How to Get Vehicle Permits for Mexico – TIP – 2022
City in Mexico
How To Get a Car / Truck / Motorcycle Permit (TIP) for Mexico
For 2022, the Banjercito vehicle permits (TIPS) online cost MXN $1063.84, which figures to USD $52-$55 using their exchange rate of a little over 20 pesos to the dollar. The permit fee is the same for Only Sonora, motorhomes, motorcycles as well as all-Mexico cars and pickups.
I had a customer cross at the Columbia Bridge, N. Laredo, with a 3/4 ton, so things are loosening up. However, I cannot guarantee you will be so lucky. So here are all your alternatives. Pick the one that appeals to you.
If your pickup is 3/4 or 1 ton, try getting your permit online. Click “English” to translate. You won’t get a TIP or vehicle permit at the Texas border, though you may get lucky (!!) on the Arizona / Sonora border. If you want to get your tourist permit online, here’s the link for Mexican Immigration.
You must pay the Mexican Treasury Department (Hacienda) by credit card (VI, MC) or debit card with a VI or MC logo. You need the title or registration for your car or RV (title only for motorcycles). Ensure your documentation has the VIN # and License Plate # on it. Otherwise, you will be denied a permit. It happened to me.
You are supposed to have a notarized letter of permission to take your vehicle into Mexico if it is financed (if you can’t get one, you’ll probably get your Mexican vehicle permit — I have never been asked for one — but don’t blame me if you run into a Hacienda official who is a sticker for rules and refuses to give you a Mexico driving vehicle permit for not having it).
There is a deposit on all vehicles – Cash or Credit Card
You must pay a deposit on your car by cash or credit card (MC, VI only – though oddly enough, they say they accept debit cards if they have the MC, VI logo). The deposits for your car, RV, pickup truck, or motorcycle permit vary by the year and model of your vehicle.
You must pay a deposit on your vehicle based on its age. The deposit cost has not changed since the program began several years ago. Your deposit is returned when you return your vehicle and cancel your TIP. It is the honey or vinegar method to ensure compliance. If you don’t cancel your TIP, you will be banned from driving in Mexico until you do. If you don’t cancel your FMM (tourist card), you will not be able to return to Mexico and will accrue fines until you resolve the matter. I’ve got a solution for that, too. But do the right thing, and you won’t need either.
Put Your Truck on a Diet
Vehicle permits (TIPS) are officially no longer issued to non-motorhome vehicles with a GVWR greater than 7,714 pounds.
Tourist Permits – FMM
If you are a tourist, you must get a tourist card from Migracion (Immigration). You get the tourist card at the border crossing in the same building where you get the vehicle permits or just next door. If you are a newly-minted expat, you’ll get a 30 day visa to exchange for your residente temporal visa in your new hometown. Don’t let them give you a 180 permit! Your vehicle permit will also be for 30 days, and you get an unknown expiration when you get the residente temporal.
Tourist permits are suitable for up to 180 days. So are tourist vehicle permits. However, Migracion is cracking down on gringo “tourists” who live in Mexico as illegal immigrants. Their database also tracks who comes and goes and when. So, you may not get a 180-day FMM. PRO TIP: Get a tourist card for fewer days so you can come back again and claim the rest of your time.
For 2007 and newer vehicles (This has not changed since 2007), the deposit is $400. 2001-2006 – $300. 2000 and older – $200. This is charged to your credit card immediately. If you cancel the permit on time, you get your deposit back. It is refunded to your credit card two to three business days after you cancel your permit. Cash deposits are returned when you cancel the permit. These figures (as of 2022) stay the same each year, so you don’t drop in rank each year. A 2001 vehicle will pay $400 this year, just like last year.
If you return your vehicle permit even a few minutes late, you lose your deposit, though you can still cancel the license. If the permit is issued at 9:00 AM on day 1, it expires at 9:00 AM on day 180. Be sure to check the expiration date of your permit in case they figured the number of days on your permit differently. It happens.
