Antes de hacer un pedido con destino a México, obtenga una opinión escrita sobre la clasificación HS de la máquina y del conjunto de repuestos. La carga arancelaria depende del código, y las nuevas reglas del expediente aduanero y del Registro de Importadores se aplican en cualquier caso.
*By Telescro Editorial Team*
Mexico’s reform of the General Import and Export Duties Law took effect on 1 January 2026, raising duties on 1,463 tariff lines for goods originating in countries without a Mexican free trade agreement. White & Case describes China as one of the largest non-FTA suppliers to Mexico in the affected sectors. None of the sector lists published by the firms tracking the reform names construction machinery, which puts the burden on you to confirm your own classification rather than assume the machine is caught.
## What Changed
The Mexican Senate approved the amendments on 10 December 2025, according to Clark Hill, and the decree was published in the Official Gazette of the Federation on 29 December 2025, according to White & Case. The measure consolidates earlier executive decrees from 2023 and 2024 into permanent legislation and extends coverage to lines that carried no duty before.
Two separate instruments landed alongside it. The Customs Law was amended on 19 November 2025 and the 2026 General Rules of Foreign Trade were published on 27 December 2025, both applying from 1 January 2026, according to Alvarez & Marsal. Those rules expand the documentary file every importer has to keep and add new grounds for suspending an entry in the Importers Registry.
China’s Ministry of Commerce concluded that the Mexican measures meet the definition of a trade and investment barrier under Chinese law and said it retained the right to take countermeasures, in a finding reported on 26 March 2026 by The China-Global South Project.
## Key Numbers
The reform covers 1,463 tariff lines, about 12% of the Mexican tariff schedule, of which 316 previously carried no duty, according to White & Case and Alvarez & Marsal. White & Case describes the increases as ranging from 5% to 50%. Clark Hill describes the same measure as ranging from 10% to 50%. The two readings differ, so treat the band as approximate until your classification is confirmed.
Alvarez & Marsal published the headline sector moves: steel from 25% to 35%, aluminum from 0% to 25%, plastics from 15% to 25%, auto parts from 0% to 25%, paper from 5% to 35%, and automobiles from 20% to 50%.
Express shipments moved separately. The global rate for courier goods valued up to USD 2,500 rose from 19% to 33.5%, excluding shipments originating in the United States or Canada, according to Alvarez & Marsal.
Goods entering under the bonded warehouse regime have to reach the facility within 20 days or be treated as illegally in the country, again per Alvarez & Marsal.
China’s Ministry of Commerce put the exposure at more than $30 billion in Chinese exports to Mexico, with an estimated $9.4 billion of losses concentrated in mechanical and electrical sectors.
## What It Means for Equipment Buyers
If you import telehandlers into Mexico from a non-FTA origin, the first thing to establish is whether your HS code sits inside those 1,463 lines. Alvarez & Marsal lists the affected industries as cosmetics, plastics, leather, paper, textiles, apparel, footwear, steel, aluminum, automotive, auto parts and toys. White & Case names an overlapping but wider set that adds appliances, furniture, glass, motorcycles and trailers, and Clark Hill adds trucks. None of the three lists names construction machinery. The final rate depends on binding HS classification, so ask your customs broker for a written classification opinion before you commit to a purchase order.
La exposición de sus repuestos es una cuestión distinta de la máquina completa. El acero, el aluminio y las autopartes subieron, y un portahorquillas, un plumín o un cilindro de elevación de repuesto pueden clasificarse de forma muy diferente a una máquina completa. Cotice la cesta de repuestos en una línea propia.
El origen crea ahora un arbitraje visible. Una máquina fabricada en un país del USMCA, o en Japón o Singapur, puede entrar con trato preferencial, mientras que la misma especificación procedente de un origen sin FTA puede no hacerlo. Esto cambia la comparación del coste puesto en destino frente a marcas europeas canalizadas por sus distribuidores mexicanos y frente al ensamblaje brasileño. Haga la comparación sobre el coste puesto en destino con una clasificación confirmada, no sobre el precio FOB.
## Telescro Analysis
La implicación práctica es que el lado de cumplimiento de esta reforma puede exigir más atención que el arancelario. Los requisitos del expediente de comercio exterior, las nuevas causas de suspensión del Registro de Importadores y el plazo de 20 días para el depósito aduanero son obligaciones operativas que se aplican cualquiera que sea la partida arancelaria de su máquina.
Esto sugiere que los compradores en México deben tratar 2026 como un año para documentar, no como un año para precipitarse. Para quienes comparen una máquina agrícola o de construcción de la clase de 7 m con una unidad compacta de menos de 6 m, resuelva la clasificación antes de cerrar la especificación, porque el portahorquillas y los implementos pueden modificar la exposición de repuestos más que la máquina base.
## Risks or Limitations
Las listas sectoriales anteriores proceden de resúmenes de bufetes y asesores, no de una lectura línea por línea del decreto. Que la maquinaria de construcción no aparezca en esos resúmenes no demuestra que ninguna partida de maquinaria haya cambiado. Para un modelo concreto, solo una clasificación vinculante de la aduana mexicana o una opinión escrita de un agente aduanal autorizado resuelve la cuestión.
The two published ranges for the increase differ, and the sector rate pairs conflict in at least one place: Alvarez & Marsal puts auto parts at 0% to 25%, while White & Case describes many auto parts lines landing between 7% and 36%. The MOFCOM loss estimate covers all mechanical and electrical goods rather than construction equipment specifically, and the bulk of that exposure sits in automotive rather than in machinery. White & Case also frames the duties as applying to imports from every country unless FTA preference is claimed, rather than as a rule that targets non-FTA origins by name, so the practical effect depends on whether your shipment can claim preference. The transitory article of the reform also lets Mexico’s Ministry of Economy create specific import mechanisms for non-FTA goods where supply conditions require it, so the picture can still move.
## Sources
– [White & Case](https://www.whitecase.com/insight-alert/mexico-formalizes-and-expands-import-tariffs-more-1400-products-key-impacts)
– [Alvarez & Marsal](https://www.alvarezandmarsal.com/thought-leadership/mexico-2026-trade-and-customs-updates-tariff-increases-and-new-compliance-requirements)
– [Clark Hill](https://www.clarkhill.com/news-events/news/mexico-approves-significant-tariff-increases-on-imports-from-non-fta-countries/)
– [The China-Global South Project](https://chinaglobalsouth.com/2026/03/26/china-mexico-tariffs-trade-barriers-countermeasures/)