with an appointment and obtain your Mexican passport. That allows you to live in Mexico.
If you don’t have your passport, you can try to find it online if you have a curp or you can find it with your personal information on this site. https://www.gob.mx/ActaNacimiento/
Once you have obtained your Mexican passport, and are ready to move to Mexico, we have a step by step online course that helps you with all the important steps needed to live in Mexico the right way. See what’s included in our COMPLETE Mexico Relocation Guide- mexicorelocationguide.com/guide/
I’m confused. I was born in Mexico and came to live in the US as a child. I became a US citizen many years ago. I thought that once I became a US citizen, I lost my Mexican citizenship. Now, based on your answer above, it seems that is not the case. So, am I still a citizen of Mexico? Do I need to get a Mexican passport, or what do I need to prove my citizenship?
Hola! As someone born in Mexico, you will always be a Mexican citizen. Mexico does allow you to have dual citizenship as does the USA.
You would have to process your passport at your nearest Mexican consulate and that’s it 🙂 Felicidades!
If you need help with all the other steps for moving to Mexico check out our COMPLETE Mexico Relocation Guide- mexicorelocationguide.com/guide/
Hi Mariana,
To add to the question above, do you know what the process is to obtain dual citizenship? I was born in Mexico, moved to USA now US Citizen but would like to have the dual citizenship.
Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Hola! You just need to go to your nearest Mexican consulate abroad with your birth certificate and apply for a passport. Easy peasy 🙂
Hello, I am a dual citizen originally born in the U.S and obtained Mexican citizenship through my parents via consular route. My fiancé is in the process of obtaining her Mexican citizenship as well also having been born in the U.S.
However, we have a doubt. We want to pass our Mexican citizenship to our U.S born son as well. Will this be possible? Or will Mexican bureaucracy stop it since me and or her were not born in Mexico and obtained citizenship through our parents. Any information will help. Thanks.
Can you tell me what the status of your asylum program is right now. I am a woman in Texas and feel that in the US right now I and other women’s lives are in danger. I would like to seek asylum in Mexico
My son has dual citizenship (Mexican by his father), how can I acquire permanent Mexican residency through my son. Also I have remarried and have a different last name then my son (then what I had on my sons birth certificate). What documents do I need to provide of my own, and my son. And what would be the fees?
If your son is a Mexican citizen, you are entitled to permanent residency in Mexico. 🙂
If you would like help with your residency visa process, we include many of the overall the steps in our COMPLETE Mexico Relocation Guide. But because we know Mexican bureaucracy is hard to navigate on your own and the steps can vary based on the city in Mexico where you apply, we also include our directory of immigration facilitators across Mexico.
When you buy the guide, you get instant access to the easy to follow steps, and also our complete directory.
Find out what’s included here https://mexicorelocationguide.com/guide/
And let me know if you have questions about the online guide before purchasing 🙂
Yo tengo un hijo de 7 años con un ciudadano mexicano.
Mi hijo y yo somos americanos.
El padre de mi hijo dice que le va a tramitar la ciudadanía mexicana
a nuestro hijo sin mi autorización ya que para México no es necesario
que la madre esté de acuerdo. ¿Es esto correcto ?
Gracias de antemano,
Thank you for doing all of this hard work!
Mi novia and I were both born in the US (I’m white and she’s Latina). Her mom is a Mexican citizen.
There are so many if/then statements that I’m all turned around. Do you know what the process would look like or what’s the best way to go about relocating to CDMX?
Muchos Gracias!
Your novia can get dual citizenship through her mother. And if you two were to get married, your novia could then petition you without economic solvency from within Mexico. That would be the fastest way. Otherwise, you could obtain residency through economic solvency or through the RNE program if you qualify. See here https://mexicorelocationguide.com/mexico-resident-visa/
In 2023 I had a child in Mexico and obtained permanent residency for myself and my other two children. In a few months I will meet the requirements (two years of residency) to apply for Mexican citizenship, but I am wondering what the process is for my other two children (ages 4 and 8)? How do I obtain Mexican citizenship for them?