Disadvantages Of Getting A TIP Online
While you can get your car, truck, RV, or motorcycle permit online, except for the exceptions I noted below, I don’t recommend you do so. You still have to stop at the border to get your immigration permit, so what’s the benefit?
Getting your vehicle permit at the border takes about thirty minutes (after you get your immigration permit). The officials are scrupulously honest these days. They were less so in the past, which is why the government started the online program. The link to the Banjército website for online permits is here.
Below are a couple of exceptions to this rule. Otherwise, I would save time and money getting my vehicle permit onsite, avoid doing business with Mexico online, at least until they get up to standards in compliance. People who send data to Mexico end up having their identity stolen. As much as we love Mexico, they do not have the data compliance rules in the United States. Mexico is a great place to set up an identity theft ring with its lax rules and “manageable law enforcement”. This is another reason I always recommend buying insurance in the United States instead of Mexico. They still use paper down there, so your driver’s license and date of birth is just sitting on someone’s desk in a wonderful, but still third world, country. In the US – you can’t get away with being lax with customer data or laws so this is my advice. Enjoy the lax environment but be smart with your where you enter data.
I put my money where my mouth is (on everything on this site). I get my vehicle permit at the border. And, yeah, you may be one of the lucky ones where getting your vehicle permit could take an hour or so. So? Enjoy the flavor of Mexico while you wait. I would still instead get my vehicle permit on the border.
Advantage of Getting A Vehicle Permit Online!
I am always learning from my friends (aka customers). Henry V. sent me this info. There ARE advantages to getting your TIP online IF you are in the Canadian part of the Temporal Resident process. You only get a 30-day TIP with this since it has to follow the length of your Canadian visa. Then you must scramble afterwards to extend your TIP or lose the deposit. If, instead, you get it online, you can get a 180-day TIP and take your time dealing with Aduana to do your extension. I did this last year and got my deposit back.
Substandard Insurance Offered
If you decide to get your permit online, please DO NOT check the box to order the auto insurance they offer. There is nothing wrong with the insurance; it is legitimate; it’s just that it is substandard. If you get “named peril” (the equivalent of full coverage, though there are differences), you will only be allowed to have your vehicle fixed in Mexico. With any better grade of insurance (like the ones on my site, of course – but there are others), you have the choice of getting repairs done in the USA or Mexico and emergency repairs done in Mexico to get you back on the road. MexInsurance is an independent broker on a state-of-the-art website in California with all the licensing you could ask for. They pioneered the industry out of “Mex-Insur” in San Diego (since 1956) and now they are the most powerful online insurance marketplace. You will only see top carriers and get the best coverage options. They are brokers, not agents. It’s a no-brainer folks.
If you have an RV or motorcycle, there is no way you will get it repaired to your satisfaction in Mexico, if only because of the lack of parts.
Can You Enter Mexico at a Different Border Crossing if You Get Your Permit Online?
I have gotten a rash of people asking me if they can cross at a different border crossing than the one they chose when they ordered their permit. The answer is, “Yes, BUT ….”
People often come to me for trip-planning advice after getting their online permit. After we talk, they often change their route based on my knowledge and suggestions. Then they get in a panic.
One official told me privately that it would be okay if you crossed in the same region. If you choose any crossing in Reynosa or Matamoros, you will be okay, as they are all in the same area. I am curious to know what would happen if you decided on Nogales and changed your mind to Matamoros. However, I have had people cross at Reynosa who said they would cross at N. Laredo.
Sometimes it Makes Sense to Get Your Vehicle Permit Online
Nothing written about Mexico should be black and white. There are always exceptions. Some motorcyclists find it of great value, however. It eliminates the need for them to carry the title to their ride, which is necessary (for them only) to get a vehicle permit.
If you are driving to Mexico during the Christmas or Easter vacation time, yeah, go ahead. It is definitely worth it because the lines will be long at the border.
If you have a vehicle with a GVWR > 7,700 pounds, since the regulations change often, try getting the online permit first.
