Fee for Traveling in Mexico Rescinded

U.S. motorists planning to drive to the Mexican interior will be charged no fee, but will be required to show driver’s licenses and documents proving identity, nationality status and ownership of their vehicles, according to new Mexican government regulations.

The revised guidelines were issued this week--the rules are in effect now--after intense protests that erupted earlier this month when Mexico quietly imposed a $100 fee for motorists driving into the interior.

In an especially provocative requirement, the new rules mandated that Mexican citizens living in the United States post a $400 deposit when driving vehicles to the Mexican interior--or, in lieu of the deposit, that they leave their U.S. residency documents with Mexican customs inspectors.

Critics angrily contended that the requirements were little more than legalized shakedowns, aimed particularly at expatriate Mexican citizens living in California and elsewhere in the United States.

Authorities in Mexico City responded that the measures were necessary to ensure the eventual departure of U.S.-registered cars and trucks entering the country via the northern border. The idea was to cut down on a rising number of unregistered vehicles, most of them with U.S. license plates, according to the Mexican government.

But, after Mexican authorities were deluged with protests, President Carlos Salinas de Gortari suspended the fee and deposit requirements two weeks ago and called for a revised series of guidelines. In response, the Mexican Finance Ministry issued new regulations this week.

Under the latest rules, everyone seeking to drive into the Mexican interior with foreign-registered vehicles must demonstrate ownership or legal possession by presenting one of a number of documents--a registration, bill of sale, pink slip, or title. Motorists must also show a valid driver’s license.

In addition, Mexican nationals living in the United States must show U.S. residence documents. No case deposit is required, and Mexican motorists need not leave their original immigration papers with Mexican authorities.

To some extent, the revised rules reinstate practices in place before the flurry of regulatory activity. As always, foreign visitors must show some proof of nationality, such as a passport or original birth certificate, and must obtain tourist cards or visas before entering the Mexican interior.

The new regulations also state that:

* In the case of vehicles rented abroad, the lease contract must be in the visitor’s name.

* Mexican residents of the border strip and other “free-zone” areas--including much of the state of Baja California--must present the original vehicle invoice and import documents when driving to the Mexican interior. Inhabitants of Tijuana and other border zones, whose vehicles receive special frontera (border) license plates, are legally permitted to import foreign-purchased vehicles.