Country guide
Buying property in Mexico as a foreigner
Rules last checked 29 October 2026 · 8 official sources · Education, not financial, tax, legal or immigration advice.
Mexico lets foreigners buy property outside the restricted zone after filing a written agreement to be treated as a national and obtaining a foreign ministry permit. Inside the zone, 100 km from borders and 50 km from coasts, a foreigner cannot hold direct title and a residence goes through a bank trust (fideicomiso) of up to 50 years, renewable.
What are you doing with Mexico?
Returns after tax, what is withheld, and the way out.
Mexico charges a foreign ministry fee of MXN 21,648.83 for a permit to constitute a restricted zone trust, under the Federal Fees Law text consolidated to 7 November 2025. Details
Mexico levies a municipal property tax (predial) at a rate each municipality sets, and Benito Juarez in Quintana Roo gives 2026 early payment discounts of 15 percent from 7 to 21 January, 10 percent from 22 January to 15 February and 5 percent from 16 February to 15 March. Details
Mexico taxes a sale of Mexican property by an owner resident abroad at 25 percent of the total price with no deductions, or at the top rate of the article 152 tariff on the gain when the sale is by public deed or through a qualifying representative (35 percent above MXN 5,107,703.93 for 2026). Details
Questions people in this position often miss
- Will I be taxed twice?Depends on your country
The country of the property and the country where the owner lives can each tax the same rent or gain.
- Can I borrow locally?Not confirmed yet
Lending to a buyer living abroad is limited in many countries and the loan to value limit can be lower.
- Can I move the money out of my own country?Depends on your country
Some countries cap or review money sent abroad to buy a home, and banks ask where the money came from.
- What do I report at home?Depends on your country
Foreign property, foreign accounts and foreign rent can each carry a form in the owner's own country.
- What is changing soon?Answered below
From 1 January 2026 the 35 percent band of the article 152 income tax tariff starts above MXN 5,107,703.93, as published in the 2026 Miscellaneous Tax Resolution on 28 December 2025.
Whether a purchase gives a right to live there, and what living there costs in tax.
A foreigner who holds real estate in Mexico worth more than 91,710 days of UMA can apply for a temporary residence visa of more than 180 days and up to 4 years. Details
Mexico lets foreigners buy property outside the restricted zone after filing a written agreement to be treated as a national and obtaining a foreign ministry permit. Details
Mexico charges a foreign ministry fee of MXN 21,648.83 for a permit to constitute a restricted zone trust, under the Federal Fees Law text consolidated to 7 November 2025. Details
Mexico levies a municipal property tax (predial) at a rate each municipality sets, and Benito Juarez in Quintana Roo gives 2026 early payment discounts of 15 percent from 7 to 21 January, 10 percent from 22 January to 15 February and 5 percent from 16 February to 15 March. Details
Questions people in this position often miss
- Does buying give me the right to live there?Answered below
A foreigner who holds real estate in Mexico worth more than 91,710 days of UMA can apply for a temporary residence visa of more than 180 days and up to 4 years.
- What happens if I die, or the family inherits?Answered below
Income received by inheritance or legacy is listed among incomes not subject to income tax (Income Tax Law, article 93, section XXII).
- Can I move the money out of my own country?Depends on your country
Some countries cap or review money sent abroad to buy a home, and banks ask where the money came from.
- Will I be taxed twice?Depends on your country
The country of the property and the country where the owner lives can each tax the same rent or gain.
- What is changing soon?Answered below
From 1 January 2026 the 35 percent band of the article 152 income tax tariff starts above MXN 5,107,703.93, as published in the 2026 Miscellaneous Tax Resolution on 28 December 2025.
Part year stays, the yearly bill, and what the family inherits.
Mexico lets foreigners buy property outside the restricted zone after filing a written agreement to be treated as a national and obtaining a foreign ministry permit. Details
Mexico levies a municipal property tax (predial) at a rate each municipality sets, and Benito Juarez in Quintana Roo gives 2026 early payment discounts of 15 percent from 7 to 21 January, 10 percent from 22 January to 15 February and 5 percent from 16 February to 15 March. Details
A foreigner who holds real estate in Mexico worth more than 91,710 days of UMA can apply for a temporary residence visa of more than 180 days and up to 4 years. Details
Mexico charges a foreign ministry fee of MXN 21,648.83 for a permit to constitute a restricted zone trust, under the Federal Fees Law text consolidated to 7 November 2025. Details
Questions people in this position often miss
- Does buying give me the right to live there?Answered below
A foreigner who holds real estate in Mexico worth more than 91,710 days of UMA can apply for a temporary residence visa of more than 180 days and up to 4 years.
