Avant toute commande à destination du Mexique, obtenez un avis écrit sur le classement HS de la machine et du lot de pièces. L’exposition aux droits dépend du code, tandis que les nouvelles règles relatives au dossier douanier et au Registre des importateurs s’appliquent dans tous les cas.
*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.
Votre exposition sur les pièces détachées est une question distincte de celle de la machine. L’acier, l’aluminium et les pièces automobiles ont tous augmenté, tandis qu’un tablier porte-fourches, une fléchette ou un vérin de flèche de remplacement peuvent recevoir une classification très différente de celle d’une machine complète. Chiffrez le panier de pièces sur une ligne séparée.
L’origine crée désormais un arbitrage visible. Une machine fabriquée dans un pays de l’USMCA, au Japon ou à Singapour peut bénéficier d’un traitement préférentiel, alors que la même spécification provenant d’une origine sans FTA peut ne pas en bénéficier. Cela modifie la comparaison du coût rendu avec les marques européennes acheminées par leurs distributeurs mexicains et avec l’assemblage brésilien. Comparez les coûts rendus avec une classification confirmée, et non les prix FOB.
## Telescro Analysis
En pratique, le volet conformité de cette réforme peut demander davantage d’attention que le volet tarifaire. Les exigences relatives au dossier de commerce extérieur, les nouveaux motifs de suspension au Registre des importateurs et le délai de 20 jours de l’entrepôt sous douane sont des obligations opérationnelles, quelle que soit la ligne tarifaire de votre machine.
Cela suggère que les acheteurs au Mexique devraient considérer 2026 comme une année de documentation plutôt que de précipitation. Pour ceux qui comparent une machine agricole ou de chantier de classe 7 m à une unité compacte de moins de 6 m, réglez la question de la classification avant de figer les spécifications, car le tablier et les accessoires peuvent modifier l’exposition sur les pièces davantage que la machine de base.
## Risks or Limitations
Les listes sectorielles ci-dessus proviennent de synthèses de cabinets juridiques et de conseil, et non d’une lecture ligne par ligne du décret. L’absence des engins de chantier dans ces synthèses ne prouve pas qu’aucune ligne de machines n’a changé. Pour un modèle précis, seule une classification contraignante de la douane mexicaine ou un avis écrit d’un courtier en douane agréé tranche la question.
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/)