Mexico releases new visa guidelines for Venezuelans

The government of Mexico published a formal announcement of new visa requirements for visitors from Venezuela in the country's official gazette, as part of attempts to stem a major spike in unauthorised immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border.

With the publication of new regulations by Mexico's interior ministry, which are set to take effect in just 15 days, the country is attempting to reduce the number of migrants from South and Central America who attempt to enter the United States illegally through its territory.

Venezuelans, many of whom have been fleeing their homeland as a result of the country's long-running economic crisis, do not now require a visa to enter Mexico as tourists at the time of this writing.

Mexican authorities announced last month that they would need Venezuelan tourists to obtain visas, but they have yet to provide a formal notification of the upcoming changes.

According to the government, the number of Venezuelans travelling irregularly to a "third nation" has increased by more than 1,000 percent in the last five years. The report added that an increasing number of people are making misleading declarations about their motives for travelling.

Criminal gangs and people smugglers are increasingly taking advantage of the increased need for migration, according to the authorities.