Thread: American working in Mexico

American working in Mexico
I received this in an email this morning...

The following from a director with SW BELL in Mexico City.
I spent five years working in Mexico. I worked under a tourist visa for three months and could legally renew it for three more months. After that you were working illegally. I was technically illegal for three weeks waiting on the FM3 approval.

During that six months our Mexican and US Attorneys were working to secure a
permanent work visa called a FM3. It was in addition to my US passport that
I had to show each time I entered and left the country. Barbara's was the
same except hers did not permit her to work. To apply for the FM3 I needed to submit the following notarized originals (not copies) of my:

1. Birth certificates for Barbara and me. 2. Marriage certificate. 3. High school transcripts and proof of graduation. 4. College transcripts for every college I attended and proof of graduation. 5. Two letters of recommendation from supervisors I had worked for at least one year.

6. A letter from The ST. Louis Chief of Police indicating I had no arrest
record in the US and no outstanding warrants and was "a citizen in good
standing."

7. Finally; I had to write a letter about myself that clearly stated why
there was no Mexican citizen with my skills and why my skills were important
to Mexico. We called it our "I am the greatest person on earth" letter. It
was fun to write.

All of the above were in English that had to be translated into Spanish and
be certified as legal translations and our signatures notarized. It produced
a folder about 1.5 inches thick with English on the left side and Spanish on
the right.

Once they were completed Barbara and I spent about five hours accompanied by
a Mexican attorney touring Mexican government office locations and being
photographed and fingerprinted at least three times. At each location (and
we remember at least four locations) we were instructed on Mexican tax,
labor, housing, and criminal law and that we were required to obey their
laws or face the consequences. We could not protest any of the government's
actions or we would be committing a felony. We paid out four thousand
dollars in fees and bribes to complete the process. When this was done we
could legally bring in our household goods that were held by US customs in
Loredo Texas. This meant we rented furniture in Mexico while awaiting our
goods. There were extensive fees involved here that the company paid.

We could not buy a home and were required to rent at very high rates and
under contract and compliance with Mexican law.

We were required to get a Mexican drivers license. This was an amazing
process. The company arranged for the licensing agency to come to our
headquarters location with their photography and finger print equipment and
the laminating machine. We showed our US license, were photographed and
fingerprinted again and issued the license instantly after paying out a six
dollar fee. We did not take a written or driving test and never received
instructions on the rules of the road.


We then had to pay and file Mexican income tax annually using the number of
our FM3 as our ID number. The companies Mexican accountants did this for us
and we just signed what they prepared. I was about twenty legal size pages
annually.

The FM 3 was good for three years and renewable for two more after paying
more fees.

Leaving the country meant turning in the FM# and certifying we were leaving
no debts behind and no outstanding legal affairs (warrants, tickets or
liens) before our household goods were released to customs.

It was a real adventure and If any of our senators or congressmen went
through it once they would have a different attitude toward Mexico.

The Mexican Government uses its vast military and police forces to keep its
citizens intimidated and compliant. They never protest at their White House
or government offices but do protest daily in front of the United States
Embassy. The US embassy looks like a strongly reinforced fortress and during
most protests the Mexican Military surround the block with their men
standing shoulder to shoulder in full riot gear to protect the Embassy.
These protests are never shown on US or Mexican TV. There is a large public
park across the street where they do their protesting. Anything can cause a
protest such as proposed law changes in California or Texas.

Please feel free to share this with everyone who thinks we are being hard on
illegal immigrants.
..................................

Please keep spreading the word and encouraging your friends, neighboors, co-workers, etc. to contact their elected officials and tell them:

- We must put an end to Federal and State support of illegal aliens and illegal immigrants (financial support like Social Security).
- We must close up and secure our borders.
- We must give warning that we will not tolerate gangs, drugs, and criminals coming across the border and that will arm our military with lethal force and allow them to use it.
- We must stop granting citizenship automatically to infants born on American soil of parents that are illegal aliens or illegal immigrants.
- We do not want a guest worker program.
- We want illegal aliens and illegal immigrants rounded up and deported.
- We do not want a path to citizenship for illegal aliens and illegal immigrants.
- We want laws that protect American citizens from being sued for protecting their property and possessions.

We must keep passing the word about this and asking people to get involved. Take my short list of above items and send it to your elected officials. Get your friends, neighbors to do the same.

Be sure to give your name and address so that you will be taken seriously when contacting your elected officials.
Click Here to Contact Your Elected Officials.


**This was a production of The Coalition Against Illegal Immigration (CAII). If you would like to participate, please go to the above link to learn more. Afterwards, email the coalition and let me know at what level you would like to participate.


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Yes, your story hits home. I also worked many years in Mexico. I did not live in Mexico but had to have the FM3 and pay full Mexico taxes. Part of the time I lived in El Paso and went to work everyday all year in Juarez at our plant offices. I also spent long times working in Torreon. Our company had a large presence in Mexico so our company attorneys did handle a lot of the headache for us. Also, they paid an outside law firm to do our taxes. But the important thing is that we had to pay for FM3, pay Mexico taxes, have a passport, and pay for any hospital stays. Yet Mexico complains because we have the nerve to ask an illegal for documentation.

Also, they do not hesitate to use their Military & Federal police to enforce immigration laws.

Oh, and you want a scary experience. Have the Mexican Federal Police pull you over out in the open desert with no one around. A speeding ticket is the least of your worries.

Message to Congress.
Here is my book titled Immigration for Dummies. The book is short and I am fairly confident some of you can comprehend the subject. Ready? Here we go!
Step one: Copy and paste Mexico’s immigration law, print, hand out and vote.
Step two: The End.

I bought my house from Mexican nationals, and they left behind debts, an abandoned car, and people coming to the house and calling looking for them. All they had to do was put their things in a van and drive south.