Haitians in Mexico

By The Haitian times
www.haitiantimes.com 

MEXICO — Mexico’s National Institute of Migration granted 41,409 humanitarian visas to Haitians in 2021, making Haitians the largest group among many nationalities to receive that type of entry document. A recent report by Mexico’s Migration Policy Department, or Unidad de Política Migratoria, provides the statistics.

The visa, called Visitors Permit due to Humanitarian Concerns, or Tarjetas de Visitantes por Razones Humanitarias, allows Haitians to apply for jobs and housing in Mexico for a one-year period. In December 2021 alone, the report shows, about 70% of these visas were granted.

The increase in humanitarian visas took place as Mexico’s National Migration Institute was relocating Haitians from Tapachula, Chiapas to other cities. 

A Dec. 5, 2021 Facebook post from the Haitian embassy in Mexico shared information on the relocation program.

“Congratulations to INAMI (Instituto Nacional de Migracion) and the Consulate of Haiti in Tapachula who were able to get 65 buses out of Tapachula on Saturday December 4, 2021 to other cities for a total of 2,951 Haitians. Good work,” read the post.

Tapachula, bordering Guatemala in the south of Mexico, is the main entry point for Haitians arriving from Chile and Brazil, and where most requests for asylum are made. 

Because Mexican migration law says asylum seekers must complete the asylum applications in the department where their initial requests were made, tens of thousands of Haitians had been waiting for months in Tapachula.

The visa will allow Haitian asylum seekers to begin settling throughout Mexico, as many have decided to stay in the country after abandoning plans to reach the United States.

Haitians slowly joining formal labor force in Mexicali, Mexico

MEXICALI — About 170 Haitians are now employed at businesses that are part of Coparmex Mexicali, an advocacy and support group comprising local businesses, despite the slow pace of hiring of immigrants, reported El Imparcial. 

Most of the jobs are in the textile industry, which has the greatest number of openings, Octavio Sandoval López, president of Coparmex Mexicali, told El Imparcial. 

Sandoval López said hiring had been stagnant due to the difficulty of getting an appointment with the Tax Administration Service and because many Haitians don’t have a physical address in the city. 

To date, local authorities have granted 200 appointments to Haitians to initiate the process of getting a Tax ID so they can seek employment.

Haitians, including 14 pregnant, moved from shelter to house ‘Stay in México’ refugees

MEXICALI — A group of 81 Haitians were relocated from a shelter in División del Norte, Mexicali, to make room for a group of Mexicans who are part of the ‘Stay in México’ program, reported Pregoreno de Baja California.

The United States government’s ‘Stay in Mexico’ program, officially known as Migrant Protocols Program, allows for asylum seekers who arrive in the U.S. by land to be returned to Mexico to wait while their immigration case is processed in the U.S.
The Haitians, which included 14 pregnant women, were relocated to various shelters in Mexicali during the weekend of Feb. 11, according to the Pregoreno report.

Haitian children allowed to attend school in Nuevo León

NUEVO LEÓN, Mexico — The Secretary of Education of Nuevo León, México, declared that Haitian children will receive the support necessary to continue their education. That support will include making Haitian Creole teachers available in the schools, Telediario reported on Feb. 15.