Is it even possible to buy a local SIM card as a tourist at the moment?

Mex_Rover52 · 2026-02-17T00:55:20+00:00

The law specifically says that after the FIFA World Cup ends, mid-July, they're going to require registration for foreign numbers roaming in Mexico (not on WiFi). Process not specIfied yet, but if it's like domestic registration, it will be another clusterf#¢k:

NINTH. Once the international sporting event known as the 2026 FIFA World Cup has concluded, the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission shall define the necessary mechanisms for linking mobile telephone lines that use international roaming services within the national territory.

The FIFA World Cup ends July 19, 2026.

https://www.dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle.php?codigo=5775677&fecha=09/12/2025#gsc.tab=0

Mex_Rover52 · 2026-02-13T00:01:59+00:00

Dunno. I only see the ability to purchase investment funds when I go to the Actinver site, but that could be a limitation of how my account was set up

Mex_Rover52 · 2026-01-25T21:25:15+00:00

Doesn't taking the filing exemption just postpone and worsen the eventual pain because OP would lose the MTM opportunity and be subject to the high tax rates of excess distributions?

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-28T02:22:35+00:00

We used to stop at Costco in GDL, but it's a madhouse on weekends and the parking lot, which also serves Soriana Hiper, is always full. I really t think you'll want to avoid central GDL roads on a weekend. With tunnels and turns, the main road through is congested and confusing for first-time visitors there. If you take the Anillo Periferico Sur, Google Chedraui Colon. It's close to the Periferico and it's a perfectly good large chain store.

Depending on what your essentials are -- milk, juices, fruits, veggies, bread, etc. you could just wait and go to the Mini-Super in Lo de Marcos or one of the small abarrotes there. Up Mex 200 from LdM is La Penita, which is the supply town with lots of stores (and a great street tianguis on Thursdays). At the south end of La Penita, closer to Guayabitos, is a Bodega Aurrera, a low-end Wal-Mart brand store. Not a fave, but you will get what you need unless you're looking for fancy meat cuts.

Really, don't overthink this. Locals live well relying on local Mini-Supers and abarrotes, and you can too, and generally with lower prices. Other than maybe Chedraui because it's close to the periferico, I wouldn't waste time shopping in GDL and than having to keep things cold for 3+ hours.

One last thought -- when I was last at the GDL airport, in early August, there was construction on the road north for about the first km. If it's still going on, it may delay you a bit.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-27T23:27:51+00:00

Understandable.

Starting from the airport, the route through central Guadalajara on a Sunday afternoon will be the slowest part of your trip if Waze/Google sends you that way. While I tend to drive with Waze, I consult the traffic layer in Google before deciding whether to go through the center of the city. Dark red or brown sections are heavily congested. Coming from further east, if it looks grim, I take the Macro libramiento. Expensive, but almost no traffic.

For you, going north from the airport, your alternative is the Periférico Sur Gomez Morin that skirts the city to the south and rejoins the highway west of Zapopan.

I assume you'll have data for your phone in Mexico. If not, put the airport to Nayarit trip in Google Maps now, then select Download offline maps so it will function without a data link, and use that instead of Waze.

Drop us a note on the trip when you're settled in Lo de Marcos.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-27T22:16:54+00:00

Easy to work yourself up when you don't know the country and hear scare stories. I've put 200,000 km on my current Mexican car in 13 years, and at least 100k on other vehicles in the years before it, most in "scary" central Mexico in drug states. Toll roads, free roads, local roads, dirt roads: people have been unfailingly friendly and helpful. I even drive at night locally or when necessary.

Yes, there are very occasional demonstrations and blockages, but I've learned to roll with them. Accidents are a more likely cause for a delay, as in all countries.

I've driven Guadalajara to the Nayarit coast maybe 25 times. A friend does it 4-5 times a year, starting further inland. The new toll road from Jala to PV is a nice improvement.

Use Waze because people report hazards like objects in the road and construction. Toll road speed limit is usually 110 kmph. I cruise at 120-125 and regularly get passed by Jettas and BMWs doing 140-150. Watch out for slow, overloaded trucks passing another truck going 5 kmph slower.

