Concise Instructions: TVIP, insurance, FMM — Tijuana, Chaparral
 

I've been having a hard time finding concise information on how to enter Mexico via the Chaparral crossing in Tijuana via motorcycle, with intent to travel to mainland Mexico for the full 180 permitted days.

1. Tourist Visa (FMM)
Presumably, this is the fist step. Where exactly do I get my FMM / tourist visa stamp? A Google Maps link or satellite image would be ideal.


2. Insurance
It seems liability insurance is required in Mexico. Must one have insurance before acquiring a TVIP (Temporary Vehicle Import Permit)?

What are some reliable websites people have used?

Is it cheaper to get it in person? If so, where?


3. TVIP / Temporary Vehicle Import Permit
Where exactly do I get the TVIP at this border (not La Paz)? A Google Maps link or satellite image would be ideal.

Will I get my TVIP deposit back if I exit in the south of Mexico?

_________

Hopefully this could become an easy to read resource for noobs (like me).

_________

UPDATE 1.1.2020
I made it across the border. It was super easy. I ended up going to the Otay crossing further east. I stopped by this building immediately after crossing, parked my bike and went inside. A very friendly customs agent helped me go back and forth between the Banjercito (in the same building) to arrange the FMM and then the TVIP (paid for in cash).

Important: In order to get the TVIP, the Banjercito clerk asked for copies of my registration, passport, and FMM (not my license, title, or insurance). Since I had received the FMM merely minutes ago, I had no way of getting copies. Very fortunately, upon leaving the building, the friendly customs agent offered to make copies of all of my documents for me. Very cool. I went back to the Banjercito with the documents and was on my way quickly thereafter.

Blue SAT building
 

You get both the FMM and TVIP right as soon as you cross the border in the blue SAT building. Within a hundred yards of the border. If you can't see it as soon as you cross, stop and ask the first person you see in a uniform.
More info here:
https://www.bajabound.com/before/per...mmigration.php
Depending on where you leave Mexico, there will be a similar building near the border to get your deposit back.

As for information about insurance. It's not very expensive for liability (required) and I've heard that it can be fairly expensive it you want more. There are a number of online sites that sell it. You can get quotes and buy it now,or whenever, no TVIP required. I get mine at Lewis and Lewis. I have no idea whether they are the best or the cheapest.

A personal experience with the TVIP refund. We (wife and I) were on two bikes, and before we exited into Guatemala we got our TVIP’s duly cancelled at the border. Both were on same credit card, and I promptly got one of the two refunds credited back, but not the second. It took me months to finally get the second refund, and this involved many phone calls, all in Spanish, some of which ended in them just hanging up on me because we could not communicate. I finally got through to someone who pushed the right button on the computer and we got it back. $400! Was worth the hassle.

Two points to consider;
1) Save your paperwork! If I did not have my canceled TVIP document I would have been screwed. Fortunately I had it.
2) Consider paying the fee in cash. Another rider we had hitched up with for the border crossing had done so, and he was refunded in cash because he had paid in cash. No drama.


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1 and 3 You are referring to the downtown Tijuana border crossing ,Garrita El Chaparral .Just go to google maps , as your search target type in Tijuana , which will give you the city map . Click on the SATELITE PHOTO VIEW and zoom in on the border crossing and when you get very close the labels for the varous Mexican customs and immigration buildings will pop into the screen view( .I havent figured out how to post a photo so you just have to take the time to get the google view)

Your operations for Q 1 and Q3 should be combined into a single stop operation .

The traffic from the US enters Mexico then runs west alog the fence and enters the big terminal area .
(the picture on google is still of the route before the new I-5 connector straight in was completed )
You must get off the bike and enter the INM labeled building to get your FMM from Migracion .
At that point you can ask them to direct you to the Aduana where you arrange the TVIP .Simple
You get to fill out an application form , bilingual , and you pay about 32$US
for the FMM .
The TVIP costs about 59$US AND you put down 200/300/400 $US( it depends on the age of thebike) as a security deposit which is REFUNDABLE upon cancellation of the TVIP BEFORE it expires .

You are permitted to pay for EVERYTHING using a credit card or using cash (if you don't have a CC, or yours gets refused )
If paying in cash the FMM and the TVIP may be paid for in Dollars or in Pesos , (not a mix of the two for one item)
If paying cash the Security Deposit must always be given in US Dollars

A refund will be made in the same manner as when it was paid , If a CC was used the refund deposit goes back to the same card , if cash was the original payment method you will be given the refund in cash US dollars ..


NOTE : if you are going to exit Mexico in the south but intend to return to the USA within the 180 day validity of the TVIP you will be permitted to retain the TVIP while you go to Central America , and you will cancel it and collect the refund at the north border before you make your exit to the USA.


IF on the other hand you are going to stay in Central America or South America beyond the possibility of returning to the US in the 180 day window you should cancel the TVIP and collect your refundable deposit before entering Belize or Guatemala. THIS IS YOUR CHOICE , the border workers will not force you to decide , so know what you want.

