Mexico was one of the first major economies in the world to pass legislation on cryptocurrency, through the Ley para Regular las Instituciones de Tecnologia Financiera (the “Fintech Law”) enacted in 2018. 

The Fintech Law established a framework for the authorisation and supervision of financial technology institutions, including those operating with virtual assets. The Comision Nacional Bancaria y de Valores (CNBV) and the Bank of Mexico jointly regulate the use of virtual assets by regulated financial entities. 

The Servicio de Administracion Tributaria (SAT) is the tax authority responsible for collecting income tax on crypto gains.

Capital Gains Tax Rules

Mexico does not have a standalone capital gains tax. 

Under the LISR, gains from the disposal of cryptocurrency are treated as income and assessed under the ISR framework applicable to the taxpayer. 

• For individuals, the applicable progressive rate from 0% to 35% applies to the net gain after allowable deductions.
• For corporations, the 30% corporate ISR rate applies to net profits including crypto gains.

How ISR on Crypto Gains is Calculated

The taxable gain is computed as the difference between the proceeds from the disposal of the cryptocurrency and its acquisition cost (costo de adquisicion). Proceeds and costs are expressed in Mexican Pesos (MXN). 

Exchange rates from USD or other currencies must be converted using the official exchange rate published by the Bank of Mexico (Banco de Mexico) on the date of the transaction. The SAT has indicated in its Resolucion Miscelanea Fiscal that taxpayers must maintain records sufficient to establish the peso cost of every acquisition and the peso value of every disposal.

Where a taxpayer disposes of cryptocurrency and the transaction is processed through a licensed Fintech institution, the institution is required to withhold a provisional ISR at a prescribed rate on the gross proceeds. This withholding can be credited against the taxpayer’s final annual ISR liability. Individuals who transact through unlicensed or foreign platforms must self-assess and pay provisional monthly ISR payments where required.

Record Keeping

Taxpayers must maintain records of all crypto acquisitions and disposals, converted to MXN at the prevailing Bank of Mexico rate at the relevant date. These records must be retained for at least five years, consistent with general SAT record retention requirements. Taxpayers operating through foreign exchanges where no withholding applies bear full responsibility for their own provisional and annual ISR payments.

Income Tax Rules

All income from cryptocurrency, whether from trading, services, employment remuneration, or other sources, is subject to ISR in Mexico. 

• For individuals, the progressive rates from 0% to 35% apply to total annual chargeable income including crypto. 
• For corporate entities, the standard 30% corporate ISR rate applies. The applicable rate for individuals is determined by their total income from all sources for the year, not just their crypto income in isolation.

Cryptocurrency received as employment remuneration is subject to ISR as employment income, valued in MXN at the date of receipt. Employers are required to withhold ISR at source. Self-employed individuals and sole traders receiving crypto as payment for services include the market value in their business income declaration.

The Fintech Law imposes additional obligations on regulated virtual asset service providers. These entities must report transactions to the SAT under Article 58 of the Fintech Law and cooperate with SAT data requests. The SAT has also required that online platforms and digital service providers, where they facilitate crypto transactions, comply with the withholding and reporting rules in the Resolucion Miscelanea Fiscal.

Mining and Staking Treatment

Mining

Mining income in Mexico is subject to ISR as business income under the LISR. The market value in MXN of cryptocurrency received through mining at the time of receipt constitutes gross revenue from the mining activity. This income is included in the miner’s annual ISR declaration and taxed at the applicable rate. Business expenses directly related to mining, including electricity, hardware depreciation, and telecommunications costs, are deductible in computing net chargeable income.

Commercial mining operations are also subject to IVA at 16% if the mining activity constitutes a commercial service. The SAT’s administrative rules indicate that where mining is conducted as a business generating taxable receipts, the IVA implications must be assessed. 

