Mexico or United States
Two countries side by side across the same rows as the full comparison. A dash means the value is missing: fields are not filled with guesses. about the data
| Mexico | United States | |
|---|---|---|
| Salary in IT | $ 17 184 | $ 133 146 |
| Citizenship | 5 years | 5 years |
| Partner can work | yes | yes |
| Parents | doable | doable |
| Pets | no trouble | no trouble |
| Pet limit | 3 | no limit |
| Quarantine | no | no |
| Residence permit fee | — | — |
| Rent, 2 bedrooms | $ 1 511 · estimate | $ 5 281 |
| Basket | $ 32,7 | $ 50,1 |
| Life expectancy | 75.26 | 78.89 |
| Homicides/100k | 25.64 | 5.76 |
| Natural hazards, 0–10 | 6.5 | 7 |
How the two sets of routes differ
Long-stay routes in this reference: Mexico — 61, United States — 63. Types present in both: work, study, family, investment, talent and retirement. Mexico adds: working holiday. United States adds: startup and repatriation.
Fees, thresholds and deadlines
Mexico: fees range from 248 to 13,579 MXN. Routes with a published decision deadline: 47; the shortest is 1 days. United States: fees range from 100 to 3,675 USD. Routes with no fee: 7.
Beyond the first permit
Permanent status: Mexico after 4 years; the other country publishes no term. Citizenship: both after 5 years. United States allows a second citizenship, Mexico does not.
Mexico in brief
Residence visas based on income or savings (Residente Temporal → Permanente) are used by digital nomads and retirees; permanent status follows four years of temporary residence, and naturalisation comes after five years with an exam in Spanish, history and culture. The family provisions stand out: parents are in the family-unity circle directly rather than through exceptional dependency, and the parents of a Mexican or of a permanent resident get permanent status straight away. The other side is the renunciation required at naturalisation: the 1998 dual-citizenship rule covers Mexicans by birth, not those being naturalised. Homicide and corruption are above the Latin American average and risks vary sharply between regions. IT salaries on the available sources are well below European levels.
United States in brief
The United States offers several employment immigration routes (H-1B by lottery, L-1 for intra-company transfers, O-1 for people of extraordinary ability) and some of the world's highest IT salaries, but moving to employment-based permanent residence (EB-2/EB-3) can take years — and noticeably longer for those born in India and China because of per-country queues. Citizenship comes after 5 years of residence and dual citizenship is allowed. Only a US citizen can sponsor parents, not a green card holder. There is no universal healthcare system, and natural hazards (hurricanes, wildfires, earthquakes, tornadoes) vary substantially by region.
Other comparisons
Mexico or… Canada
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This material is for reference and is not legal, tax or immigration advice. Visa rules, tax thresholds and prices change. Before deciding anything, check the official sources and consult a licensed professional in the relevant country.