SAT Raises the Value of Anti-Smuggling Seizures in 2025 and Sharpens Its Customs Crackdown
Mexico’s Finance Ministry reported a jump in the value of seized goods and a rise in case files, under a strategy aimed at hitting larger-scale networks.
The fight against smuggling intensified and became more sophisticated in 2025, the first full year of Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration, with a clear shift: less emphasis on scattered seizures and more on higher-value operations. Figures from the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) show that while the number of seizures has not surged compared with prior years, the value of goods seized has—an indication that authorities are targeting bigger networks and schemes with a potentially larger tax impact.
According to data reported by the Finance Ministry, in 2023 authorities carried out 522 seizures involving goods valued at 6.071 billion pesos; in 2024 there were 371 seizures totaling 4.487 billion pesos; and by the end of 2025 they recorded 503 seizures, but with a value of 11.797 billion pesos. Operationally, the takeaway is significant: with an action count comparable to 2023, the amount seized nearly doubled versus 2024, suggesting better target selection, stronger advance intelligence, and a strategy concentrated on cases with a higher “ticket size” per operation.
In the background is an effort to integrate domestic tax enforcement with foreign-trade oversight. Recent legal changes—adjustments to the Federal Tax Code, the Revenue Law, and the Customs Law—have expanded tools for data cross-checking, controls over importer registries, monitoring by customs regimes, and document traceability. Added to that is the use of analytics and Artificial Intelligence to profile transactions and detect patterns tied to undervaluation, incorrect tariff classification, triangulation, and other practices that erode tax collection.
Smuggling and its variants are not just a customs problem: they distort competition in the domestic market, squeeze formal industries—from textiles and footwear to electronics, auto parts, and consumer goods—and shrink the VAT and income-tax base, while also reducing tariff revenue. In a context where Mexico is looking to sustain tax intake without raising rates, improving the efficiency of the SAT (Mexico’s tax authority) and closing foreign-trade leakages becomes a key component of revenue policy.
Criminal Case Files: The Challenge of Moving from Seizures to Convictions and Actual Collections
The tougher stance is not limited to administrative seizures. The Finance Ministry reported an increase in administrative case files compiled by SAT’s Central Administration of Criminal and Special Matters (ACAPE), which document alleged harm to the public treasury. In 2024 there were 64 case files totaling 6.466 billion pesos; in 2025, that rose to 151 case files, with an associated amount of 52.014 billion pesos. The magnitude of the jump points to more complex, higher-value cases, but it also raises the bar institutionally: assembling evidence, bringing cases to court, sustaining litigation, and—above all—turning cases into collectible tax assessments and, where applicable, criminal liability.
The difference between an announced seizure and a concrete fiscal result usually hinges on the ability to withstand courtroom challenges and execute collection. In Mexico, proceedings can drag on due to injunctions (amparos), disputes over customs valuation, origin of goods, documentary compliance, or the scope of the authority’s powers. For that reason, the strategy’s success will be measured not only by the amount seized, but by the share of case files that reach a final ruling, the effective recovery of debts, and deterrence against repeat offenses across logistics chains.
Customs Law Regulations: More Traceability and Electronic Case Files
As part of the redesign of customs controls, the regulations for the Customs Law were published on February 23, following the reform enacted in November of the prior year. Among the changes with practical impact are the strengthening of the “value declaration” and the creation of electronic case files as the backbone of foreign-trade operations, along with greater shared responsibility for actors such as customs brokers in ensuring traceability. In practical terms, this raises the documentation standard for importers and forces them to bolster compliance functions—from compiling supplier data to ensuring consistency among declared prices, payments, logistics, and customs entries.
The approach also aligns with the fight against fake invoicing and sham transactions—another front that affects both domestic taxes and foreign trade. The “cross-cutting” nature of enforcement—when invoices, customs entries, inventories, supply chains, and tax filings are connected—reduces room for inconsistencies, but it also increases compliance costs for companies that lack formal processes, audit controls, and proper data management.
In the short term, tighter customs scrutiny can create friction: more frequent inspections, shipment holds, increased documentation demands, and in some sectors, adjustments in delivery times and logistics costs. Over the medium term, the potential benefit is a more level playing field for formal production and trade, along with more stable tax revenue. For an economy tightly linked to regional supply chains and the nearshoring boom, the challenge will be balancing enforcement with trade facilitation so as not to unnecessarily raise the cost of moving inputs and intermediate goods.
In perspective, the 2025 data sketch out a strategy that prioritizes high-impact cases and seeks to build well-supported files to collect and sanction. The ultimate effectiveness will depend on the quality of evidence development, coordination with law-enforcement and prosecutorial authorities, and the ability to keep customs more secure without slowing legitimate trade.
