I can speak from my experience as a Salvadoran/Latin American where visa restrictions affect Northbound travel. * Take El Salvador and Mexico: They are two co

I can speak from my experience as a Salvadoran/Latin American where visa restrictions affect Northbound travel. * Take El Salvador and Mexico: They are two countries that are close to each other, they also share language and have historical events in common. It is just a 1.5 hour flight from San Salvador to Mexico City, or a 7 hour drive from border to border. If someone from El Salvador wants to travel to Mexico for business purposes or tourism, and they would be required to have a US/EU visa or do the following: Estimated time required | Task 30 min | Make an appointment (next available slot is in three months) ??? | Have a monthly income higher than 100 days of the mexican capital. This excludes most of Salvadorans, I'd have to check the Labour Ministry for the statistics though. 1 hour | Research mexican minimum wages, convert currency and evaluate if you can apply. 1/2 day | Proof of income signed by the manager /HR / accountant of the company 1/2 day | Notarized copy of the Tax ID and National ID of the signee of the proof of income letter 1/2 day | Notarized copu of the Tax ID and terms of incorporation of the company 2-4 hrs | Account statements of the past six months in official bank letterheard, in a letter format, addressed to the Mexican embassy. 2 hrs | Photo taken according to the specifications in a photo studio. 4 hrs | Hotel / airplane reservations 3 months | Wait for appointment 1hr-6hr | Drive to the Embassy in the capital. 1/2 day | Day of appointment. 5 min | Interview/Aprpoval/Rejection 1 day | Wait for passport to be handed in Visa price: It's actually free :) Other circumstances can cause more paperwork: If company or family members is paying your expenses, or if a Mexican company is inviting you. El Salvador is around haldway on the Passport rankings, and this is not the most complicated case. There is a Mexican Embassy in El Salvador, no translations or apostilles are needed for documentation, and the country is small enough to allow for same day travel to the embassy. Somtimes it requires travelling to another country for the visa interview, mailing your passport and having no passport in the meantime, or to have biometrics taken in a third country (!) * Some countries don't ask for a local visa if the traveller has a US/EU visa. Like Salvadorans don't need a Mexican Visa if they have a US/EU visa. Or Nicaraguans to Costa Rica. Or Ecuadorians to El Salvador.