Flying private to Mexico or Canada: the border rules

People ask about Mexico and Canada together because both are a short hop from the United States and both feel like domestic trips. They are not, and the two borders work in opposite ways. The rule that catches people is on the way home from Mexico, not on the way there.

Where does a private jet have to land coming back from Mexico?

At the designated airport nearest to where it crosses the border or the coast, unless the operator holds a CBP overflight exemption. The rule is 19 CFR 122.24: subject aircraft “must land for CBP processing at the nearest designated airport to the border or coastline crossing point.”

The list in 122.24(b) has 32 airports in seven states. The ones a charter is most likely to use:

State	Designated airports
Texas	Houston Hobby, San Antonio, El Paso, Laredo, McAllen, Brownsville, Corpus Christi, Del Rio, Eagle Pass, Midland, Presidio, Beaumont
Florida	Opa-locka, Miami International, Tamiami, Fort Lauderdale Executive, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood, Palm Beach, Fort Pierce, Tampa, Key West
California	Brown Field (San Diego), Calexico
Arizona	Tucson, Nogales, Yuma, Douglas Municipal, Bisbee-Douglas
Louisiana	New Orleans International, New Orleans Lakefront
New Mexico	Santa Teresa
North Carolina	Wilmington

The map below shows all 32. Dallas Love Field, Van Nuys, Teterboro, Scottsdale and Chicago Executive are not on the list. Without an exemption, a flight from Cabo to Van Nuys stops first at Brown Field or Calexico, and a flight from Cancún to Dallas stops first at a listed airport on the Gulf coast. Which one depends on where the route crosses the coast: a straight line from Cancún to Dallas crosses near Beaumont, Texas, which has one.

There is no mileage figure in the rule. You may hear a rule of thumb about landing within a certain distance of the border. The regulation does not set a distance: it names the airports and says “nearest”. What counts as nearest depends on where the aircraft crosses, which is why the operator plans the arrival with CBP.

Who does the designated-airport rule apply to?

Most private and charter jets. 19 CFR 122.23 applies it to all aircraft arriving from the south, with three exceptions: government aircraft, scheduled airline flights, and on-demand charters in aircraft with more than 30 seats or more than 7,500 pounds of payload. Every business jet we quote is below that line.

“From the south” has a precise meaning. The rule covers arrivals across the Mexican border or the Pacific coast from south of 33 degrees north, arrivals across the Gulf and Atlantic coasts from south of 30 degrees north, and arrivals from Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. That takes in Mexico, the Bahamas, the Caribbean and Central America. It does not apply if the passengers were precleared by CBP, or inspected in the US Virgin Islands.

What is a border overflight exemption?

Permission from CBP to skip the designated airport and fly on to any customs airport. 19 CFR 122.25 lets the company with operational control of the aircraft apply to the port director at the airport where it wants to clear. A request covering a year of flights is due at least 30 days ahead; one for a single flight, at least 15 days ahead.

The exemption is held by the operator, for named aircraft and crew. It is not something a passenger can apply for. Flights under it still give CBP advance notice, fly an instrument flight plan above 12,500 feet unless controllers say otherwise, and need landing rights at the customs airport. Since 2025, applications and renewals are filed through CBP’s eAPIS website, and NBAA reported CBP’s aim to process them within 30 days.

What it means for you: ask whether the operator holds an exemption for the aircraft being quoted. If it does, a Cabo to Van Nuys trip can be nonstop. If it does not, the stop for customs is part of the trip, and the schedule and price should already include it.

What about notice to CBP?

The operator gives it. A charter files a passenger manifest with CBP for every international arrival, and under 122.23(b) an aircraft that is not a private flight must also notify CBP at least one hour before crossing the US coastline or border, with the airport of first landing. Flying private internationally covers the manifest and the arrival itself.

Is coming back from Canada different?

Yes. The designated-airport rule is only for arrivals from the south. A flight from Toronto or Vancouver can clear at any US airport with customs service, subject to the usual notice and landing rights. Teterboro, for example, has customs for business aircraft. The Canada side of the trip is where the paperwork sits, and a passenger with a conviction faces the same admissibility question as on an airline: see flying private to Canada with a DUI or a criminal record.

What does the operator need to fly you to Canada?

Canadian authorization of its own. Under the Canadian Aviation Regulations (701.02), a foreign operator flying commercially in Canada must hold a Canadian Foreign Air Operator Certificate from Transport Canada. Transport Canada’s guidance adds that a foreign charter operator also needs a non-scheduled international licence from the Canadian Transportation Agency.

The Agency’s guide says that for small aircraft, under 15,900 kg (about 35,000 pounds) maximum takeoff weight, a carrier usually needs no separate charter permit for each trip. Most light and midsize jets are under that weight; larger jets need checking.

