Mexico Crypto Tax

Taxable Events

| Event | Tax Treatment | LISR Chapter | |---|---|---| | Sale of crypto for MXN/fiat | Taxable — enajenación de bienes | Art. 126 (occasional) or Art. 100 (business) | | Crypto-to-crypto exchange (swap) | Taxable — enajenación (disposal at FMV) | Art. 126 / Art. 100 | | Payment for goods/services with crypto | Taxable — disposal at FMV in MXN on date of transaction | Art. 126 / Art. 100 | | Mining rewards received | Taxable — income at FMV when received | Art. 142 (otros ingresos) or Art. 100 (business) | | Staking rewards received | Taxable — income at FMV when received | Art. 142 (otros ingresos) | | Crypto received as salary/payment | Taxable — employment or professional income at FMV | Art. 94 (salarios) or Art. 100 | | Holding crypto (HODL) | NOT taxable — no enajenación has occurred | — | | Transfer between own wallets | NOT taxable — no change in ownership | — | | Receiving crypto as gift | Taxable to recipient if exceeds annual gift exemption | Art. 93(XXIII) LISR |

Occasional vs Business Activity

| Factor | Occasional (Enajenación de bienes) | Business (Actividad empresarial) | |---|---|---| | Frequency | Infrequent, sporadic sales | Regular, systematic trading | | Intent | Not primary economic activity | Profit-seeking as primary activity | | Tax treatment | Annual declaration; $60,000 MXN exemption may apply | Monthly provisional payments; full ISR + 16% IVA potential | | Reporting | In Declaración Anual under "enajenación" | Monthly declarations + annual | | Cost basis adjustment | INPC inflation adjustment allowed | Full deductions per business rules |

ISR Progressive Rates — Personas Físicas (2025)

| Lower Limit (MXN) | Upper Limit (MXN) | Fixed Quota (MXN) | Marginal Rate | |---|---|---|---| | $0.01 | $8,952.49 | $0.00 | 1.92% | | $8,952.50 | $75,984.55 | $171.88 | 6.40% | | $75,984.56 | $133,536.07 | $4,461.94 | 10.88% | | $133,536.08 | $155,229.80 | $10,723.55 | 16.00% | | $155,229.81 | $185,852.57 | $14,194.54 | 17.92% | | $185,852.58 | $374,837.88 | $19,682.13 | 21.36% | | $374,837.89 | $590,795.99 | $60,049.40 | 23.52% | | $590,796.00 | $1,127,926.84 | $110,842.74 | 30.00% | | $1,127,926.85 | $1,503,902.46 | $271,981.99 | 32.00% | | $1,503,902.47 | $4,511,707.37 | $392,294.17 | 34.00% | | $4,511,707.38 | En adelante | $1,417,491.57 | 35.00% |LISR Art. 152; Resolución Miscelánea Fiscal 2025.

Combining crypto gains with other income

Crypto gains are added to ALL other income for the year to determine the applicable bracket.LISR Art. 152; Resolución Miscelánea Fiscal 2025.

Corporate ISR Rate

| Entity Type | Rate | |---|---| | Personas morales (corporations) | 30% flat on net gain |LISR Art. 9.

RESICO Rates (Régimen Simplificado de Confianza)

| Annual Income (MXN) | Rate | |---|---| | Up to $300,000 | 1.00% | | $300,001 – $600,000 | 1.10% | | $600,001 – $1,000,000 | 1.50% | | $1,000,001 – $2,500,000 | 2.00% | | $2,500,001 – $3,500,000 | 2.50% |

20% alternative rate on gross proceeds

If a taxpayer cannot prove their cost basis for a crypto disposal, the SAT may apply a 20% rate on gross proceeds instead. This is not an elective option — it is a fallback when documentation is insufficient.LISR Art. 126, third paragraph.

Annual Exemption

| Exemption | Amount | Condition | |---|---|---| | Enajenación de bienes muebles | ~$60,000 MXN per year (3× UMA anualizada, approx. $124,000 MXN for 2025 per some sources) | Non-habitual disposals only; habitual traders do NOT qualify |

Accepted Methods

| Method | Status | |---|---| | Specific identification | Primary method — match each sale to a specific acquisition lot | | FIFO (First In, First Out) | Accepted when specific identification impractical | | INPC-adjusted cost | Cost basis may be adjusted for inflation using INPC (Índice Nacional de Precios al Consumidor) from acquisition month to disposal month | | Average cost | Less common; may be accepted with documentation | | LIFO | Not standard practice |

Cost Basis Components

| Component | Included? | |---|---| | Purchase price in MXN (at exchange rate on acquisition date) | Yes | | Exchange fees and commissions on acquisition | Yes | | Network/gas fees on acquisition | Yes | | Exchange fees and commissions on disposal | Yes — deductible from proceeds | | INPC inflation adjustment | Yes — for enajenación de bienes calculation |

INPC adjustment formula

Adjusted cost = Original cost × (INPC disposal month / INPC acquisition month)LISR Art. 124.

Unverifiable cost basis consequence

If the taxpayer cannot document their acquisition cost, the SAT may apply a 20% tax on gross sale proceeds. This is punitive — it effectively assumes zero cost basis and then applies 20% to the full amount.

