Mexico City
MXN
Spanish
UTC−6
Daily life
- Climate: Mexico City: mild highland climate at 2,240 m, with a rainy season from June to September. Mérida and the Yucatán: hot and humid all year, hurricane season June to November.
- Safety: Varies by state. The UK advises against all but essential travel to parts of 11 states; Mexico City and Yucatán are not among them. Street crime, scams and express kidnapping occur in big cities.
- English: limited outside tourist areas
- Expat community: large
Sources: UK travel advice: Mexico, safety and security (checked 2026-10-22) · UK travel advice: Mexico, warnings (checked 2026-10-22) · EF English Proficiency Index 2025 (checked 2026-10-22)
Cost of living
| Monthly, MXN | Mexico City | Mérida | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single | Couple | Single | Couple | |
| Rent | 12,100 | 17,400 | 8,300 | 13,000 |
| Food | 7,500 | 13,500 | 7,000 | 12,500 |
| Utilities | 1,750 | 2,000 | 2,700 | 3,000 |
| Transport | 1,000 | 2,000 | 800 | 1,600 |
| Health cover | 3,000 | 6,000 | 3,000 | 6,000 |
| Leisure | 4,000 | 7,000 | 3,500 | 6,000 |
| Total | 29,350 | 47,900 | 25,300 | 42,100 |
Rent: a one-bedroom flat outside the centre for one person, between one and three bedrooms for a couple. Health: IMSS voluntary cover plus out-of-pocket private visits; private insurance for over-65s costs many times more (see Healthcare). Utilities include internet; Mérida needs air conditioning.
Sources: Numbeo: cost of living in Mexico City (updated Oct 2026) (checked 2026-10-22) · Numbeo: cost of living in Mérida (updated Oct 2026) (checked 2026-10-22) · ECB reference rates, 21 Oct 2026 (checked 2026-10-22)
Visas and residence
Temporary residence by economic solvency
Show income of 680 days of UMA a month over the last 6 months (about 79,800 MXN, US$4,300, in 2026) or savings of 11,400 days of UMA averaged over 12 months (about 1.34 million MXN, US$73,000). Add 220 days of UMA (about 25,800 MXN) a month per dependant. Stays from 180 days up to 4 years, then you can move to permanent residence.
- Minimum income: 79,800 MXN a month
- Or savings: 1,337,300 MXN
- Valid 12 months, renewable; permanent residence possible after 4 years
- Each consulate publishes its own figures and they change with the UMA: check yours before applying.
- Spouse can be included
- Official page
Permanent residence for retirees and pensioners
With a pension of 1,140 days of UMA a month over the last 6 months (about 133,700 MXN, US$7,300) or savings of 45,850 days of UMA averaged over 12 months (about 5.38 million MXN). No renewals, and permanent residents may work.
- Minimum income: 133,700 MXN a month
- Or savings: 5,378,700 MXN
- Permanent: no renewals
- Official page
Trying it first: United States passport: 180 days without a visa; Canada passport: 180 days without a visa; United Kingdom passport: 180 days without a visa.
Sources: Mexican consulate Houston: temporary residence by economic solvency (Oct 2025) (checked 2026-10-22) · Mexican consulate Houston: permanent residence for retirees (Oct 2025) (checked 2026-10-22) · INEGI: UMA value (117.31 MXN a day from 1 Feb 2026) (checked 2026-10-22) · Mexican embassy: visitors from visa-exempt countries (checked 2026-10-22)
Healthcare
Legal residents can buy public IMSS cover with a yearly fee by age, but pre-existing conditions are excluded. Private hospitals in big cities are good; private insurance for older people is expensive and rising fast.
- Public system: IMSS voluntary family health insurance (Seguro de Salud para la Familia), paid yearly in advance: from 1 March 2026, 20,600 MXN at 60–69, 21,500 MXN at 70–79 and 22,150 MXN from 80. People with certain pre-existing conditions cannot join.
