Fines and surcharges: Mexico’s SAT boosts audit-driven revenue and raises the cost of noncompliance
Revenue from tax penalties has tripled in six years, driven by more precise audits and greater use of digital data.
Revenue collected by Mexico’s Tax Administration Service (SAT) from tax penalties has become a barometer of tighter enforcement and the rising cost of noncompliance. Data from the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) show that by the end of 2025 the tax authority took in 30,368 million pesos in fines—an amount that nearly triples what was recorded in 2019, when it totaled 9,056 million.
The jump is not happening in a vacuum. In recent years, the tax administration has expanded its use of digital information—from the widespread adoption of the Digital Tax Receipt (CFDI) and controls tied to e-invoicing, to electronic accounting—enabling more detailed cross-checks among reported income, withholdings, estimated (provisional) payments, and transactions reported by third parties. In practice, this increases the likelihood of detecting discrepancies and, therefore, of imposing penalties, surcharges, or correction requirements.
Tax specialists have noted that the authority now has “more precise shots” thanks to better technology tools and the buildup of databases, which has narrowed the room for inadvertent omissions and, especially, underreporting schemes. With public finances under pressure from greater needs for social spending and investment, strengthening tax revenue—without creating new taxes—relies in part on stricter compliance.
The composition of the increase also offers clues. Most of the growth was concentrated in the tax correction category, which rose from 7,316 million pesos to 26,769 million between 2019 and 2025. As a result, this concept increased its share of total fine revenue from around 80% to 88% over the same period, suggesting that review and self-correction procedures have been the main channel for penalty-related collections.
Among the errors that most frequently lead to fines are failing to report income within the tax year, miscalculating estimated (provisional) payments, and not reporting income from interest, dividends, or capital gains. In an environment where payments and transactions are becoming more formal—and where financial intermediaries and digital platforms create transaction trails—the gap between “what’s happening” and “what’s reported” is increasingly visible to the authority.
Data-driven enforcement: implications for companies, SMBs, and individual taxpayers
The rise in fines reflects not only a tougher stance, but a structural change in how audits are conducted. For companies—especially SMBs—the main risk is no longer just a traditional audit, but everyday inconsistencies: a CFDI issued with the wrong code, differences between stamped payroll and remitted withholdings, or poorly reconciled matching between invoiced revenue and bank deposits. For individual taxpayers, scrutiny tends to intensify when signals appear such as a tax discrepancy, investment income not properly included, or personal deductions without supporting documentation. The result is an incentive to professionalize accounting and compliance, but also administrative cost pressure that can be significant for small businesses.
In macroeconomic terms, more effective enforcement generally improves non-oil tax revenue and helps support fiscal stability—an element closely watched by credit rating agencies and investors. However, the balance is delicate: if the strategy is perceived as punitive or unpredictable, it can raise perceived regulatory risk, hurt liquidity for taxpayers facing large fines or surcharges, and push some participants to remain in the informal economy. The key, in that sense, is to pair controls with legal certainty, simplification, and accessible regularization mechanisms.
A second relevant component is foreign trade. Fines tied to customs operations increased from 860 million pesos in 2019 to 2,584 million in 2025, although their share of total fines slipped slightly from 9.4% to 8.5%. The increase aligns with closer oversight of practices such as undervaluation, incorrect tariff classification, and “technical smuggling” schemes, at a time when Mexico is seeking to solidify its role as an export platform and attract investment linked to the reshoring and realignment of North American supply chains.
Looking ahead, performance of this type of revenue will depend on two forces moving in parallel: the SAT’s technological modernization and the momentum of economic activity. If growth cools, omissions may rise due to financial strain; if the economy maintains traction, the volume of transactions also expands the universe of auditable activity. In both cases, the trend points toward more “real-time” compliance, where data consistency is the taxpayer’s first line of defense.
Overall, the rebound in fines and surcharges shows a SAT with greater detection capacity and a strategy that prioritizes tax correction and customs control. The message to taxpayers is clear: strong management of accounting and tax data is no longer a luxury, but a requirement to reduce contingencies and preserve liquidity.