- What happens if I die, or the family inherits?Answered below
Income received by inheritance or legacy is listed among incomes not subject to income tax (Income Tax Law, article 93, section XXII).
- What is owed every year, even if the home sits empty?Answered below
Mexico levies a municipal property tax (predial) at a rate each municipality sets, and Benito Juarez in Quintana Roo gives 2026 early payment discounts of 15 percent from 7 to 21 January, 10 percent from 22 January to 15 February and 5 percent from 16 February to 15 March.
- Will I be taxed twice?Depends on your country
The country of the property and the country where the owner lives can each tax the same rent or gain.
- Can I move the money out of my own country?Depends on your country
Some countries cap or review money sent abroad to buy a home, and banks ask where the money came from.
What is owed each year, on rent and on a sale, and what the heirs face.
Mexico levies a municipal property tax (predial) at a rate each municipality sets, and Benito Juarez in Quintana Roo gives 2026 early payment discounts of 15 percent from 7 to 21 January, 10 percent from 22 January to 15 February and 5 percent from 16 February to 15 March. Details
Mexico taxes a sale of Mexican property by an owner resident abroad at 25 percent of the total price with no deductions, or at the top rate of the article 152 tariff on the gain when the sale is by public deed or through a qualifying representative (35 percent above MXN 5,107,703.93 for 2026). Details
Mexico charges a foreign ministry fee of MXN 21,648.83 for a permit to constitute a restricted zone trust, under the Federal Fees Law text consolidated to 7 November 2025. Details
Questions people in this position often miss
- What do I report at home?Depends on your country
Foreign property, foreign accounts and foreign rent can each carry a form in the owner's own country.
- Will I be taxed twice?Depends on your country
The country of the property and the country where the owner lives can each tax the same rent or gain.
- What happens if I die, or the family inherits?Answered below
Income received by inheritance or legacy is listed among incomes not subject to income tax (Income Tax Law, article 93, section XXII).
- What happens when I sell?Answered below
Mexico taxes a sale of Mexican property by an owner resident abroad at 25 percent of the total price with no deductions, or at the top rate of the article 152 tariff on the gain when the sale is by public deed or through a qualifying representative (35 percent above MXN 5,107,703.93 for 2026). The notary calculates the tax and pays it within 15 days of signing.
- What is changing soon?Answered below
From 1 January 2026 the 35 percent band of the article 152 income tax tariff starts above MXN 5,107,703.93, as published in the 2026 Miscellaneous Tax Resolution on 28 December 2025.
Who may buy
Choose a nationality to see the rules that apply to it.
Every rule, for every buyer
| Buyer | Property | Reading | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Citizens of Mexico | Any property | Open | Mexicans by birth or naturalisation and Mexican companies hold the right to acquire ownership of land, waters and their accessions (Constitution, article 27, section I). The consolidated Constitution (last reform DOF 07 to 10 to 2026) shows section I last changed in 1948 and 1960. |
| Everyone else (not Mexico) | residential | Restricted |
|
| Everyone else (not Mexico) | Any property | Approval needed |
|
| Everyone else | commercial | Conditions apply |
|
| Everyone else | agricultural land | Restricted | Ejido parcel rights can be sold only to other ejidatarios or residents (avecindados) of the same community until the ejido assembly lets parcel holders adopt full ownership and the parcel leaves the ejido regime (Agrarian Law, articles 80 to 82). Foreigners can hold no more than 49 percent of the series T shares of companies that own agricultural, livestock or forestry land (article 130). |
What it costs to buy
SRE fee for the permit to constitute a restricted zone trust
- Rate
Federal Fees Law article 25(V)(a), text consolidated to the reform of 7 November 2025:
- MXN 21,648.83 for a permit to constitute a trust under article 11 of the Foreign Investment Law
- MXN 9,740.31 to modify the permit
- MXN 10,613.78 for a late request to extend a trust contract
- MXN 715.27 for other trust permits
The acquisition notice by a company for non residential purposes is MXN 1,473.64 (fraction X).
