On July 14, 2021, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador published in the Federal Official Gazette the decree ” whereby the National Customs Agency of Mexico is created as a decentralized administrative body of the Secretary of Finance and Public Credit.”

The National Customs Agency of Mexico (ANAM by its Spanish acronym) will be a decentralized administrative body of the Secretary of Finance and Public Credit, vested with technical, operational, administrative and managerial autonomy, with the character of tax and customs authority and powers to issue resolutions within the scope of its competence.

In addition, the federal executive announced on Thursday, July 15, 2021, in his “morning briefing”, that ANAM will be operated by the Armed Forces, comprised of the Secretary of National Defense (Sedena by its Spanish acronym) and the Secretary of the Navy (Semar by its Spanish acronym).

Its responsibilities include organizing and directing customs and inspection services to ensure compliance with the legal regulations governing the entry and exit of goods to and from the national territory, as well as those related to the collection of taxes and duties applicable to foreign trade operations, and other powers granted by said Decree.

ANAM shall be empowered to do the following:

1. To collect the taxes and duties applicable to foreign trade operations and related additional charges.
2. To direct customs and inspection services, such as the verification of the legal stay and origin of goods in national territory and goods in transit, and to attach or secure the goods for which there is no evidence of their legal stay in the country and to safeguard them as a custodian.
3. To manage the registers of importers, importers of specific sectors and sectorial exporters.
4. To represent the interest of the Federation in tax and customs controversies related to the entry, transit or exit of goods to or from national territory.
5. To coordinate with the armed forces and national security and public security institutions to preserve security at points of entry into the country.
6. To request and provide other national or foreign public agencies and institutions with access to the information necessary to prevent tax evasion or avoidance in customs matters and other illegal acts or violations, in accordance with the laws and international treaties on customs matters.
7. To participate in the negotiation of international treaties carried out by the Federal Executive in customs matters, as well as to enter into inter-institutional agreements within the scope of its jurisdiction.
   • Represent the SHCP before the administrative and jurisdictional authorities in criminal proceedings related to felonies within the scope of ANAM’s competence, in its capacity as victim or offended party, as assistant or legal advisor of the same, by itself or through the attorneys assigned to it.
8. Such others as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Decree, its internal regulations and other applicable legal provisions.

Mexico currently has 49 customs offices; therefore, ANAM will establish central offices located wherever the federal government determines, as well as offices in the states and their most important cities, as well as abroad.         

Head of the National Customs Agency of Mexico

The Head of ANAM will be freely appointed and removed by the President of the Mexican Republic at the proposal of the Secretary of Finance and Public Credit.

The Head of ANAM will be freely appointed and removed by the President of the Mexican Republic at the proposal of the Secretary of Finance and Public Credit.

Part of the grounds given by the executive for the creation of this new agency is to strengthen national security, mainly at the access points to the country, considering that it is a priority to strengthen the Mexican customs system towards a vision of service, attention and support to importers and exporters, as well as to harmonize the processes involving customs services to combat the problem of corruption due to the trafficking of fuels, illegal entry of firearms and fentanyl

Entry into effect

This Decree will enter into effect on the date on which the legal reforms that transfers the jurisdiction in tax and customs matters currently held by the SAT to the decentralized body provided for in this Decree become effective.

The SHCP will have a maximum term of 180 calendar days, from the date of the entry into force of the Decree, to propose to the Federal Executive the draft of the Internal Regulations of the National Customs Agency of Mexico.

We remain at your service for any doubt or clarification in this regard.