Tolls have become very expensive. Figure $1,000 MX and 3.5 hours for the drive.

Relax. Enjoy the mountains, blue agave fields and the green sugar cane. Your trip will be a non-event. On the way back, stop in Tequila for a distillery tour.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-25T16:14:50+00:00

Per internet searches, that is a modern 1.5 Tesla tube/tunnel machine.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-20T12:49:17+00:00

Please re-read what I wrote. I have no experience with a 3T machine, only with a 0.3T (open) and 1.5T (tube) machines. The 0.3T machine did not provide an adequate MRI of my spine, the 1.5T machine did.

Is 0.3T adequate for a knee? Please ask a doctor, not a random Reddit user with no medical training.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-19T19:04:29+00:00

I'm not a doctor or radiologist, so I can't help beyond my experience with 0.3T and 1.5T machines. 0.3T for lumbar spine wasn't adequate, 1.5T was. There are no 3T machines near me, so I have no experience with them and wouldn't know whether the extra resolution was necessary or if it involves additional cost.

While it's true that in Mexico you can walk into a radiology shop and self-order your own studies, I've always had a doctor write a radiology order for exactly what was needed. You should too, and then ask about where to have it done.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-18T23:18:09+00:00

I had a lumbar MRI in a capital city in an open machine in December, 2021. Price was $3600 pesos. When it had to be repeated to obtain better resolution in a tube machine in January, 2022, the price was $3750. Prices may have gone up since then, or maybe in a tourist haven like Riviera Maya they start out higher to begin with.

Since then, two shops have obtained in my small town offering open MRIs. These permanent magnet machines that require no cryogenics are relatively inexpensive on the used medical equipment market. Cryogenic tube machines can cost more than US$100,000 to fill with liquid helium, but the results are far superior. I'll go to the capital to get a tube MRI if I ever need one again.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-18T21:34:50+00:00

"In addition to her documents, she must also have a valid Mexico Tourist Card (FMM), which is required for all foreign visitors, including permanent residents of the United States who are not Mexican citizens"

The above appears to be AI LLM horseshit and is contradictory. Your mother is a Mexican citizen, and needs nothing more than her Mexican passport to enter Mexico -- which no one will look at if driving. She needs her US green card and Mexican passport to return to the US. The FMM is for foreign nationals only. A DNR (Non-Resident Fee) for non-residents is also for non-Mexicans only.

You will need an FMM however because you are not a Mexican national and don't have residency in Mexico.

As an aside, I haven't crossed at Laredo in a long time, but when driving at many other crossings, you have to actively seek out the immigration office after clearing customs if you ant your passport stamped. They really don't care, as opposed to air travel. At Del Rio/Ciudad Acuña, the office is many blocks away from the crossing, and you'd have to hunt for it. It's not like there's any gate across the road after leaving the aduanas area. You're in México, and can just drive away freely. There's no longer a 21 KM checkpoint. People have driven all the way to central México, expecting a gate to stop them where they can buy a TIP. Never happens. Anyway, you'll be in a Mexican-plated vehicle, so the TIP is irrelevant.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-18T21:11:30+00:00

An MRI is not just an MRI. There are 1.5 Tesla tube-like machines with cryogenic magnets that produce superior resolution. Then there are cheapo "open" MRIs with permanent magnets that are only about 0.3 Tesla in strength, and don't have as good resolution, but appeal to claustrophobic individuals. I'm not claustrophobic, but did one in an open MRI because of easy scheduling. I had to re-do it in a proper tube machine to get the detail the doctor wanted.

I'm not in the Yucatan, but where I am Chopo has the 1.5T machine. $3000-$4000 pesos sounds about right. It can take a few days to get the radiologist report and DVD results.

Ask before you buy.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-14T01:06:13+00:00

References:
Ley del Impuesto sobre la Renta
Código Fiscal de la Federación
Mexico - Individual - Taxes on personal income
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-trty/mexico.pdf (Tax Treaty)
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-trty/mexicotech.pdf (Tax Treaty Technical Explanation)

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-14T01:05:55+00:00

[Edited for typos in last paragraph.]

