In partnership with
ON MY MIND
💭 The flags are still everywhere! Independence Day may be over, but Mexico City is still covered in green, white, and red. I’ve seen flags flying from trash trucks, attached to random cars, and proudly displayed in house and apartment windows. I love that the decorations don’t immediately disappear once September 16 passes. The celebrations may be finished, but the national pride is clearly sticking around a little longer. — Adam, in Mexico City 🇲🇽
⚠️ Getting your residence card in Mexico City just got slower
INM appointments in Mexico City are now booked out more than a month, pushing residence card processing to 4-6 weeks instead of the usual 1-2.
This hits anyone doing Canje after arrival, and anyone renewing a temporary or permanent residence card in the capital.
Book your INM appointment the moment you land. Don't wait to get settled first. Keep proof of your appointment date in case your 30-day window runs out before your card is ready.
If you're renewing soon, start the process early. Delays are already stretching past a month.
Source: The Rio Times
EL ANTOJO
🍲 Caldo Tlalpeño
Region: Mexico City region · Category: Home cooking · Price: $3-5 USD
A hearty chicken and chickpea soup from the Tlalpan neighborhood of Mexico City, flavored with chipotle chile and epazote. It is the kind of soup that tastes like it has been simmering all day, because it has. Found at fondas (home-style restaurants) and family tables. Perfect for a rainy season afternoon.
What's in it: Chicken pieces, chickpeas, chipotle chile in adobo, epazote herb, tomato, onion, garlic, zucchini. Served with avocado on top and lime on the side.
Free email without sacrificing your privacy
Gmail is free, but you pay with your data. Proton Mail is different.
We don’t scan your messages. We don’t sell your behavior. We don’t follow you across the internet.
Proton Mail gives you full-featured, private email without surveillance or creepy profiling. It’s email that respects your time, your attention, and your boundaries.
Email doesn’t have to cost your privacy.
💰 What a Mexican ATM withdrawal actually costs you, by card.
🏆 Charles Schwab / Fidelity Cash Management — 0 pesos — $0 — Full fee reimbursement, any ATM
👍 Wise (under $250/mo total withdrawals) — 30–65 pesos — $1.77–$3.83 — You pay the local bank's fee only
🤷 Capital One 360 — 30–200 pesos — $1.77–$11.79 — No foreign transaction fee, but no reimbursement
💸 Typical big-bank card (BofA, Wells Fargo, Chase) — 200+ pesos equivalent — $11.79+ — 3% conversion fee plus $5 flat plus local fee
The card matters more than the ATM. Schwab and Fidelity wipe the fee out entirely, no matter which machine you use. Everyone else should stick to bank-branded ATMs (Santander, Banorte) and skip yellow Euronet-style tourist machines, which stack 150-200 pesos on top of a worse rate. Also decline any "conversion offer" the screen shows you. Accepting it locks in the ATM's rate instead of your card's, and that costs another 3-8%.
Based on today's exchange rate of 16.97 pesos per dollar — Sept 19, 2026. As the peso/dollar rate fluctuates, your real USD cost will vary.
DO THIS
✅ Decide what to do with your car
Your car is one of the biggest logistical decisions before moving to Mexico. You have four main options: sell it, store it, import it, or leave it with family. Each has real financial and legal implications. Mexico has strict rules about foreign-plated vehicles on Mexican roads, and importing a car is not cheap.
Importing a car to Mexico: vehicles must generally be less than 10 years old (some exceptions), right-hand drive not allowed, and you'll pay import duties of 15–50% of the car's value plus paperwork fees. Process through a customs broker (agente aduanal).
Temporarily importing: if you have a temporary resident visa, you can bring a foreign-plated vehicle into Mexico temporarily — it must leave when your visa expires or is renewed. This is common for people in border areas but complicated long-term.
Most expats sell their US/Canadian vehicle and buy a car in Mexico — simpler, no import duties, and Mexican car prices are reasonable.
If you plan to live in a walkable city like Oaxaca, CDMX, or central Mérida, many expats find they don't need a car at all. Factor walkability into your city decision.
🏡 Tulum, Quintana Roo
Avg rent (1BR furnished): $1,000-$1,800 USD/mo
Cost of living: High
Expat friendliness: Moderate — younger, transient
Expat community: Small, wellness focused, international
Internet reliability: Variable — can be poor outside centro (10-30 Mbps typical)
Geography / vibe: Jungle coast
Pueblo Mágico: No
A trendy, wellness-oriented destination on the Caribbean coast that has exploded in international attention. Known for cenotes, ruins, beach clubs, and a digital nomad and influencer scene. More expensive than almost anywhere else on this list. The jungle-beach aesthetic is genuine and beautiful but the infrastructure has not kept up with the growth. Internet is inconsistent.
🇲🇽 MEXICO THIS WEEK
→ Mexico proposes 10% airline fee hike The government proposed raising airline fees by 10% for 2027. (Vallarta Daily)
→ Four highways set for 2026 delivery SICT is preparing to deliver four highways during 2026 in the State of Mexico, Michoacán, and Colima. (Expansión)
→ Cellphones to be banned in classrooms Authorities agreed to ban cellphone use in primary and secondary classrooms. (La Jornada)
→ Most Mexican homes lack earthquake insurance The majority of homes in Mexico remain uninsured against earthquakes. (El Economista)
→ 11 proposals to reuse sargassum Concanaco Servytur says 11 initiatives could give industrial use to the sargassum piling up on Mexican Caribbean coasts. (El Financiero)
WHAT’S HAPPENING
📅 Sep 20 — Feria de San Miguel de Allende, San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato
The city’s biggest annual fair kicks off with Gloria Trevi headlining and runs through October 5. Expect street closures and crowds around the Jardín Principal all week.
📅 Sep 21 — Fall Equinox at Chichén Itzá and Teotihuacán
The famous serpent-shadow effect at Chichén Itzá draws thousands of visitors, with large gatherings also expected at Teotihuacán in Estado de México. Expect significant crowds and increased demand for accommodations near both sites.
COMMUNITY WISDOM
💬 Here’s what our Facebook community shared this week:
📌 TOP 5 Community Wisdom Comments
Start learning Spanish now because it was the most common priority, with some studying for an hour every day.
Declutter before you move because several people said you need far less than you think.
Get your finances in order by saving money, paying off debt, and selling major possessions.
Research and scout different cities before deciding where you want to live.
Handle the legal and housing details early because last-minute problems can make the move much more stressful.
See the full post + comments:
👉 IMWG Facebook Group post
🤝 Know someone who's thinking about moving to Mexico? 🇲🇽
Send them this newsletter and help them get real information instead of guessing their way through the process. Refer 3 friends and earn a free 45-minute 1:1 consult with me. Capped at 2 consults per month. First come, first served.
⭐ Helpful Tools & Resources
📬 Virtual Mailbox: Traveling Mailbox
🌐 Translation: RushTranslate
💸 Money Transfer: Wise
Disclaimer - Some links above are affiliate links. If you purchase through them I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend tools and services I personally use or have vetted for expats in Mexico.