Canadian Minors Travelling to Mexico: New Rules 2014

Effective January 24, 2014, the Mexican government has, once again, established new rules for minors travelling to and from Mexico. The old rules as set out in our articles of December 27, 2012, and February 8, 2013, no longer apply.

Canadian Minors Travelling to Mexico

In Mexico, a person is considered a minor if he or she is under the age of 18.

According to the Embassy of Mexico in Canada, foreign minors travelling to Mexico as visitors for a stay of up to 180 days, either alone or with a third party of legal age (such as a grandparent, aunt, uncle, etc.), do not require a letter of consent from their parents or guardians. A valid passport is sufficient.

However, Canadian authorities strongly recommend that Canadian children travelling alone or with only one parent or guardian, friends, relatives or a group, bring a notarized consent-to-travel letter signed by the parent or legal guardian who is not travelling with them. Airline staff may ask to see the notarized consent letter before the child boards the plane to Mexico, and Canadian officials may request the notarized letter when the child re-enters Canada.

In Canada, a child is defined as a person who has not reached the age of majority. Depending on the child’s province or territory of residence, that would be 18 or 19 years of age.

Red Seal Notary can notarize your consent-to-travel letter or we can draft one for you.

For more information on how to obtain a notarized consent-to-travel letter, please click here or call us at 1-888-922-7325.

Minors Travelling Abroad from Mexico

Notarized consent-to-travel documents must be presented by children, under the age of 18, who are either of Mexican nationality or foreigners with Permanent Resident, Temporary Resident or Temporary Student Resident status in Mexico, and are travelling abroad either alone or with an adult other than one of their parents.

The consent document must be in the format published by the National Migration Institute (INM) and must specify the mode of transportation, destination and date of travel.

If the consent-to-travel document is issued in Canada, it must be notarized, authenticated, legalized and accompanied by a Spanish translation. This can be a complicated process, but Red Seal Notary can help.

For more information on Red Seal Notary’s authentication, legalization and translation services, please see our article “Frequently Asked Questions: Red Seal Notary’s Authentication & Legalization Services” or call us at 1-888-922-7325.

One of our friendly Customer Service Representatives will be happy to assist you.