ATTENTION UW PHOTOGRAPHERS:

[drjtprice]

In many parts of the World, professionals in parks (private as well as National or State) will need to pay a fee. The reasoning is that if you are going to make money off of your footage in the park then they want a cut.
Knowing what is professional gear, or not, is impossible for customs agents. So, they target anything that looks like it is professional (and big, especially with video cameras). Never mind that some Hollywood films have been shot on iPhones
Professional videographers usually go through the hassle of getting a Carnet for their gear. Whether this would work in Mexico ir not I have no idea. Yes, most of you are not professional in that sense, but the customs people don't believe what you say (and this is true of residents returning to the country as well) so a Carnet may or may not be an option.
Mexican customs has always seemed to work off of the how it looks philosophy. I used to work at a shop in the US near the border. Every evening I had to clean the parking lot of all the packing material and boxes from the items that Mexican residents bought and then unpacked so they get through customs.

 

[drjtprice]

I checked and Mexico has been an ATA Carnet country since 2011. Probably not worth the hassle for rare trips but if you travel there frequently...note that it is not unheard of (albeit rare) to be challenged on gear when you come back into the US, especially if it looks new.

 

[Zanna0919]

It is extortion, plain and simple. They aren’t only hitting up professionals. I went through Cabo in September with a TG5 and a housing. Customs agent said I had to pay 16% tax on the cost of the housing. I argued with him but to no avail. I told him price of the housing which he then reduced by $100. Told me I owed $32 dollars, but then took $25 when I said that was all I had. I have flown through this airport multiple times to go to Socorro and the Sea of Cortez. Won’t be going back due to this highway robbery.

 

[drjtprice]

The bottom line is that professionals (as in, BBC level) will have Carnets. There is NO WAY to tell a professional from a non-professional as both can use the same toys (mostly, I don't think I know of any non-professionals with a RED camera, but the Blackmagic is reviewed on SB). I agree the ones being screwed are the non-professionals but a Carnet is always an option to look at. Just hope your gear doesn't get stolen as then you are out the Carnet bond and your gear.

 

[Karen Schofield]

Was that on the way in or the way out?

They stop you on your way into the country at Customs.

 

[Karen Schofield]

Now that I have returned from Baja California, Mexico, here is what I know 1st hand. If you fly into Cabo San Lucas or into La Paz, Mexico, expect to pay a fee if the Customs agents stop you and notice that you have an underwater housing. The agent will Google the housing on the spot to see it’s worth, then demand that you pay 16% of that price. Many new DSLR UW housings are $4,000 or more. You will pay $640 US dollars to use that fancy new housing in Baja Mexico.

I ran into a pro photographer that I know who happened to be staying in the same hotel. He was leading a small underwater photo tour in La Paz. The vacationers were all from Switzerland and they all told me that they had to pay exorbitant fees for their camera housings and their video housings at La Paz airport even though they were all amateurs themselves.

Customs officials are targeting underwater photographers at the airport in Cabo and in La Paz. If you have a hard-sided protective travel case for your gear they will stop you. The customs agent said I was allowed 2 cameras and the things that go along with that, BUT an underwater housing must be taxed by Mexican customs laws even if you are not a professional. The Customs agent showed me the documentation regarding this law.

I told the officer that my housing was old and maybe worth $200 which is true since it is 7 years old. He got out his cell phone and looked up the model name and number (Olympus PT-EP08 UW case for E-M5) and said it was worth at least $300. In order for me to enter the country and use MY OWN underwater camera case for personal use (I do not earn a living by photography nor do I sell my photos online or in another way) I had to pay $50 US dollars to keep my housing with me.

FYI: Customs officers in Cabo San Lucas airport take credit cards BTW.


Even though Cabo/La Paz is the nearest warm water diving destination to my home, this will be my last vacation here for underwater photography. If you have a nondescript, soft-sided carry-on suitcase that you can carry all of you underwater housings in, then do it. If you have to check your underwater housings through with a hard case and your dive gear is packed in a bag with a diving insignia on it, they will stop you. If they find an underwater camera housing in you luggage, the Mexican authorities will nail you for 16% of the value of that housing at the price that they find online.

 

[Karen Schofield]

Again, the customs officers take credit cards to pay the "use fee" on you UW housing. You should receive a receipt.

 

[CZS]

Now that I have returned from Baja California, Mexico, here is what I know 1st hand. If you fly into Cabo San Lucas or into La Paz, Mexico, expect to pay a fee if the Customs agents stop you and notice that you have an underwater housing. The agent will Google the housing on the spot to see it’s worth, then demand that you pay 16% of that price. Many new DSLR UW housings are $4,000 or more. You will pay $640 US dollars to use that fancy new housing in Baja Mexico.

I ran into a pro photographer that I know who happened to be staying in the same hotel. He was leading a small underwater photo tour in La Paz. The vacationers were all from Switzerland and they all told me that they had to pay exorbitant fees for their camera housings and their video housings at La Paz airport even though they were all amateurs themselves.

Customs officials are targeting underwater photographers at the airport in Cabo and in La Paz. If you have a hard-sided protective travel case for your gear they will stop you. The customs agent said I was allowed 2 cameras and the things that go along with that, BUT an underwater housing must be taxed by Mexican customs laws even if you are not a professional. The Customs agent showed me the documentation regarding this law.

I told the officer that my housing was old and maybe worth $200 which is true since it is 7 years old. He got out his cell phone and looked up the model name and number (Olympus PT-EP08 UW case for E-M5) and said it was worth at least $300. In order for me to enter the country and use MY OWN underwater camera case for personal use (I do not earn a living by photography nor do I sell my photos online or in another way) I had to pay $50 US dollars to keep my housing with me.

FYI: Customs officers in Cabo San Lucas airport take credit cards BTW.


Even though Cabo/La Paz is the nearest warm water diving destination to my home, this will be my last vacation here for underwater photography. If you have a nondescript, soft-sided carry-on suitcase that you can carry all of you underwater housings in, then do it. If you have to check your underwater housings through with a hard case and your dive gear is packed in a bag with a diving insignia on it, they will stop you. If they find an underwater camera housing in you luggage, the Mexican authorities will nail you for 16% of the value of that housing at the price that they find online.

This echoes my experience as well, however, they did NOT search Google when I went through and luckily took my word for it...

 

[MaxBottomtime]

I bought my current rig on Ebay for a net price of $3100 after selling the strobes and extras that came with it. If I had to pay retail, it would be close to $20,000. I have never sold a single photo. Do you think there is a chance I will ever travel to Mexico again?

 

[Darnold9999]

Have to say I was thinking of popping down to Mexico this winter for a few days this winter on the annual snowbird trek south. Not happening now.