Mexico to United States visa requirements

Mexican ordinary passport holders need a U.S. B-1/B-2 visitor visa (or a Border Crossing Card / "laser visa") to visit the United States for tourism. Mexico is not in the Visa Waiver Program, so there is no ESTA or visa-free option. As of June 2026, Mexico is not a participant in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program, so Mexican citizens cannot use ESTA and must obtain a visa before traveling for tourism. The standard option is the B-1/B-2 visitor visa, applied for via the DS-160 form online, payment of the $185 nonrefundable MRV fee, and usually an in-person interview at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate in Mexico. The visa is generally issued for multiple entries valid up to 10 years; the actual permitted stay, commonly up to 6 months, is set by a CBP officer at the port of entry. Mexican residents may instead receive the Border Crossing Card (Form DSP-150, the "laser visa"), which combines a B-1/B-2 visa with a land/sea border-crossing document for limited border travel; it is usually valid for 10 years. State's wait-time table was last updated on 18 June 2026 and showed Mexico B1/B2 next-available interview waits ranging from under half a month in Nogales to about 4 months in Ciudad Juarez, Hermosillo, and Matamoros; recent average waits were 4-6 months where listed. Mexico is on CBP's six-month passport-validity exemption list, so a Mexican passport needs to be valid for the intended period of stay rather than six months beyond it.