On January 9, 2017, Mexico’s Instituto Nacional de Migración (INM) will launch a clemency program for undocumented migrants who entered the country prior to January 2015.
All those applying for legalization in the Programa Temporal de Regularización Migratoria (Temporary Program for the Regularization of Migrants) can count on federal guarantees that they will not be deported or persecuted in any way, according to the INM. Neither will they be asked to pay for their application,
Even those working illegally have the chance to legalize their status, as long as they can prove they have been resident in the country for the specified time.
If their applications are successful, the migrants will be granted four-year temporary residency visas, ether with or without work permits.
Applicants will be asked to provide documentation to verify their identities and must not have criminal records. If an applicant’s original immigration document on entering the country is unavailable, the INM will accept other documents that prove the length of their stay in Mexico.
The program will run through December 2017.