You Can Cancel (Return) Your Vehicle Permit At Any Border Crossing
It does not matter where you got the permit for your car, truck, RV or motorcycle. Canceling your permit means showing up at the Banjército kiosk with your vehicle and all the documentation you received when you got your permit. If you lose that big, official paper your permit was attached to; you will get a scolding and be asked to sign a form indicating you are a forgetful, disorganized klutz and didn’t mean to violate the laws permitting foreigners to import their vehicles into Mexico temporarily. Once signed, all will be smiles, and you can cancel your permit. I speak from sad experience on this. It is officially on record that I am a forgetful, disorganized klutz.
Car & Trailer Permits
Now, a car and trailer get two permits. The car gets a six-month permit to allow it to be driven in Mexico. The trailer gets a ten-year permit. The trailer permit costs (this could change tomorrow) 644 pesos. Thanks to Gary W. for this information.
Those 10-year trailer permits are a dangerous thing. So often, people don’t cancel them, leave them in Mexico and come home, or bring them back and end up selling the trailer in the USA or Canada. Then, when they expire, they will be barred from driving in Mexico.
Please note: If the border official wants to put your car and trailer on the same permit, don’t let him. If he does, you won’t be able to cancel your car permit if you don’t also cancel your trailer permit. In other words, you would have to bring them both back to the border. If you are getting a Residente Temporal (not permanente) visa, your car and trailer should be good as long as your immigration visa is good.
This changes all the time, but often RV’s are inspected when crossing at most border crossings, even at some Baja crossings.
Exceptions to Needing A Vehicle Permit
You must obtain a Mexican vehicle permit if you are driving in Mexico beyond the Mexican border – except for parts of Sonora and most all of Baja California and Baja California Sur. No permits are required to go to Rocky Point (Puerto Penasco) or as far south and west in Sonora as Guaymas, San Carlos, and Empalme. A special “Sonora Only” permit is required if you drive farther south or east, but only in Sonora. Should you cross at Agua Prieta, you need a federal vehicle permit that is good for the whole country. You can get the Sonora-only or all-Mexico vehicle permit at the Banjercito kiosk on MEX-15 at Empalme, SE of Guaymas. The free zone extends along the border 12-16 miles wide with the western exceptions. Thanks to alert reader Maralan, who corrected an earlier mistake of mine. Last I checked, you could not cancel the permit here, but things change, so ask them. Click on my map above and I’ll email you a PDF copy of the map.
You Can Lose Your Deposit If …
If you cancel your car, RV, or motorcycle permit after expiration, you do not get your deposit back, but you can obtain a new one after you cancel the old one, no matter when. Let me be clear about this. You MUST ‘cancel’ or return your permit before getting another one. That means you must drive the permitted vehicle BACK to the border. If you cannot drive it back to the border because it was lost, stolen or broken, see my information on what to do.
Special Rules for Residents
Things are a bit different for Temporary residents (old FM3) and permanent residents (old FM2). AND they could change tomorrow. They changed often enough last year. Double-check all this stuff while at the consulate; don’t wait until you get to the border!
Since you have to get your residency visas validated in-country, you should have obtained a temporary travel permit stamped in your passport by the consulate. It is suitable for 30 days and is validated at the border. However, some border officials want to issue you an FMM. You should make sure you have a travel permit and use that. Temporary visa-holders – your vehicle permit is good as long as your immigration permit is good. Permanent visa-holders – see below. When you get your temporary license validated, things change. Again, thanks to Henry: for these details: I went to our office in Progreso Yucatan. I needed to contact Aduana, submit a letter with attachments and copies, and then wait for the packet to be sent to DF for approval. Hassle, but not insurmountable. This let me extend the TIP to the end of the first year of my Temporal ( I only paid for one year).
For permanent residents, you must import your vehicle to Mexico and pay taxes. It becomes “regularized” or registered in Mexico. The government began cracking down (impounding vehicles) on residents who didn’t pay their annual taxes, so make sure you do this right – if you want to keep your vehicle. You could also take it back to the USA and sell it, then buy a new car in Mexico.
Can you Take a Towed Vehicle to Mexico? A Motorcycle? ATV?