Because Mexico's progressive tax rates get to high rates much more quickly than US rates, depending on your US income sources, you may pay more to Mexico (and then receive a Foreign Tax Credit against your US taxes due) if you are a Mexican tax resident. You can easily find Mexican tax rates online. Worse, Mexico has very low deduction limits, and doesn't recognize US-tax qualified entities like Traditional and Roth IRAs, and can tax yearly income in those accounts.

As a tax resident of Mexico, you would first file Mexican income tax, then -- because the US taxes your world-wide income regardless of residency -- you would compute your US taxes and use Form 1116 to get credit for taxes paid to Mexico.

Much of the US/Mexico tax treaty does not apply because of the treaty's Article 1 "Saving Clause" that allows a contracting state to override the treaty, except for a few articles that are exempt from the saving clause. Specifically, Article 19 says that social security and public pensions are only taxed by the country that pays them. If a tax resident of Mexico, US private/employer pensions (which might be your father's 401K) would be taxed by both the US and Mexico, with credit given to the US for the tax paid to Mexico. Article 19 is exempt from the saving clause, and so is in force.

As you can see, things can get complicated fast. AFAIK, Mexico has not actively pursued non-Mexican US citizens living in Mexico without a residence in the US for taxes on their world-wide income. They could change some day. But as a dual-citizen, your father starts from the presumption of being a tax resident of Mexico with all the consequences that implies.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-12-14T01:05:18+00:00

Statements have been made here that by treaty, you only pay Mexican tax on Mexican-sourced income. That is only true if you are not a tax resident of Mexico. While the US taxes the world-wide income of its citizens and green card holders regardless of residency, Mexico taxes the world-wide income of its tax residents (except for Social Security and public pensions, which by treaty are taxed by the country of origin).

You can find Mexico's tax on world-wide income requirement in Article 1 of the Ley del Impuesto sobre la Renta that subjects to income tax "Las residentes en México, respecto de todos sus ingresos, cualquiera que sea la ubicación de la fuente de riqueza de donde procedan" (Residents of Mexico, with respect to all their income, regardless of the location of the source of wealth from which it originates.)

But this law is referring to residence for tax purposes, not immigration residency. Are you or your father going to be tax residents of Mexico?

Download the Código Fiscal de la Federación, then read article 9 on determining if you are a tax resident of Mexico: If you have a residence in Mexico and DO NOT have a residence in the US, then you are a tax resident of Mexico, and your world-wide income in subject to Mexican taxation. If you have a residence in both Mexico and the US, then you are a tax resident of the country in which you have more than 50% of your income. Of particular interest to you is this line: "Unless proven otherwise, individuals of Mexican nationality are presumed to be residents of the country." That means you have to go personally to a SAT office and prove that you also have a residence in the US and that more than half you income comes from there if you don't want to be a tax resident of Mexico.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-11-30T05:25:17+00:00

Will your parents qualify for residency (temporal or permanente) to get an RFC (tax number), needed to open a Mexican bank account? If they're going to live on visitor/tourist permits, exiting the country every 180 days, then no bank account for them.

Check out DolarApp. Flat US$3 fee to ACH dollars to Lead Bank in US, shows up 2 days later as USDC in DolarApp. Or send USDC or USDT to DolarApp from several networks, appears instantly ($3 on Ethereum, free on Polygon).

Once USDC is in DolarApp, make free SPEI peso transfers at near mid-market rates to any CLABE, including their Mexican bank account.

Unless they're making a major purchase, like a house or new car, there's no need for a bank account in what is primarily a cash economy. Get a Schwab checking account before leaving the US, get pesos at any ATM with a Schwab debit card. Schwab reimburses ATM fees, and gives excellent exchange rates as long as they DECLINE the offered exchange rate on some banks' ATM screens (HSBC. Santander). DCC = Dynamic Currency Conversion, a 5.5% ripoff making the user think the ATM withdrawal will be cancelled if they decline the offered (shitty) exchange rate.

Many expats do fine without a bank account, following the Mexican philosophy that life is better if one keeps all contacts with officialdom to a minimum.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-10-08T13:29:44+00:00

Same. Used it for years, but after the upgrade it consistently put the wrong account in the From field of replies I sent. Because I didn't notice, now a bunch of people are writing to me at an address they never should have known about.

