MEXICO Law and Practice Contributed by: Jesús Aldrin Rojas, Miguel Ángel García Piña and Esteban Ollervides Toribio, QCG Transfer Pricing
The Federal Fees Law, through Articles 53-G and 53-H, regulates the fees applicable to the filing and review of Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs). Miscellaneous Tax Rules (Reglas Misceláneas Fiscales or RMF) The RMF, which are issued annually, contain gen - eral rules that clarify, refine or expand upon techni - cal aspects of the application of the transfer pricing regime. These rules address, among other matters: • the requirements for submitting information through the Multiple Informative Return (DIM); • deadlines and requirements applicable to support - ing documentation; • procedural and operational aspects of APAs; • safe harbour rules for maquiladora companies; • obligations relating to the disclosure of reportable schemes; • the filing of the taxpayer’s tax situation report; and • the submission of tax opinions through the SIPRED The Tax Administration Service (SAT) issues both normative and non-binding criteria that reflect its interpretation of transfer pricing provisions. Although these criteria are not legally binding, they serve as an important interpretative reference for both the tax authorities and taxpayers. Recent pronouncements include criteria related to royalties, intragroup services and the application of the interquartile range, as well as guidance on the materiality of related party transactions introduced as part of the 2024 tax reform. International References Pursuant to Article 179 of the LISR, Mexican transfer pricing provisions must be interpreted in accordance with the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines for Multi - national Enterprises and Tax Administrations, to the extent that they are consistent with domestic legisla - tion and Mexico’s tax treaties. This regulatory framework seeks to ensure that trans - actions between related parties reflect market condi - tions and to prevent base erosion through artificial or platform by obligated taxpayers. Administrative Pronouncements
unreasonable pricing. Accordingly, technical, docu - mentary and substantive compliance is essential for an effective tax defence in transfer pricing matters. 1.2 Current Regime and Recent Changes In Mexico, the transfer pricing regime began shortly after the signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994. By 1997, the country had adopted a standard transfer pricing framework that requires the application of the arm’s length principle, a comprehensive comparability analysis, the use of recognised transfer pricing methods, and interquartile ranges to assess whether related party transactions are conducted at arm’s length. Over time, the regime has incorporated rules address - ing specific aspects, including the use of transactional financial information in 2002, the recognition of unique and valuable contributions, and the prohibition of adjusting taxpayers’ results within the arm’s length range. The latter was introduced in 2019 through non- binding criteria. In 2022, substantive reforms further clarified Mexico’s position on several sensitive issues, such as the requirement to perform a functional analy - sis of both parties to a transaction, the use of finan - cial information covering business cycles, and the extension of transfer pricing reporting obligations to domestic taxpayers. Additionally, the 2024 tax reform, published in Novem - ber 2023, introduced changes related to the material - ity of related party transactions and the supporting documentation requirements. These changes are cur - rently in force. Most recently, the November 2025 reform to the Federal Tax Code introduced significant procedural changes relevant to transfer pricing disputes. These include the creation of a new exclusive substantive appeal ( recurso de revocación exclusivo de fondo , Articles 133 B through 133 G), which allows taxpay - ers to challenge exclusively the substance of a tax assessment without first addressing formal or proce - dural defects. Amendments to Article 141 also estab - lished a mandatory order for the types of guarantees that must be offered to suspend the enforcement of a tax liability.
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