These are the official rules from Hacienda for non-motorhome tourists. If you have a motorhome, you can temporarily import a towed vehicle.
a) A temporary import is only possible for one vehicle at a time.
b) The maximum load capacity for a temporary vehicle import is 3.5 tons. Note: that is currently interpreted as GVWR – NOT payload.
c) You may tow with your vehicle one to three motorcycles, beach cars or dune buggies, or four-wheel motorcycles or ATVs, equivalent to the number of people traveling inside the car. They CANNOT be street-legal. You’ll need to be able to provide proof of ownership for the vehicles being transported, which must be returned along with the towing or transporting vehicle. You get one permit for all.
d) Selling the temporarily imported vehicles on Mexican territory or using them commercially is not permitted.
e) The vehicle must be returned to the country of origin within the authorized time frame as stated in the Temporary Import Permit.
Be darn sure to turn this permit in before leaving Mexico. Otherwise, you will not be able to drive to Mexico. Period. Hacienda (the treasury department) keeps perfect track of these vehicle permits.
You can’t just pass them to the bridge or border crossing toll-taker. You must find the Banjército / Migración complex and get the vehicle permit recorded, scanned, and scrapped off your windshield by a polite Banjército employee. He or she will give you a computer-printed receipt showing you canceled your permit. There is no other way to do it.
Sonora makes it easy to cancel the permits with kiosks at KM 21 on MEX-15 (just south of Nogales, Sonora). You pull in; someone scans your permit, does the required checking, and you are done. I wish all border crossings were that simple. During Christmas and Easter vacations, temporary kiosks are always rumored to be put up near Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, but they are not permanent. The Banjercito office is generally near the bridge or crossing point. Google “Banercito offices” to find addresses. ALWAYS stop before entering a long line of vehicles at the border crossing. Look for official-looking buildings, generally to the left, between incoming and outgoing lanes. There is often a sign. Sure, it is a PITA to return your permits, But, trust me, it is more of one to cancel one later.
What if I Need to Cancel My Vehicle Permit?
I have been told often enough by Hacienda officials that there is no fine that I believe to be true. I have talked to plenty of gringos who canceled permits months or even years old. You can turn in a permit no matter how old – you must have the vehicle and the permit. If you still need to turn your vehicle permit in, I can provide you with the only official way to cancel it. I charge for this service.
You must pay the Mexican Treasury Department (Hacienda) by credit or debit card with a VI, MC logo. They do not accept Discover cards. (It has limited acceptance in Mexico in general).
That said, some people have told me they didn’t turn their Mexico vehicle permit in and got back into Mexico anyway. Others have said to me that they were detained at the Mexican border.
If you did not turn in your Mexican vehicle permit, you might still be able to get it canceled – if you did not sell your vehicle in Mexico and can prove it made it back to the USA. If you cannot do that, do not write me. I have the correct information on how to do this, and I charge for it.
Do you know the hours of operation of tehTIP office at the OTAY border crossing. We plan to go through the border into Mexico at 6AM this Friday Sept 30 2022
Replying for Mike – 6am is correct.
If I get a TIP for my car and trailer/ATV, can I tow the trailer with a different car while in Mexico? A Mexican friend has a 4×4 pickup that makes it easier to tow the trailer and quads to where we ride, if I have my permit in hand should I be ok?
I don’t see an issue with this but I would check with them when it’s issued at the border to make sure. The other consideration is your insurance for the towed unit – it always needs to be listed on the towing unit’s policy. Let us know how it goes and what you find out! https://visitingmexico.com/towing-in-mexico/
Vehicle permit for Mexico,
Hello, i am currently at the tail end of my 6-month temporary import permit for my truck – it expires June 16th, 2024. I am currently smack dab in the middle of the country on the Pacific side in Michoacan. I plan to stay longer most likely another 6 months. Is it possible to apply for another TIP online without canceling the first one at a border? Or perhaps i could just simply fly to a border town and get another TIP? I’d be fine with attempting to cancel my original TIP at a later date. Appreciate any insight, thanks!
(I’m trying to avoid a long ride to the Colombia border in Tamaulipas.