American Citizen Services Unit U.S. Consulate General Guadalajara

Emergency Services

Arrest of a US Citizen Abroad	Welfare-Whereabouts of a US Citizen
Death of a US Citizen Abroad	Lost/Stolen Travel Documents
Financial Problems Overseas	Legal Assistance
Child Custody

 
Arrest of a US Citizen Abroad
Thousands of Americans are arrested in Mexico every year. The most frequent charges include drunk and disorderly behavior, involvement in a traffic accident, possession of a firearm, and drug trafficking. While in Mexico, Americans are subject to Mexican law. If arrested in Mexico, a citizen must go through the Mexican legal process for being charged or indicted, prosecuted, and possibly convicted and sentenced. Within this framework, the Consulate General provides a wide variety of services to US citizens arrested in the states of Jalisco, Aguascalientes, Colima, and Nayarit.

Mexican authorities usually notify the Consulate General promptly when an American is arrested. However, if you are aware of the arrest of an American in the states of Jalisco, Aguascalientes, Colima, or Nayarit, please do not hesitate to notify us. If they were arrested in another Mexican State, click here to find out which Consulate to contact. Please provide as much of the following information as possible:

• Name of the arrested person
• Date and place of birth
• Date of arrest
• Place of detention
• Nature of the charges

Once the Consulate General has been notified of the arrest, a consular officer will personally visit the detainee as soon as possible, usually within 24 hours if he/she is being held in the Guadalajara area. Detainees in the Puerto Vallarta area will be visited promptly by our consular agent there. If the American is being held outside of Guadalajara or Puerto Vallarta, a consular officer will speak to him/her by telephone within 24 hours, and make a personal visit soon thereafter.

The consular officer’s role is generally limited to visiting the prisoner to ensure that he/she has not been mistreated and to passing on messages to family members according to the detainee’s instructions. If the detainee claims to have been mistreated by the authorities, the consular officer will verify the allegations and file a protest, as appropriate.

Due to protections afforded by the Privacy Act, the Consulate is prohibited from sharing information about an arrested American unless he/she explicitly authorizes us to do so.

The Consulate General also typically provides the arrested citizen a list of attorneys who speak English. If the detained American is formally charged, the trial will typically take up to one year. Depending on the charges, bail may or may not be an option during the trial.

Under Mexican law, automobile accidents resulting in personal injuries or property damage are treated as criminal cases. Persons involved may be detained up to 72 hours if reason exists for formal detention and prosecution. Persons may be detained pending trial unless bail is arranged. In such circumstances, the services of a competent attorney are indispensable.

It is illegal to bring firearms into Mexico. For information on firearms arrests in Mexico, click here.

The United States and Mexico have a Prisoner Transfer Treaty, which allows prisoners who have been sentenced and have no appeals pending to be transferred to a prison in their home country to serve the remainder of their term. For information on this program, please click here.

For more information on what consular officer can/cannot do to assist Americans incarcerated overseas, please click here.

Death of a US Citizen Abroad
When an American citizen dies abroad, a consular officer notifies the American’s family and informs them about options and costs for disposition of remains. Costs for preparing the body and returning it to the United States can be high and must be paid by the family. The ACS Unit prepares a Report of Death based on the Mexican death certificate, which is then forwarded to the next of kin for use in estate and insurance matters.

To notify us of the death of a US citizen in the Mexican States of Jalisco, Aguascalientes, Nayarit, or Colima, please click here.

The following links provide additional information about the death of an American overseas:

Consular Report of Death of a US Citizen Abroad
Return of Remains of Deceased Americans
Estates of Deceased US Citizens
Inter-country Transfer of the Proceeds of an Estate
Affidavit of Surviving Spouse or Next of Kin

Financial Problems Overseas
If an American citizen traveling in the Guadalajara area finds himself/herself without access to funds for whatever reason, he/she must seek assistance from traveling companions or friends/relatives in the United States. There are no facilities for cashing checks at the Consulate General.

In case of emergency, there are several ways to send money to an American in distress overseas.

Child Custody
On many occasions, a parent involved in a custody dispute with his/her estranged or ex-spouse has abducted the child and fled to Mexico or another foreign country. Since the early 1970s, the State Department’s Office of Children’s Issues has been contacted regarding the cases of more than 11,000 American children who were either abducted from the United States or prevented from returning to the United States by one of the parents.

