How much responsiblity Mexfiles… and other Mexican-based “private media”… bears for the present confusion foreigners have about their permission to stay in the Country isn’t clear. Some, perhaps quite a bit.

For years, with the Visitors permit (the FMM…Forma Migratoria Múltiple) would — almost without exception — give the holder UP TO 180 days to stay in Mexico. When it was first introduced, it was meant to replace a plethora of different forms for different types of visitors: business travelers going to meetings, academics on sabbatical, students, and — of course — tourists. We (in the Mex-media biz) — given the generous time given even to casual visitors spending a week in Cancun, or a couple days in Mexico City … got into the bad habit of referring to the form as the “tourist visa” … undertandable, but highly misleading.

An FMM assumes the holder had no ties or committment to the country (one reason over the years, I’ve read about so many FMM holders who just can’t understand why when they’re arrested, there is no question of any sort of “bail” or bond they can post… they’re a flight risk). Or, why they are denied re-entry after holding themselves out as residents, and expecting the same rights of entry as a resident. A VISA implies the state has decided the person is worthy of a longer stay… temporarily, or permantly (depending on the situation), has some legitimate reason to live full-time (or nearly full time) in the country, and is unlikely to become a public charge.