Official Problems at One Place in Mexico

For as long was we’ve been publishing Latitude 38, which is since almost the beginning of time, Puerto Madero, more recently known as Puerto Chiapas, has had a spotty reputation in the cruising community. Theft from boats was a nagging problem over the years. Mexican officials also interpreted laws in a way that prevented boat owners from getting much-needed valuable gear, in one case a new engine and in another case a new mast. In addition, cruisers often complained of getting the runaround from officials, who often had their hands out. Furthermore, over the years a number of cruisers reported they’d been intimidated by locals and officials alike, and sometimes feared for their personal safety. There was also the case of an older American sailor who was found dead on his boat in curious circumstances not far from what was then known as Puerto Madero.

Chiapas is the poorest state in Mexico, and officials realized they needed to do something to help the area. As a result, they opened a cruise ship port in 2005, and more recently created Marina Chiapas. The marina, and particularly the staff of Enrique and Memo, have gotten excellent reviews. And in the last five to 10 years the bad reports out of Chiapas seem to have stopped. Unfortunately, we’ve received a report that officials in Chiapas, as well as Talisman, home to the nearest Banjercito, have made life miserable for at least one cruiser.

The problem is that the official at the Banjercito office — where foreign boat owners get their Temporary Import Permit (TIP) — claims that when a boat leaves Mexico, her TIP has to be canceled. This is simply not true. Once you get a TIP for your boat, you can enter and leave Mexico as much as you want without having to cancel it or get another one. To make things worse, the official insists that boats that left Mexico without canceling their TIP are subject to a daily fine since the day they left. This is also absolutely wrong, too.

To make the case even more curious, Enrique and Memo, the fluent-in-English managers at Marina Chiapas say this is the first time anybody they know of has been hit with this incorrect understanding of Mexican law.

Unfortunately, Mexican officials call the shots and have a lot of autonomy. As a result, one cruiser has had to: 1) Pay about $700 U.S. in fines; 2) Make five two-hour trips to the customs offices at two border crossings; 3) Spend $300 U.S. on cab fares; 4) Pay for eight extra days at Marina Chiapas; and 5) Waste 30 hours in various government offices.

Latitude has forwarded all of the pertinent information to Tere Grossman, president of the Mexican Marina Owners Association, to try to get the official(s) in the Chiapas area straightened out. Until that happens, we have to suggest that cruisers consider bypassing Puerto Chiapas. This isn’t convenient, as it means northbound boats can’t stop at Chiapas and wait in port for a safe time to cross the notorious Gulf of Tehuantepec. And southbound cruisers would have to make a longer jump across Tehuantepec from Huatulco. Nor is this good for Puerto Chiapas or Marina Chiapas, both of which are trying to become welcoming destinations for much-needed visitors.

That said, let’s keep things in perspective. To the best of our knowledge, this is the only case of a big TIP problem following the huge and disastrous TIP fiasco of 2013-2014. Not only do officials and cruisers seem to be getting along very well, the new online forms and instructions for getting TIPs are superior to the original ones. If the problem in Chiapas can be nipped in the bud, all would seem to be going pretty well.

If you’ve been through Puerto Chiapas in the last year, we’d like to hear about your experience.