The FMM must always be cancelled when going into Central America >When you return north into Mexico you will buy a new FMM which will have an expiry date in accord with that of your retained TVIP
If you did cancel both the TVIP and FMM you will have no trouble getting new replacements for both and again posting the security deposit .
.
2 Your compulsory liability insurance can be easily bought on-line or you could buy it in person from any number of vendors in San Ysidro along the streetside, and there will be reps for that type of insurance perhaps in the Mexican customs terminal
Shop around and buy it before crossing the border and before entering Mexican traffic past the terminal certainly ,

(all of thishas been posted here in some form earlier and could have been researched :innocent:)

I've found I don't need to know specific locations of anything at any border--too much clutter for my aging memory banks. If I know what I need, in this case FMM, TVIP, and insurance, I can just blunder around until I've got it all covered. Been doing that at hundreds of borders all over the world, and it's worked out just fine.

When knowledge is very specific, what happens when things change? You cross the border at another spot, the ATM doesn't work, the internet goes down, your informants are mistaken.... Better to take a step back and cultivate an understanding of the system itself, along with the confidence to muddle through any situation, anywhere.

Just my opinion, and I hope it's helpful--later if not now.

Mark

Mark hits the point exactly . Too much so-called planning is relying on old information , second hand re-tellings and reports by first timers willing to be helpful but missing important detail.

All one needs is the basic undertanding that you must get some documents for legal entry and then go to the border , get off the bike and ASK what is required and where to go to get that done .

There is no need to obsess about knowing every little detail beforehand in order to make a fast escape , as if there were actual danger in a border crossing .

Blundering about mostly works because most borders make it fairly clear that this is a place you need to stop your vehicle and THEN blunder about figuring where to go.
Heading into Baja, at least was the case 3 years ago at one crossing, there was virtually no indication that it was a border with actual offices to visit, with the result that many travellers found themselves at La Paz ready to get their TVIP before boarding the ferry only to be refused because they had no FMM, and the place they should have got it was way up north at the border.

Blunder at your own risk

Tony, you've done a lot of traveling. Did you really not know that you were crossing a border? Did you meet anyone who didn't know? This seems improbable, especially considering the ongoing militarization there, the building of silly walls and stringing of razor wire, the legions of uniformed personnel driving new 4x4 trucks.

Or were you aware of the border, but unaware of the necessary formalities? My point was that if you understand the general picture (TVIP, FMM, insurance), you'll look and ask around until you've figured it out. The specifics will change from one crossing to the next, and sometimes week by week or with daily shift changes. It's not necessary to search online for GPS coordinates and the colors of stucco.

Of course I have sympathy for anyone trying to board the ferry 1500 km from where they should have taken care of business. But that's as likely a product of over-reliance on old information--this used to be possible, but perhaps no longer--than anything else. My version of "blundering" is not what you're describing at all.

Sooner or later I'll get myself into trouble, and I'll be back on the HUBB eating crow....or maybe not. In the meantime, it's all "at my own risk."

Mark

Thanks for that!

Do you know if they pro-rate your coverage if you cancel early, by chance?

It is easy to cross at Tijuana, especially if it your first go, and not realize you have blown through the border zone until you are hopelessly downtown. I did it my first time and I’ve talked to others who have done same.

Generally blundering (which I do my fair share of) works out, but if border crossing is something new to you, and especially if you don’t speak Spanish, having as much information about what to expect and where to go helps a lot, and at Tijuana, I think, in particular (I recommend Tecate as a better option for this reason).

I found RTWPaul’s CA border crossing guide to be useful early on (even though some of the info was dated) but less so after I’d crossed a half dozen times. Then I just started “blundering”, for the most part, but I still read what the latest iOverlander entries have to say, just to avoid surprises.

I still remember the stress making those first few border crossings, and having as much info as possible definitely helps lower the anxiety. I’m sympathetic to those looking for the details.

Jim


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The example of the first timer running through the Mexican border without stopping for the required papers processing is not an example of blundering.
It is an example of ignorance and not being ready to ask questions , or expecting the Mexican border guards to babysit you through the process. The Mexican border does not work on the same policed control model as does the US border or the Canadian

If one is going to cross the border into Mexico it would seem logical to determine beforehand what the official documentation requirements are .
Once one knows what is needed it is only a question of getting your passport ,ownership and drivers license in order and going through the steps at the border to do those things .Not doing them is not a option .

The location of the service points can be worked out when you get to the border at whatever place you choose to cross , as long as it is an OFFICIAL point of entry .
As they say , ignorance is no excuse .


As to the question of whether an insurance will refund for unused days it may depend on what kind of insurance or the particular company's policy .
I used to buy trip insurance from Sanborns and never heard anything about such refunds so it was made a point to not buy excessive coverage time . The last decade I have been buying drivers license type of liability insurance each time for a full year . Obviously that does never come to a refund but the overall year cost is less than buying several individual trip policies .
It is a question of doing the arithmetic . If the number of days in Mexico is more than around 34 or thereabouts an annual DL -type policy is a far better deal for me . Also having a year long policy frees one from the need to hasten back out of Mexico by a deadline date ,much more relaxing .Having such a year-long DL policy then pemits me to make several trips in Mexico using a different bike or a car if I wish , and each time I will not need to spend time and money arranging a new ,short trip insurance policy .