- Extra for a foreign buyer
Applies only to a foreigner using the trust route
What an owner pays each year
Property tax (predial)
- Rate
Municipal; set by each state's municipal finance law and annual revenue law, usually with early payment discounts (Benito Juarez, Quintana Roo, 2026: 15 percent off from 7 to 21 January, 10 percent from 22 January to 15 February, 5 percent from 16 February to 15 March, as approved by the municipal council on 27 Nov 2025).
What if I own it and let it out?
Tax on the rent
Enter a yearly rent to see the tax on it.
A planning figure under the rules shown, not advice. Rates set by councils, reliefs, treaties and the owner's own circumstances can change it, and income tax on rent is usually settled on a return.
Rent from the property
Tax on rent
- Owner living elsewhere
- Income of a foreign resident from letting real property in Mexico is taxed at 25 percent of gross income with no deductions, withheld by the payer; where the payer is also a non resident the owner pays by a return within 15 days of receipt (Income Tax Law, article 158).
- When income arrives through a trust the trustee issues the tax receipt and withholds.
- The article also treats as rent the consideration a non resident receives for granting use or enjoyment rights over Mexican real property, even when it arises from the sale or assignment of those rights.
- Filing
Withholding by the payer or trustee; otherwise a return within 15 days of receipt.
Key numbers (1)
| Tax on rent paid to a foreign resident owner, gross, withheld | 25% |
|---|
Selling
Tax on a sale
- Owner living elsewhere
- On sale of Mexican real property by a foreign resident, tax is 25 percent of the total price with no deductions, withheld by a Mexican resident buyer or paid by the seller within 15 days; or, if the sale is in a public deed (no local representative needed in that case) or the seller has a qualifying representative, the seller may elect to pay the top rate of the article 152 tariff on the gain, with deductions the representative notifies to the notary (Income Tax Law, article 160).
- The top rate of the tariff is 35 percent on the excess over MXN 5,107,703.93 for 2026 (MXN 4,511,707.38 for 2025), per Annex 8 of the 2026 Miscellaneous Tax Resolution published in the DOF on 28 Dec 2025.
- The notary computes the tax under their own responsibility, records it in the deed and pays it within 15 days of signing.
- If the tax authority's valuation exceeds the agreed price by more than 10 percent, the whole difference is treated as income of the foreign resident buyer and taxed at 25 percent without deduction; a seller who is resident in Mexico or has a permanent establishment there pays it in the buyer's place, otherwise the buyer files within 15 days of the notice.
- Withholding on the sale
Yes: the 25 percent gross withholding by a resident buyer, or the notary calculated tax under the gain election.
- Exemptions
The main residence exemption in the Income Tax Law applies to individuals resident in Mexico.
Key numbers (3)
| Tax on sale of real property by a foreign resident, on total price | 25% |
|---|---|
| Top rate of the article 152 tariff, elected on the gain (public deed or representative) | 35% |
| Annual tariff, start of the 35 percent band, 2026from 1 January 2026 until 31 December 2026 | MXN 5,107,703.93 |
What if I sell?
Gain (sale price less purchase price)MXN 100,000
Tax on the sale
- Tax on the total price, withheld by the buyerMXN 125,000Charged on the sale price. 25 percent of the total price with no deductions, withheld by a Mexican resident buyer or paid by the seller within 15 days.
Total under the rules shownMXN 125,000
A planning figure under the rules shown, not advice. Costs of buying and selling, improvements, reliefs for a home lived in, treaties and the owner's own circumstances can change it, and tax on a gain is usually settled on a return.
Inheritance and gifts
Inheritance and gift tax
- Summary
- Income received by inheritance or legacy is listed among incomes not subject to income tax (Income Tax Law, article 93, section XXII).
- Gifts are exempt between spouses, from ascendants to descendants in direct line and from descendants to ascendants (with a condition that the assets are not sold), and other gifts are exempt up to three times the annual minimum wage in a calendar year (article 93, section XXIII).
- For a foreign resident, article 160 charges 25 percent of the appraised value on gratuitous acquisitions of Mexican real property and excepts only the gifts of article 93, section XXIII(a).
- A foreign heir acquiring restricted zone land is bound by the zone rules (trust route).
