- CURP (Unique Population Registry Code): This is a unique identity alphanumeric code, made up of 18 characters used to officially identify residents and Mexican citizens all over the country. The CURP is needed for governmental processes, as well as the RFC.
- The RFC (Federal Registry of Contributors): this is a code that is required for all physical or moral persons in Mexico to carry out any legal, economic activity for which you are required to pay taxes, with some exceptions.
- Asylum Application: This is a right that all foreign persons have when they have been obligated to leave their countries of origin because of persecution and their lives, liberty and security are in danger. This process is carried out at the Mexican Commission of Assistance to Refugees, who is the authority in charge of deciding whether or not to grant someone this status. This process in Mexico is called, Process of Recognition of Refugee Status.
- Negative Resolution: This is the response that an authority issues when they are denying the application that was submitted. In the case of asylum seekers, this response can be issued by COMAR if they decide to deny an asylum application or the INM can also issue this decision when denying an application for a visitor’s card for humanitarian reasons or for permanent residency. This decision must likewise be well-founded and justified and is subject to appeal.
- Judicial Review:This is a defense mechanism that can be presented when there has been a denial by COMAR or the INM, the purpose of which is to show evidence that the resolution was not made in conformity with the law and the case was not analyzed adequately. This is presented to the same authority that made the original decision in the case.
- Nullity proceedings: This is a means of defense that can be used by anyone against denials of a judicial review or against acts committed by COMAR or the INM that affect the person negatively, that affect their rights or because of violations to the applied law, or because of the lack of application of some piece of legislation. This is presented in front of the competent chamber of the Federal Tribunal of Administrative Justice.
- Visitor’s Card for Humanitarian Reasons: This is the status that allows foreign persons to live in the country in a temporary manner, because of having been the victim of or witness to a crime, because of humanitarian reasons or because they have applied for asylum.
- Temporary Residency: This is the immigration status that authorizes foreign persons to remain in Mexico temporarily, for a maximum of 4 years. This status can be renewed each year or for longer periods.
- Permanent Residency: This is an immigration status that allows foreign persons to remain in Mexico for an indefinite period, with a work permit, and the ability to enter and leave the country as many times as they want. This process is carried out at the INM.
- Immigration Alert: This is an alert that appears at the INM registry when some process is submitted or when someone goes through an immigration authority checkpoint. These alerts often come up as a coincidence, when your name coincides with someone else’s that is already registered on those lists, and in other cases, your name might come up because you did not comply with a requirement of the immigration authority or, in more particular cases, your name could come up when it is regarding issues that affect national security.
- Social Security: This is a public health service to which all employees have the right to be affiliated, and they can also enroll direct family members in the service (spouses, children and parents).
- Seguro Popular: This is a public health service to which all people can be affiliated that are not affiliated with any other institution of this type, like IMSS or ISSSTE.
- Physical person: This is a commonly used legal and tax term. In general, it refers to a person that works as an employee for a company or they work independently.
- Moral person: This is a commonly used legal and tax term. In general, it refers to an organization that has been granted its own legal identity, such as a company.
- Community Health Center: This is a public institution which provides health services at a reasonable price, especially to the population that don’t have access to social security services.
- Employment application: This is a form that is commonly required when you are looking for work. It contains, among other things, personal information, academic information and work experience. It is easy to find in paper stores and it costs around $1 peso.
- Résumé or CV: This is a document where someone who is searching for a job summarizes their abilities, academic formation and work experience.
- INM (National Institute of Migration): This is a department of the government that is in charge of applying the current immigration legislation. They assist foreign persons that wish to stay in Mexico on a temporary or permanent basis, as well as Mexicans that employ foreigners and those who would like to establish ties with a foreign person.
- COMAR (Mexican Commission of Assistance to Refugees): Governmental Institution that directs, protects and executes the policies regarding protection and assistance to those who have requested refugee status and those designated as refugees, in accordance with international treaties established by the Mexican government.
- ACNUR (The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees): This is the institution of the United Nations that is in charge of protecting refugees and people displaced by persecution or conflicts. They also promote lasting solutions to these situations, through voluntary resettlement of people in their country of origin or in a host country.
- Economic Activity: An action carried out by a person, business, company or establishment with the goal of producing goods and services for the marketplace. This includes agricultural production for self-consumption and communal construction projects.
- Negative Resolution or Denial: This is a denial of an application for an administrative process.
- Legal Protection (Amparo, in Spanish): This is a legal recourse where a judge is asked to respect the human rights that were violated in an administrative process.
- Immigration authority: This is a public official that exercises legal authority specifically used in certain functions and acts, in the immigration sphere.
- Agreement for readmission: An act where a foreigner is authorized to reenter the country after being deported.
- Asylee: Any foreign person that is recognized as such in the terms of the Law for Refugees, Complementary Protection and Political Asylum.
- Stateless person: Any person that is not considered a national of any country, according to their legislation. The law concedes equal treatment upon those who have a nationality that may not currently be in effect.
- Legal immigration Status: Legal status which is afforded to a foreign person in regard to their intention to reside in the country, and in some cases, in regard to the economic activity that they carry out in the country, or regarding humanitarian criteria or due to international solidarity.
- Immigration Detention Center: Installations authorized to temporarily house foreigners that do not have legal immigration status, while they resolve their situation.
- Immigration checkpoint: This is border checkpoint, where people are either approved or denied entry into Mexico.
- Complementary protection: Protection afforded to foreign persons that have not been recognized as refugees. This is consistent with not returning people to another country where their life is threatened or where they would be in danger of being subjected to torture or other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment.
- Refugee: Any foreign person that is located within national territory that is recognized as a refugee by the competent authority, in accordance with treaties and international conventions to which Mexico is a part and the current legislation.
- Assisted return: Procedure through which the National Institute of Migration forces a foreign person to abandon the country, returning them to their country of origin or of habitual residence.
- Immigration status: This refers to the hypothesis in which a foreign person is either in compliance or not with the legal immigration provisions, for entering and remaining in the country. It is considered that the person has legal immigration status when they have complied with the aforementioned provisions of the law, and a person without legal immigration status, contrarily, has not complied with said dispositions.
- Immigration process: Whatever request or delivery of information that is formulated by physical or moral persons in relation to the immigration authority, in order to comply with a requirement, to obtain a benefit or service in relation to an immigration case with the intention of coming to a resolution in that case, as well as any other document that the aforementioned people are required to save, with the exception of documents or information that only may need to be presented in relation to an INM requirement.