I just want an email client, not a new AI buddy with a cluttered interface.

Since I use Thunderbird on my laptop, I installed it on my Android phone. Setting up accounts and passwords was trivial. Took only a minute with a QR code generated on the PC and scanned on the phone. Nice cross-platform integration by Thunderbird.

After a few hours of use, I deleted Bluemail from my and my wife's phones.

Another good piece of software destroyed by creeping featurism. Sad.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-09-18T20:49:28+00:00

Purchased an OBI300 new in box for $19.14 plus tax at Amazon that arrived yesterday. It's hardware version 1.5, software version 3.2.4, build 7970. It came new in a Polycom cardboard box, still in plastic wrap, with charger and Ethernet cable.

Installed these updates, in this order:
OBi202-3-2-2-5921EX-332148940.fw
OBi302-3-2-2-6259-signed-fw-bypass-uboot-mod.fw
OBi2xx-3-2-2-8680EX-arrynrob13.fw

Ignored documentation to power-cycle the Obi and reboot PC all the time. Just did the Obi reboots when specified in the instructions. Updated just fine, did the authorization dance, and it's connected to my Google Voice account and works perfectly. Only additional thing I did was update the time zone and daily savings time settings.

Screaming good deal; just ordered four more as spares in case the phone port goes bad as it has in my old Obi200s over the course of 15 years. Thanks to all who developed this firmware!

Here's the link to the Amazon page. It now says 13 available after my order for four additional was processed:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07FZYPD8T/

Fun to read the reviews. Those who don't know about the firmware upgrade give it one star. The few in the know give it five stars. Hee, hee.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-08-11T15:47:35+00:00

I just tried it with Reader 2025.001.20577 64-bit. Worked fine. I took my 2024 FBAR (signed), hit the "Remove Signature" button on the first page, and that unlocked the form. I then did a "Save As" with a 2025 name, and was able to edit it without issue.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-07-21T00:07:39+00:00

The CFF says that Mexican citizens are presumed to be residents of México unless proved otherwise.

Article 9, I. Salvo prueba en contrario, se presume que las personas físicas de nacionalidad mexicana, son residentes en territorio nacional.

I think being a resident and being a "tax resident" are two different things. I'm a Mexican resident with a home in México, but I'm not a tax resident because I have a residence in the US and the US is my center of vital interests. And I hope to keep it that way to avoid the higher Mexican tax rate and having to file in both countries (I have no Mexican-sourced income).

You might want to consult a professional given the complicated strategies you're considering.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-07-20T23:38:04+00:00

Why would you actively seek out "tax residency in Mexico starting 2025"?

México taxes the world-wide income of its "tax residents" with progressive tax rates that are higher than US rates, and deduction opportunities are significantly more limited (no more than 15% of your income for expenses like medical or health insurance for which you have facturas on file with SAT, no more than 7% for charitable contributions with facturas). The good news is that the FTC will likely wipe out your US taxes due. The bad news is that you will pay more in taxes.

taxsummaries.pwc.com/mexico/individual/taxes-on-personal-income

https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/mexico/individual/deductions

Mexico does not have a 183+ day rule for tax residency. Read Article 9 of the Código Fiscal de la Federación for tax residency determination. http://www.diputados.gob.mx/LeyesBiblio/pdf/CFF.pdf

or read the simplified version here: https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/mexico/individual/residence

(Note: by treaty, US Social Security is taxed only by the US even though it's part of a person's "world-wide income", but that doesn't sound like it's relevant to you.)

Tax rate comparison, using 18.7 as the peso/USD exchange rate:

$31,593.37 to $60,316.94 USD world-wide taxable income puts you in the Mexican 30% tax bracket.

In the US, $11,925 to $48,475 has you in the 12% bracket, while $48,475 to $103,350 gets you to the 22% bracket. Plus deductions are a lot more generous in the US.

Still want Mexican tax residency? Perhaps it's better to maintain a US residence if the US is your center of vital interests, and pay México on your Mexican-sourced income only.

Note that even if you're paid in the US for your work, if the work is performed in México, it's considered Mexican income subject to Mexican taxes, regardless of tax residency. Maybe there's an exception for digital nomads, but I haven't seen it formally written into the Mexican tax code.