Mining

| Aspect | Treatment | |---|---| | Occasional mining (hobby) | "Otros ingresos" (Art. 142 LISR) — taxable at progressive rates | | Commercial mining operation | Actividad empresarial — ISR at progressive rates + 16% IVA on services | | Valuation | FMV in MXN at date of receipt | | Cost basis of mined coins | FMV at receipt (for future disposal) | | Deductible expenses (commercial) | Electricity, equipment depreciation, internet, facility costs | | CFDI requirement | Business miners must issue CFDI for self-billed income |

Staking

| Aspect | Treatment | |---|---| | Staking rewards | Taxable as "otros ingresos" at FMV when received | | Cost basis of staking rewards | FMV at receipt date (for future disposal) | | Staking-as-a-service | If providing service: actividad empresarial + IVA | | Loss from slashing | Likely not deductible absent specific SAT guidance |

Airdrops

| Aspect | Treatment | |---|---| | Promotional airdrop | Taxable as "otros ingresos" at FMV when received | | Fork-based distribution | Cost basis of ₩0; taxable on disposal | | Airdrop in exchange for a service | Income at FMV — may be actividad empresarial |

DeFi

| Activity | Treatment | |---|---| | DeFi lending interest | Income at FMV — "otros ingresos" or business income | | Liquidity provision (AMM) | Depositing tokens to pool = potential disposal; LP tokens have new cost basis | | Yield farming rewards | Income at FMV when received | | Impermanent loss | Not specifically addressed by SAT; likely not deductible | | Crypto-to-crypto swaps in DeFi | Each swap is a taxable enajenación | | Wrapping (e.g., ETH → WETH) | Arguable — conservative: treat as disposal |

NFT Treatment

| Aspect | Treatment | |---|---| | Purchase of NFT | Acquisition cost for future disposal | | Sale of NFT at profit | Taxable — enajenación de bienes at progressive ISR rates | | Creation and sale (artist/creator) | Business income (actividad empresarial) — ISR + 16% IVA | | NFT royalties | Income — "otros ingresos" or business income depending on regularity | | NFT-to-NFT swap | Disposal of both — compute gain/loss on each | | IVA on NFT sales | If business activity: 16% IVA applies to NFT sales (digital service) | | CFDI for NFT sales | Required for business transactions |

Individual Filing

| Requirement | Detail | |---|---| | Return type | Declaración Anual de Personas Físicas | | Filing deadline | 30 April of the following year | | Filing portal | Portal SAT (sat.gob.mx) | | Crypto section | No dedicated crypto form — report under "Enajenación de bienes" (occasional) or "Actividad empresarial" (business) | | Payment deadline | 30 April (or installments if arranged) |

Monthly Provisional Payments

| Who | Obligation | |---|---| | Habitual traders (actividad empresarial) | Must make monthly ISR provisional payments (pagos provisionales) by the 17th of the following month | | Occasional sellers (enajenación) | No monthly obligation — annual declaration only |

CFDI Requirements

| Scenario | CFDI Required? | |---|---| | Business-to-business crypto transactions | Yes — must issue CFDI | | Business receiving crypto as payment | Yes — CFDI for the underlying supply | | Individual occasional sale | No CFDI required for personal transactions | | Mining as business | Yes — self-billed CFDI for mining income |

CARF and Exchange Reporting

| Requirement | Detail | |---|---| | CARF adoption | Mexico implemented CARF effective 1 April 2026 | | Exchange obligations | Crypto intermediaries (exchanges, brokers, platforms) report user transaction data directly to SAT | | What is reported | User identification, transaction amounts, gains/losses | | Impact | SAT can cross-reference declared income against exchange reports |

Record-Keeping

| Requirement | Detail | |---|---| | Retention period | 5 years from filing deadline (CFF Art. 30) | | Records to maintain | Full transaction logs, exchange CSVs, cost basis records, CFDI documentation, INPC adjustment workpapers | | Format | Digital records acceptable; XML for CFDI | | Burden of proof | On the taxpayer — SAT can audit and request all documentation |

Loss Offset Rules

| Rule | Detail | |---|---| | Loss offset within same category | Losses from enajenación de bienes muebles can offset gains from enajenación de bienes muebles within the same year | | Cross-category offset | Losses from crypto generally CANNOT offset employment income, interest, or other income categories | | Actividad empresarial losses | Business losses can offset business income; carry-forward for up to 10 years | | Enajenación losses | Limited offset — only against gains from same type of asset disposal |

Business Loss Carry-Forward

| Rule | Detail | |---|---| | Available to | Taxpayers under actividad empresarial regime | | Duration | Up to 10 years | | Adjustment | Must adjust for inflation using INPC | | Condition | Must be properly documented and declared in the year incurred |

SAT Enforcement Powers

| Measure | Detail | |---|---| | Exchange data access | SAT receives transaction data from Mexican exchanges (Bitso, etc.) and through CARF from foreign platforms (from April 2026) | | Bank account monitoring | SAT monitors bank deposits; large unexplained deposits trigger audits | | Discrepancia fiscal | If spending exceeds declared income, SAT can assess tax on the difference | | Informant reporting | Third-party reporting obligations exist |

Penalties

| Violation | Penalty | |---|---| | Failure to file | 55%–75% surcharge on unpaid tax | | Late filing | Inflation-adjusted surcharges (recargos) + fines | | Underdeclared income | 55%–75% of unpaid tax + surcharges | | Tax fraud (defraudación fiscal) | Criminal penalties — imprisonment and fines | | Failure to issue CFDI | Fines per missing CFDI |

Transfer pricing for related-party crypto transactions

For related-party crypto transactions (e.g., between a taxpayer and a controlled entity), arm's length principles apply. The SAT can recharacterize transactions at fair market value.

Crypto as payment for invoiced services obligations

If crypto is used to pay for services that should be invoiced, both parties have obligations: the service provider must issue a CFDI in MXN at the transaction-date exchange rate, and the payer must recognize a disposal of the crypto at FMV.