Small-scale or hobby mining by an individual may fall below the threshold for IVA registration, but all mining income remains subject to ISR regardless of scale. The subsequent disposal of mined tokens at a gain constitutes a further ISR event; the cost base is the market value in MXN at the time the tokens were received.

Staking

As of 2026, the SAT has not issued specific guidance on the tax treatment of staking rewards. Applying the general ISR framework, staking rewards received in connection with a business activity would be included in business income at the market value in MXN at the date of receipt. Individual passive stakers whose activity does not constitute a business may have a different treatment, but the SAT’s general approach to crypto income as ISR-taxable suggests conservative reporting is appropriate.

So far, Mexico has not issued specific guidance on staking for individual participants. Given the SAT’s active stance on crypto reporting and enforcement, taxpayers receiving staking rewards should include the market value at receipt in their income declaration and should not assume that passive receipt of staking rewards is non-taxable without formal SAT guidance to that effect.

NFT Taxation

Applying the general framework, gains from NFT disposals are treated as income subject to ISR. An individual who invests in NFTs and later sells them at a profit includes the gain in their annual income declaration at the applicable progressive rate of 0% to 35%.

NFT creators who regularly create and sell NFTs in a commercial context are conducting a business activity, and proceeds from NFT sales constitute business income subject to ISR. 

IVA at 16% may also apply to the commercial supply of NFTs if they constitute a supply of digital services or goods, though the specific IVA classification of NFT supplies has not been addressed in SAT guidance as of 2025.

Mexico has not issued specific guidance on the ISR or IVA treatment of NFT transactions. Taxpayers in this space should apply the general income tax framework conservatively and ensure that all receipts from NFT activity are included in their annual ISR declaration.

Reporting Requirements

Mexican taxpayers declare annual ISR in the declaracion anual filed with the SAT by April 30 of the following year for individuals, and by March 31 for legal entities. Provisional monthly ISR payments are required throughout the year based on estimated income. Crypto income is included in the relevant income category of the declaration: business income, other income, or employment income as applicable.

Licensed Fintech institutions operating with virtual assets are required to submit transaction reports to the SAT under Article 58 of the Fintech Law. These reports include details of transactions, counterparty identities, and amounts, allowing the SAT to cross-reference reported income against actual transaction records. Taxpayers on licensed Mexican platforms should assume that the SAT has access to their transaction data.

Transactions conducted through foreign exchanges not subject to Mexican Fintech Law obligations fall outside the mandatory reporting regime, but Mexican-resident taxpayers are still required to declare the income arising from such transactions in their annual ISR return. The SAT has indicated increased focus on cross-border crypto activity and participates in international tax information exchange frameworks.

All amounts in SAT filings must be expressed in Mexican Pesos (MXN). Conversion from other currencies uses the daily exchange rate published by Banco de Mexico on the date of each transaction. Records must be retained for at least five years from the filing date of the relevant declaration.

Penalties

The SAT administers penalties under the Codigo Fiscal de la Federacion (CFF). Failure to file a tax return, underreporting of income, and non-payment of ISR or IVA all attract financial penalties calculated as a percentage of the tax omitted. The penalty rate varies by the nature of the infraction, with deliberate evasion attracting higher surcharges than inadvertent error.

Interest (recargos) accrues on unpaid tax from the date it was due, at the rate published monthly by the SAT. The SAT also imposes actualizacion (an inflationary adjustment) on unpaid tax, increasing the cost of deferred tax payments in a high-inflation environment. The combination of interest, recargos, and actualizacion means that significant unpaid tax liabilities grow rapidly.

The SAT operates voluntary disclosure and self-correction programmes from time to time, and taxpayers who identify errors in past declarations are encouraged to file corrected returns promptly. For crypto income not declared in previous years, the SAT’s approach to voluntary disclosure before enforcement action has historically been more favourable than the penalties arising from audit-initiated corrections. 

Taxpayers with material unreported crypto income are strongly advised to seek advice from a licensed Mexican tax adviser.