Last month we made a quick trip back to the United States. We flew Southwest Airlines to Houston and back.
Part of the overall airline charge was the Mexican tourist tax, which was $57.22 for the two of us combined.
(Before anyone asks, the base fare was $0 as we used Southwest Rapid Rewards points for the flight)
A few years ago, I wrote an article on how this tourism tax can be refunded if you’re a resident (Temporary or Permanent) of Mexico.
Since we’re permanent residents of Mexico, I sent an email to Southwest asking for a refund of those taxes.
Here’s the exact email I sent to Southwest, requesting my refund:
To: RefundsDox@wnco.com
From: Gary Sherman
Hello,
I am requesting a refund for the Mexico Tourism taxes paid on a recent flight.
Both my wife and I are permanent residents of Mexico, and we are therefore entitled to a refund of these taxes.
Below are the details of the tickets, and I have attached a copy of our permanent resident cards.
Passenger Name: Gary Sherman and Elizabeth Sherman
Confirmation #██████████ ;
Ticket Numbers:
████████████
████████████2 attachments
I included images of our permanent resident cards in the email.
That’s it. About 4 weeks later, we received an email from Southwest, indicating our refund.
Easy peasy! $57 for sending one email!
So if you have your Mexican residency – don’t lose out on that refund.
Photo Credits
Airplane photo by Yeray Sánchez on Unsplash
Thank you for this reminder. We used points to travel as well. Can you tell me where you found the breakdown of fees? We were charged $43 to go down and $92 for the return. When I click on the cost it just brings up a general taxes and fees statement and does not give a breakdown of what we were actually charged. Thank you for your help with this.
It should be on your actual receipt. if it wasn’t sent to you via email, you may need to log onto the airline website to view a past receipt
Hi Gary, does this apply to dual citizens as well? (USA, and Mexico) I live in the US, but visit family back in MX. I’m flying United from Houston.
Yes, I believe it should. As a MX citizen, you shouldn’t have to pay the tourist tax.
Greetings
I see sections on Alaska, American, and even Southwest acknowledges refunds for transit passengers of less than 24 hours. They charge then refund after transit is completed. I think I’ve seen the same remarks posted here. But Volaris put right refuses the refund exists. Coukd you point me in right direction?
Thank you
Sorry, I’ve never flown Volaris internationally, so I don’t have any details about how they process refunds. Good luck!
Very helpful information Gary. A follow-up question for you. I typically book my flights through Orbitz, and they don’t provide a breakdown of taxes and fees. (I just tried to find the breakdown but to no avail.) Would you happen to know if the refund is only applicable if you book flights directly through the airline versus a 3rd party such as Orbitz? Thank you!
Oh – good question. I actually don’t know – sorry. If you ask, they should provide you an exact breakdown of the ticket costs and fees.
But, I would think it’ll be harder to get a refund. Likely the airline won’t give you a refund, as you didn’t actually pay them directly. And I doubt Orbitz is setup to handle that type of refund. But, that’s purely a guess. Sorry, wish I had more specific guidance. If you find out anything more, please do share. Good luck!