- Private insurance, monthly (MXN): age 55-64: 12,000 · age 65-74: 20,000 · age 75+: 30,000
- Pre-existing conditions: varies by insurer
Sources: IMSS: Seguro de Salud para la Familia, 2026 fees (checked 2026-10-22) · El Imparcial: private medical insurance prices for over-65s (2026) (checked 2026-10-22)
Taxes
Residents are taxed on worldwide income at progressive rates up to 35%. Mexico has no wealth tax and no inheritance tax.
- When you become tax resident: You are tax resident if your home (casa habitación) is in Mexico; if you also have a home elsewhere, if your centre of vital interests is in Mexico (Federal Tax Code, article 9).
Coming from United States
The US keeps taxing its citizens wherever they live (the treaty's saving clause); foreign tax credits are what prevent paying twice. Ask an adviser who knows both systems before you move.
- Tax treaty: yes
- Public pension: US Social Security is taxable only in the US (treaty Article 19(1)(b)): Mexico does not tax it.
- Private pension: Private pensions, 401(k) and IRA withdrawals are taxable only in Mexico as your country of residence (Article 19(1)(a)).
Sources: US–Mexico income tax treaty (IRS) (checked 2026-10-22)
Coming from United Kingdom
Mexico taxes residents on worldwide income, UK pensions included. Your UK State Pension is paid but frozen: it does not rise each year while you live there (it goes back to the current rate if you return to the UK).
- Tax treaty: yes
- Public pension: Taxable only in Mexico (other income article).
- Private pension: Taxable only in Mexico, annuities included (Article 18). Most UK government pensions (such as civil service pensions) are taxed only in the UK.
Sources: GOV.UK: Mexico tax treaties (checked 2026-10-22) · GOV.UK: countries where the State Pension is increased each year (checked 2026-10-22) · GOV.UK: tax on your UK income if you live abroad (State Pension, Personal Allowance, government pensions) (checked 2026-10-22) · HMRC International Manual INTM343190: pensions and annuities (State Pension under tax treaties) (checked 2026-10-22)
Coming from France
Mexico taxes residents on worldwide income, French non-government pensions included.
- Tax treaty: yes
- Public pension: Basic state pension: Taxable only in Mexico, as your country of residence (pensions for past employment). (Article 18). Civil-service and military pensions are taxed only in France. (Article 19)
- Private pension: Taxable only in Mexico, as your country of residence (pensions for past employment). (Article 18).
Sources: UN Treaty Series vol. 1719, no. 29904: Mexico–France tax treaty (1991), Articles 18 and 19 (checked 2026-10-22) · economie.gouv.fr: income tax for residents abroad (minimum rates, non-resident withholding on pensions) (checked 2026-10-22)
Coming from somewhere else? The general rules above apply; check your home country's tax treaty with Mexico or ask a licensed advisor.
Sources: Código Fiscal de la Federación, article 9 (checked 2026-10-22) · SAT (Mexican tax administration) (checked 2026-10-22)
Housing
Foreigners can own homes in Mexico; near the coast and borders it is done through a bank trust. Check the property title (escritura) with a notary before you pay anything.
- Can foreigners buy? With restrictions: Within 100 km of a border or 50 km of the coast (the "restricted zone"), foreigners hold homes through a bank trust (fideicomiso) authorised by the Foreign Ministry, for up to 50 years and renewable. Elsewhere you can own directly after agreeing to the Foreign Ministry's terms.
Sources: Banorte: restricted-zone trusts (checked 2026-10-22) · Mexican Foreign Ministry (SRE) (checked 2026-10-22)
Settling in
Once you choose Mexico, the settling plan takes you through 8 steps, from a year before the move to your first year there. The first ones:
- Prepare proof of income or savings: Six months of statements showing your pension or income, or twelve months of savings statements, certified by your bank, plus a letter from your pension provider.
- Apply for the visa at a Mexican consulate: Interview at the consulate for where you live; the fee was US$54 in Houston in 2025. Consulates set their own income figures, so check yours.
- Exchange the visa for your resident card: Within 30 days of entering Mexico, at an office of the National Migration Institute (INM).
- Register with the tax administration (RFC): Needed to rent formally, buy property and file taxes as a resident.
The full plan, with costs, delays and official links, is in your personal space (coming soon).
Rules and figures change and we can make mistakes: confirm with the official source or a licensed advisor before acting.