V-Flyer

My friend is going out to Mexico next month to get married, and has been told that she has to pay $50 per person at the airport on her return journey in order to be allowed to leave the country.

Why dollars and not Mexican Pesos anyway?

I have never heard of anything like this before, does anyone know if it's correct and what's it all about[?]

thelaceys

quote:Originally posted by thelaceys
My friend is going out to Mexico next month to get married, and has been told that she has to pay $50 per person at the airport on her return journey in order to be allowed to leave the country.

Why dollars and not Mexican Pesos anyway?

I have never heard of anything like this before, does anyone know if it's correct and what's it all about[?]

thelaceys


Only my one and only trip to Mexico a couple of years back (once is MORE than enough to that place) I was not charged anythng to cross the border back to the USA.

quote:Originally posted by hackneyguy
quote:Originally posted by thelaceys
My friend is going out to Mexico next month to get married, and has been told that she has to pay $50 per person at the airport on her return journey in order to be allowed to leave the country.

Why dollars and not Mexican Pesos anyway?

I have never heard of anything like this before, does anyone know if it's correct and what's it all about[?]

thelaceys




Only my one and only trip to Mexico a couple of years back (once is MORE than enough to that place) I was not charged anythng to cross the border back to the USA.





Hmmm, interesting, they were told that they had to put $50 dollars inside each passport when they handed them over at check in and friends who have been before say they have seen the staff just throw the money into a box. Tea club perhaps[}:)]

Someone is playing games, they do not have to pay to leave

I did a quick Google. There is a Mexican Departure tax that is levied. Sometimes it is including in the ticket and sometimes not. Looks like the departure fee is higher for non-Americans, Canadians, and Mexicans. Also looks like charter operators do not include that tax in the ticket. Without further details I cannot further advise.

Also many countries in Central and Southern America and Caribbean collect departure taxes in USD as more folks will have USD rather than the local currency. USD tends to be more stable than the local currency too.

quote:Originally posted by mcmbenjamin
I did a quick Google. There is a Mexican Departure tax that is levied. Sometimes it is including in the ticket and sometimes not. Looks like the departure fee is higher for non-Americans, Canadians, and Mexicans. Also looks like charter operators do not include that tax in the ticket. Without further details I cannot further advise.

Also many countries in Central and Southern America and Caribbean collect departure taxes in USD as more folks will have USD rather than the local currency. USD tends to be more stable than the local currency too.


Ahhh, I see, thought it was all a bit strange. Suppose different countries do things in different ways. Thank you for that. I will tell my friend, she will just have to save up a bit more money [:(]

thelaceys

Hmmm that is interesting, I have never gotten hit for a departure tax, but as you say it may well be added into the cost of my tickets.

Is it the company they booked with saying this ?

If it was me I would have the money ready, but not folded up in a passport, this will just cause more problems than it can cure.

I suggest you have your friend speak with the airline she is traveling on to see whether the tax is included in the cost of the ticket.

Chuck-

I remember paying departure tax years ago when leaving from Puerto Vallarta - this was also on a charter airline if it's just the charters that don't include the tax on their tickets.

Looked at some blogs/other forums and looks like some charters do not include the taxes as Tinkerbelle pointed out.

Taxes could also vary on the country that issued your passport. Many Latin American do this.

I went with Thomas Cook five years ago and didnt pay the tax.

Canada used to do something similar, before they started having to include the 'Airport Improvement Fee' into the ticket prices themselves as a 'tax'.

quote:Originally posted by mcmbenjamin


Taxes could also vary on the country that issued your passport. Many Latin American do this.


True, but I travel on a UK passport, Jenn on a US one, neither of us have paid a departure tax.

Yes there is a departure tax !


According to AS it is up to $33, but it should be built into the cost of the ticket, there you go, learn something every day [:I]

A few years ago we went to Gambia and once air side the cases were lined up on the runway and everyone was asked to walk out to identify them before they were put on the plane. A policeman stood between the passengers and the cases and charged everyone before they were allowed onto the tarmac. An hour later they did it all over again. You just knew it was a scam but there wasn't anything you could do about it.

quote:Originally posted by preiffer
Canada used to do something similar, before they started having to include the 'Airport Improvement Fee' into the ticket prices themselves as a 'tax'.


Certainly at YVR for a couple of decades I used to have to shell out CAD15 or so in cold hard cash if I was departing that day from the airport and not transferring. I never figured out why this didn't apply to transferring pax, or why it wasn't simply included in the price of the ticket.

The same applied at NRT about 20 years ago, about 200 yen as I remember, very many years ago when I was working over there: it was rather a shock the first time as that was earmarked for my beer money in the departure lounge (no premium cabin and lounges for H back in those days).

H