It took months, but as a U.S. Citizen, I finally got a Mexican Tax ID (RFC) and registered with AirBnb. Here is what you must do in order to have AirBnb withhold the ISR (income) and IVA (sales tax) and forward to the Mexican government:
1. You must obtain temporary or permanent residency. You should have a passport that will not expire during the time it takes to complete the entire process. It is extremely helpful to find a facilitator in the area where you own Mexican property. to help you through the entire process. It does not have to be a lawyer or accountant. This begins with a visit to the Mexican Consulate nearest you in the U.S. Be aware that in your interview, they will tell you that the purpose of a residency card is that you intend to move to Mexico. However, they do not require you to sell your home in the U.S. or prevent you from visiting or staying at your home in the U.S. Visit: https://consulmex.sre.gob.mx/sacramento/index.php/visas for more information. Each consulate office requires different documentation, some require more, some less. Be sure to check with the particular office you are going to. You MUST select the right kind of appointment (VISA), if you select the wrong kind of appointment, you will be wasting your time. NOTE: for U.S. Citizens, your nationality is: Estadounidense
a. Owning a property in Mexico helps to assure your approval. Bring the title with you to the Consulate.
b. If you already have a property in Mexico, be sure to have the electrical bill placed in your name. You will need this document through every stage of the process. You will need some kind of proof of your Mexican address.
2. Once the Consulate approves you for temporary or permanent residency, you have 180 days to travel to Mexico. Once in Mexico, you have 30 days to go to the Immigration (INM) office in the Mexican province (county) of your Mexican address. Some offices require appointments, some don't. This is where your facilitator will be of great help. Have them get you that appointment as soon as you receive your Visa from the Consulate. Some INM offices are faster than others, you may have to come back a second time to get your residency card. A second visit could take anywhere from three weeks to two months. I got my residency card the same day, but I waited 4.5 hours. You may need to bring chairs, water, lunch, etc. Your facilitator will know how the office is currently operating. If you can travel during low tourist times, your chances of minimal wait times are better. The residency card is your CURP - which identifies you as a resident or citizen, but does NOT serve as a Mexican Tax ID - that is an RFC.
3. As soon as you have your residency card, your facilitator should make an appointment at the nearest SAT office located in the province of your Mexican address. It took me more than one month to get an appointment after I got my residency card. My facilitator said he got me on a waiting list even before I got my residency card. Some SAT offices may accept walk-ins. This is where your facilitator can be of service once again as not all SAT offices operate the same. My experience was, I got my RFC and Fiel (electronic signature) on the same day in 1.5 hours.
4. Upload your RFC to AirBnb. Click on your picture Avatar > Accounts > Payments & Payouts > Taxes. You should see a button "Add International Taxpayer." I could not see this option and had to be relentless with AirBnb support for 4 days to get them to finally add that button. Click on your Avatar > Help > Contact Us.
5. Airbnb says the 16% VAT is automatically charged to the guest and should be a part of your withholding certificate. You should not need to add additional fees for this.
6. Taxes need to be filed every month on the 17th. This is why you need an accountant. Often it is an accountant who serves as the facilitator to help with the residency process.
7. Once you have uploaded your RFC to AirBnb, you will receive an email from AirBnb on how to login to Facturify.com to download your withholding certificates.
8. You should be able to continue to send payouts to the US. I pay all my Mexican bills either through Xoom.com (CFE) or XE.com (Property Manager), etc. I use my CapitalOne credit card (no fees, great rates) and my Credit Union ATM (low fees, great rates). My accountant told me it is not required that I send payments to a Mexican bank, so I have not opened a Mexican bank account. But plan to stay a little longer in Mexico if that is something you and your accountant feel you need.
9. Understand what a factura is. You can't write off anything on your Mexican taxes without a factura. http://www.bajainsider.com/article/what-factura-official-tax-deductable-document.
That's it. I started this journey in late January 2022 and completed it all the way through on May 7, 2022. It was not easy, but I finally made it.