CANPASS Private Aircraft, which you may read about, is a programme for private flights carrying no more than 15 people including crew, not for charters. On a charter, the operator arranges clearance with the Canada Border Services Agency at the arrival airport.

What does the operator need to fly you to Mexico?

A Mexican permit. Trip-support company Universal Weather reported in October 2025 that Mexico’s civil aviation agency, the AFAC, now requires every charter operator to hold a validated blanket permit, that single-entry landing permits are no longer available, and that a new or modified blanket permit can take up to 90 business days. The insurance must match the aircraft’s registration exactly. For flights to the Pacific coast, the operator should also know the FAA’s Mexico Pacific advisory, in force until March 2027.

That has a practical consequence. An operator without a current Mexican blanket permit cannot take a Mexico trip next week, whatever the aircraft. It is one of the first things we check on a Mexico quote. The route pages for Dallas Love to Cabo and Van Nuys to Cabo cover what happens on arrival.

Which size rules apply, and why do people talk about “12.5” and “125”?

Because several rules turn on the aircraft’s size, and they use different measures. These are the ones that matter on a trip to Mexico or Canada:

The line	What it measures	What changes above it	Source
12,500 pounds	Maximum certificated takeoff weight	A charter operator must run the TSA “Twelve-Five” security program	49 CFR 1544.101(d)
15,900 kg (about 35,000 pounds)	Maximum takeoff weight	Canada stops treating it as a small aircraft for charter permits	Canadian Transportation Agency
20 seats or 6,000 pounds payload	Seating and payload	A US operator flying without holding out to the public falls under FAA Part 125	14 CFR 125.1
30 seats or 7,500 pounds payload	Seating and payload	An on-demand charter is no longer subject to the designated-airport rule	19 CFR 122.23(a)

Twelve-Five is the TSA security program that charter operators with aircraft over 12,500 pounds must run. It is why a charter on a midsize or larger jet checks every passenger against its manifest even though there is no airport checkpoint. Do you go through TSA on a private jet? explains what it covers.

Part 125 governs US airplanes with 20 or more seats, or 6,000 pounds or more of payload, flown where there is no common carriage. It does not apply to aircraft that must be operated under Part 135, which is the rule for on-demand charter. If an operator offers you a large aircraft “under Part 125”, it may not sell you that flight as a charter. How to spot an illegal charter explains why that matters.

What should you check before booking a trip to Mexico or Canada?

1. The carrier’s name. Under 14 CFR 295.24 a broker must name the operator before you sign. Ask now, because the operator holds the permits.
2. The foreign permit. For Mexico, that the operator’s blanket permit is current. For Canada, that it holds a Foreign Air Operator Certificate.
3. The return plan from Mexico. Whether the aircraft has a CBP overflight exemption, or which designated airport it will stop at, and that the stop is in the schedule.
4. Passports and names. Every passenger’s legal name and passport details reach the operator early enough for the manifest.
5. No domestic legs abroad. A US operator cannot fly you from Cancún to Mexico City or from Toronto to Montreal.

What Jake checks

Jake asks the operator for its foreign permits before he puts a Mexico or Canada trip in front of you, and for the return plan before the price is final. On a Mexico trip he asks whether the aircraft is covered by an overflight exemption, and if not, which designated airport it will stop at and how long the stop will take. The quote names the carrier, the aircraft and the customs stop, so the trip you agree to is the one that flies.

If you are planning a trip, call +1 (862) 485-3510 or request a quote, and say which country, which airport and how many passengers.

Sources

• 19 CFR 122.23, Certain aircraft arriving from areas south of the US (eCFR, Title 19)
• 19 CFR 122.24, Landing requirements and the list of designated airports (eCFR, Title 19)
• 19 CFR 122.25, Exemption from special landing requirements (eCFR, Title 19)
• NBAA: CBP streamlines border overflight exemption applications and renewals with eAPIS website (July 29, 2025)
• AIN: US southern overflight exemption changes take hold (June 20, 2013)
• 49 CFR 1544.101, Aircraft operator security programs, including the Twelve-Five program (eCFR, Title 49)
• 14 CFR 125.1, Part 125 applicability (eCFR, Title 14)
• 14 CFR 295.24, Air charter broker disclosures (eCFR, Title 14)
• Transport Canada: Foreign air operator authorization for flights to and from Canada
• Canadian Aviation Regulations, Part VII, Subpart 1: foreign air operations (Justice Laws)
• Canadian Transportation Agency: International air charters, a guide
• Transport Canada: Flying to Canada, what you need to know (CANPASS Private Aircraft)
• Universal Weather: Mexico charter permit requirements (October 2, 2025)