Obviously, it can be extremely difficult for the left-behind parent to deal with these situations. There is recourse, however. Through the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction, to which the United States and Mexico are signatories, a mechanism exists for the left-behind parent to recover custody of the child. The State Department’s Office of Children’s Issues is the US central authority for handling Hague Convention cases.

Consular officers cannot take sides in a custody dispute. The US Consulate General Guadalajara’s ACS Unit can play only a very limited—albeit important—role while the custody dispute is being resolved through the Hague Convention process. Basically, if asked by the left-behind parent, a consular officer may check on the well-being of the child. The ACS Unit makes every effort to deal with these requests in a prompt and caring manner. These requests should generally be made through the State Department’s Office of Children’s Issues.

International Parental Child Abduction - Mexico
International Parental Child Abduction Handbook

Welfare/Whereabouts of a US Citizen
The ACS Unit is occasionally contacted by US citizens who are worried about a US citizen relative with whom they have lost contact and/or appears to have disappeared in the Guadalajara area (including the states of Jalisco, Aguascalientes, Colima, and Nayarit). The ACS staff makes every effort to find the missing person, checking with the most likely hospitals, police departments and hotels. It is important that the person requesting this assistance provide as much information as possible about the missing person and his/her circumstances at the time of disappearance, including any of the following that may be available:

• Complete name
• Date of birth
• Place of birth
• Physical description
• Last known address
• Date of disappearance
• Last known location
• Circumstances of disappearance
• Names and contact information of any individuals the missing person may have been traveling with or planning to see at the time of the disappearance

To make a welfare/whereabouts inquiry by email, please click here.

Please keep in mind that, even if the ACS staff locates the subject of the inquiry, the Privacy Act would prohibit us from disclosing any information about his/her situation unless he/she authorizes us to do so. Absent a Privacy Act waiver, the ACS Unit will only be able to inform the subject of the inquiry that his/her relatives are concerned and would like to be contacted.

Lost/Stolen Travel Documents
US citizens are not currently required to have a passport in order to travel to/from Mexico. They merely need to provide proof of identification (such as a valid driver’s license) and proof of citizenship (such as a certified copy of their US birth certificate).

Americans traveling in Mexico occasionally lose their travel documents or have them stolen. In order to return to the United States, he/she must either:

• Obtain new copies of their birth certificate and ID
• Acquire a replacement passport

If your US passport has been lost or stolen in Mexico, you should fill out form DS-64, Statement Regarding Lost or Stolen Passport, and submit it the nearest US consular office.

EVERYTHING LOST OR STOLEN -WHAT TO DO?

Many travelers to the Guadalajara area have experienced problems after personal belongings like credit cards, ATM cards, travelers/bank checks, drivers licenses and passports were lost or stolen.

For the replacement of LOST OR STOLEN U.S. PASSPORTS, please contact the Passport and Citizenship Unit at the American Consulate General, Guadalajara, Progreso 175, tel. 3268-2173 or 3268-2273. U.S. DRIVERS LICENSES must be replaced through the original state of issuance, and the American Consulate cannot issue any kind of confirmation for you to rent or drive a car. Other lost or stolen items must be reported to the respective companies or their representatives.

To report lost or stolen credit cards call as follows:

AMERICAN EXPRESS

Lost/stolen credit card and /or travelers checks: 01-800-712-0202 and
01-800-001-3600

V I S A

Lost/stolen credit card: 01-800-847-2911
(You will need your PIN to access their system)

Lost/stolen travelers checks: 01-800-123-4826

MASTER CARD

Lost/stolen credit card: 001-800-307-7309

DINERS CLUB

Lost/stolen credit card: 001-303-799-1504

Please remember that you will need a valid passport or drivers license before you will be entitled to any credit transaction.

 

Legal Assistance
Consular officers are prohibited from offering legal advice or interfering in the legal process of a foreign country. Individuals with complex legal problems in Mexico should consult a competent attorney who has expertise in the relevant area. The US Consulate General Guadalajara maintains a list of attorneys who speak English and have indicated an interest in defending American clients.