MEXICO Law and Practice Contributed by: Christian Lippert, Gabriela Pellón, Fabiola Jiménez and Cecilia Díaz de Rivera, Galicia Abogados
be subject to reporting and tax obligations in Mexico, depending on the level of control retained and the nature of the income generated. 11. Planning for Non-Traditional Families 11.1 Succession Rights and Estate Taxes for Non-Traditional Families Same-Sex Spouses Through a line of binding decisions issued by the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation ( Suprema Cor- te de Justicia de la Nación ), statutory provisions that limited marriage to opposite-sex couples have been struck down as unconstitutional. A same-sex marriage validly solemnised in any state of Mexico is entitled to full legal recognition nationwide. As a consequence, same-sex spouses hold identical succession rights to those afforded to heterosexual spouses, encom- passing both the entitlement to inherit under the rules of intestate succession and the right to seek post- mortem maintenance from the deceased’s estate. As Mexico does not impose any federal estate or inherit- ance tax, no distinction in tax treatment arises on the basis of the sex or gender of the surviving spouse. Non-Marital Partners (Concubinage) Under Mexican law, concubinage ( concubinato ) con- stitutes a legally recognised institution from which succession and maintenance rights analogous to those arising from marriage are derived. Pursuant to the Civil Code, a concubino or concubina who sat - isfies the applicable legal requirements – ordinarily, continuous cohabitation with the deceased in a con- jugal-like arrangement for a minimum period (gener- ally two years, or a shorter period where a child has been born of the union) – is entitled to inherit under the rules of intestate succession on terms equivalent to those of a surviving spouse. The concubine is like- wise among the persons who may claim post-mortem alimony from the estate, provided that he or she lacks the capacity to work and does not possess sufficient assets of his or her own. Children Born Out of Wedlock Mexican law draws no distinction between children born within marriage and those born outside of it for
the purposes of inheritance. Provided that the parent- child relationship (filiation) has been duly established (whether by voluntary acknowledgment, judicial deter- mination or civil registration), all children are vested with equal succession rights under both testate and intestate succession. Adopted Children For all legal purposes, including succession, adopted children are placed on an equal footing with the bio- logical children of the adoptive parents. Under the applicable Mexican civil codes, adoption gives rise to a full parent-child relationship ( adopción plena ), con- ferring upon the adopted child the same inheritance rights as any biological descendant. Where full adop- tion has been granted, the legal bond with the bio- logical family is extinguished, and the adopted child ceases to hold any succession rights in relation to his or her biological parents. Surrogate Children The legal treatment of surrogacy differs from one Mexican state to another. Certain states have adopt- ed specific legislation that authorises and regulates surrogacy arrangements, whereas others either lack express regulation or prohibit the practice altogether. In those jurisdictions where surrogacy is lawfully rec- ognised and the intended parents are duly recorded as the legal parents in the birth certificate, the child is vested with the same succession rights as any other biological or legally recognised child. In states where surrogacy remains unregulated, the establishment of legal parentage – and, by extension, the child’s suc- cession rights – may necessitate judicial proceedings to determine filiation. Posthumously Conceived Children There is no comprehensive federal framework in Mexico governing the succession rights of children conceived through assisted reproduction techniques following the death of one of the biological parents. This remains an area of limited and developing regu- lation. Under the general principles of Mexican civil law, inheritance rights crystallise at the moment of the testator’s death, and only persons who are alive or at least conceived at that time are eligible to inherit. Cer- tain state civil codes recognise the rights of children born within 300 days of the father’s death (pursuant
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