Applying for residency-I'm nervous.

We did it 5 years ago this month, and it was a very positive experience.

We emailed our local Consulate and told them of our plans to apply for Temporary Residency in hopes of being able to retire in Mexico someday. Oswald sent us yet another list of the requirements and encouraged us to ask questions about the requirements and to email him copies of everything when we thought we had them ready. We sent them to him, he suggested a few changes and tweeks and finally told us we were ready to make an appointment. In Oxnard, they offered two appointments two days a week. Even 5 years ago we had to wait a month for our appointments.

When we arrived, we found out that our person was Oswaldo!!! Perfect English, very nice, as we had already discovered on line. He took all of our paperwork, leafed through it quickly and said, "I've seen all of this before, and it's all correct!"

As a note, a few of our items didn't fit exactly into their requirements. Certain bank accounts were only in my name, some account balances were for 6 months, not a year, but he was happy with them. Try your best.

He told us he had neglected to tell us that we had to write a paragraph or short essay about why we wanted to live in Mexico and handed us two pens, two clipboards and two blank pieces of paper. Writing is easy for both of us, so it only took a couple of minutes. Then the Consul came down to "interview" us. A very nice woman whose English was about on par with our Spanish. She wanted to know if we already had property, where we would like to live and why. The three of us wished we had better communication skills because it was fun and interesting.

We were sent to another window to pay for our visas, Oswaldo shook our hands, thanked us and sent us on our way. It took just under an hour.

Relax, it's a cool experience. Get your paperwork checked before you go to your appointment if you can. Be prepared to write a paragraph and meet the Consul. Also be aware that at least in our case, none of your paperwork is returned to you except your passports. Marriage license, bank statements, nothing returned.

Congratulations!!! You are almost here forever! Next step, Citizenship!!!