At a glance
Citizens of Eritrea need a visa to visit Mexico, including to change planes at a Mexican airport. If you hold a valid visa from the United States, Canada, Japan, the United Kingdom or a Schengen country, or permanent residence in one of those countries or in Chile, Colombia or Peru (Pacific Alliance), you can enter Mexico as a visitor without a Mexican visa by showing that document with your passport. Otherwise, book an appointment at a Mexican consulate (citas.sre.gob.mx) and apply for the visitor visa before you travel.
Arriving in Mexico: passport and FMM
The FMM (Forma Migratoria Múltiple) is Mexico's visitor record. Arriving by air you no longer fill in a paper or online FMM: the officer stamps your passport with your permitted stay and you can download the digital FMM (FMMd) once, during your stay, via the QR code at the airport or the INM portal. Arriving by land you still complete a paper FMM.
INM requires a passport (or identity and travel document) that is valid under international law and in force; consular pages say it must be valid for your whole stay in Mexico. INM's general entry pages set no 6-month rule, though the Embassy in Ukraine's electronic-visa page asks for 6 months.
If you hold a US, Canadian, UK, Japanese or Schengen visa
Instead of a Mexican visa, foreigners of any nationality may show: a valid visa of Canada, the USA, Japan, the UK or any Schengen country; or proof of permanent residence in Canada, the USA, Japan, the UK, any Schengen country, or a Pacific Alliance country (Chile, Colombia, Peru); an APEC Business Travel Card approved by Mexico (air, business trips only); or aircrew/seafarer documents. This lets you enter as a visitor without permission to work (tourism, business, transit), up to 180 days.
Applying for a Mexican visa
Visa-required travellers apply in person at a Mexican consulate or embassy after booking an appointment at citas.sre.gob.mx. They attend an interview, give biometrics, and show a valid passport, proof of legal stay if not a national of the country where they apply, and evidence of ties or means (property, stable job, funds, or frequent travel). The visitor visa without permission to work is multiple-entry, valid up to 180 days, and the official maximum to decide is 10 working days. Fees under the Ley Federal de Derechos 2026: USD 56 for an ordinary visa, USD 54 for a long-duration visitor visa (up to 10 years), USD 321 for a visitor visa with permission to work. Some nationalities get the visitor visa free under agreements.
Official sources
Based on these official pages, checked 6 November 2026:
INM: Países y regiones que requieren visa para viajar a México (published 1 Mar 2024; includes the US/Canada/Japan/UK/Schengen visa-or-residence alternatives): https://www.inm.gob.mx/gobmx/word/index.php/paises-requieren-visa-para-mexico/
DOF: Lineamientos Generales para la expedición de visas que emiten las secretarías de Gobernación y de Relaciones Exteriores (signed 14 Jul 2025; visa types, fees by reference, 180-day cap, 10-working-day maximum, electronic visa): https://dof.gob.mx/nota_detalle_popup.php?codigo=5763837
SRE press release, 21 Oct 2023: Información para personas extranjeras en tránsito por México (visa needed even for airport transit from 22 Oct 2023): https://www.gob.mx/sre/prensa/informacion-para-personas-extranjeras-en-transito-por-mexico-349304
Ley Federal de Derechos 2026, consular fees in USD (art. 22), as published by the Consulate of Mexico in San José: https://consulmex.sre.gob.mx/sanjose/images/PDFs/2026/LFD_2026.pdf