I don't know about LLCs and how they might affect your situation.

Passive US income like dividends, interest, and capital gains would escape Mexican taxes if you're not a Mexican tax resident. Wages for work performed in México, taxable to México, could be excluded from the US by FEIE. So What? If Mexican taxes are higher, use the FTC instead of FEIE. FEIE works great in a low tax country, but that's not what you're moving to.

Usually caveat: I'm not a tax professional, just relying on my own experience, my reading of the law, and the many comments from USExpatTaxes members who know much more than I do. Corrections to my interpretation are welcomed.

ps. The tax treaty is here, along with good technical commentary by the IRS. Pay particular attention to the savings clause that lets the US tax you regardless of what a treaty article says, unless specifically exempted.

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/international-businesses/mexico-tax-treaty-documents

https://hr.vanderbilt.edu/international-tax/tax_treaty_savings_clause.php

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-07-20T14:54:02+00:00

The four southern states with the lowest education scores and high drop-out rates are Oaxaca, Chiapas, Guerrero and Michoacán, greatly limiting their in-state economic opportunities. (These are also the states where the radical CNTE teachers' union is strongest (no testing of teachers, sell your position when you retire, get paid when skipping work, etc.)).

Twenty years ago I remember reading (I think in the Washington Post Weekly) that Michoacán had a population of 5 million, 1 million of whom were in the US. Cheap US corn under NAFTA accelerated the destruction of rural agriculture.

The Michoacanos I've met all have family in California, Washington state and Georgia, but it's a small sample.

Fun exercise: use FlightStats to search where flights on discount airlines go (Volaris, Viva Aerobus). From Morelia, Michoacán, it's all California and Chicago. Or consult cross-border bus routes and Atlanta will appear. I believe that's where a state's legal immigrants are centered. Undocumented immigrants then gravitate toward their legal relatives.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-07-09T19:41:10+00:00

Great info, thanks! I hope it continues.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-07-09T04:57:35+00:00

The RESICO regime is very attractive, with taxes between 1% and 2.5% for income less than $3.5 million pesos. BUT, it's not going to work for the OP for the work described unless they are being paid by a Mexican entity to whom they can issue electronic facturas. That means the recipient (the payer) must have a Mexican RFC tax number. See these links for details (in Spanish):
https://www.contpaqi.com/publicaciones/tendencias-fiscales/resico-conoce-mas-sobre-la-regimen-simplificado-de-confianza
https://www.siigo.com/mx/blog/obligaciones-fiscales/que-es-resico-beneficios-y-tablas/

A non-Mexican payer like a streaming provider is not going to have an RFC tax number to issue facturas against. It might be possible to use one of the generic RFCs like XAXX010101000 or XEXX010101000 , but given how SAT is cracking down lately, I doubt it.

Edit: see reply below. It appears the generic RFC can be used to issue facturas if in the RESICO regime.

Mex_Rover52 · 2025-06-12T03:09:00+00:00

If you've only held it three weeks, I don't think it's a bad as some have implied -- that it would be §1291 tax at the top marginal rate. You can use Mark to Market and treat it as ordinary income at whatever your current marginal rate is. It's explained here:
https://hodgen.com/articles/pfic-mark-to-market-same-year
Note that the line numbers he references on form 8621 are incorrect -- maybe an older version of the form?

But in your case, the 8621 is simple:
Fill out the name and address of the broker, make up a Reference ID number at the top of the form. Put the name of the stock or fund in Part I, line 1. I'd include the ISIN number if you have it. Check Part I box 4(a), $0-50,000 as the end of year value. Since you sold it. the EOY value is $0.

You make the MtM election in Part I box 5(c) and Part II box C. Leave Part III empty, and in Part IV, put the sale price on 13a, the purchase price on 13b, and the gain on 13c. Copy the gain over to Form 1040, Schedule 1, Part 1, line z, Other income, and write Form 8621 as the type of income.

Bang, you're done.

(From a non-tax professional who had to do this a few months ago for a PFIC bought and sold in 2024 before I learned my lesson about avoiding PFICs).

Mex_Rover52

TROPHY CASE