Key numbers (1)
| Tax on gratuitous acquisitions of real property by a foreign resident (gifts outside article 93 XXIII a) | 25% |
|---|
From your country
The country of the property is only half of it. The country where you live can limit the money you send, tax the same rent and gain again, and ask for forms of its own.
Choose where you live to see what your own country does when you buy in Mexico.
Residence through property
Temporary residence by acquiring real estate
- Threshold
A visa for a stay of more than 180 days and up to 4 years for a foreigner who has acquired real estate in Mexico. The consulate asks for a notarised deed showing the foreigner holds real estate worth more than 91,710 days of UMA.
- Status
open
- Check
Check it is still current. The date of the law is not confirmed.
The usual steps, in order
- Establish the location of the property against the restricted zone (100 km from borders, 50 km from coasts) and the municipality list kept by the statistics institute, which the law requires to be published and kept current.
- Check whether the land is ejido or communal land; ejido parcels can be sold only within the community until the assembly has converted them to full ownership.
- Outside the zone: file the Calvo clause agreement and obtain the foreign ministry permit before acquiring title (deemed granted if no refusal is published within 5 working days where the municipality is wholly outside the zone; 30 working days where it is partly inside).
- Inside the zone for a residence: a credit institution is named trustee, the foreign ministry permit is applied for, and the foreign buyer becomes beneficiary; the trust runs for up to 50 years and can be extended on request.
- Sign the sale or trust deed before a notary, who calculates and pays the seller's tax and records it in the deed; the buyer pays the local acquisition tax.
- Pay by traceable means, as cash payment for real property of 8,025 UMA or more is prohibited.
- Register the deed with the property registry and pay annual municipal property tax; rent income is withheld at source.
What is changing
- From 1 January 2026 the 35 percent band of the article 152 income tax tariff starts above MXN 5,107,703.93, as published in the 2026 Miscellaneous Tax Resolution on 28 December 2025.
- On 16 July 2025 the anti money laundering law was reformed to add real estate development as a defined activity.
Questions people ask
What if I want to buy a home near the coast in Mexico as a foreigner?
Within 50 km of the coast or 100 km of a border a foreigner cannot hold direct title, and residential use runs through a fideicomiso with a bank as trustee, for up to 50 years and renewable, after a foreign ministry permit.
How does buying outside the restricted zone work for a foreigner?
The buyer files a written agreement to be treated as a national for the property and not to invoke the protection of a foreign government, and obtains the foreign ministry permit, which is deemed granted if no refusal is published within 5 working days where the municipality lies wholly outside the zone.
What if a Mexican company owns property in the restricted zone?
A Mexican company with the foreigner exclusion clause or the article 27 agreement can hold title in the zone for non residential activities, with notice to the ministry within 60 working days; for residential purposes only the trust route applies.
How is tax charged when an owner resident abroad sells Mexican property?
The tax is 25 percent of the total price with no deductions, or the owner may elect to pay the top rate of the article 152 tariff on the gain when the sale is by public deed or through a qualifying representative; the notary calculates and pays it within 15 days of signing.
How is rent taxed for an owner resident abroad?
Rent is taxed at 25 percent of gross income with no deductions and is withheld by the payer, or by the trustee where the income flows through a trust.
How does Mexican income tax treat an inheritance?
Income received by inheritance or legacy is listed among incomes not subject to income tax for individuals (article 93, section XXII), while article 160 charges 25 percent of the appraised value on gratuitous acquisitions of Mexican real property by a foreign resident, with an exception for certain gifts.
What if the land is ejido land?
Ejido parcel rights can be transferred only to ejidatarios or residents of the same ejido until the assembly allows full ownership, and a foreigner can hold no more than 49 percent of the series T shares of a company that owns agricultural land.
What if the purchase is paid in cash?
Paying 8,025 UMA daily values or more for real property in cash is prohibited, and a notary files a notice from 8,000 UMA daily values.
How much does the foreign ministry charge for a trust permit?
The Federal Fees Law prints MXN 21,648.83 for a permit to constitute a restricted zone trust, in the text consolidated to 7 November 2025.
Has the restricted zone rule changed recently?
Article 27 section I of the Constitution was last changed in 1948 and 1960 according to the consolidated text with its last reform on 7 October 2026, and the Foreign Investment Law shows its last reform on 27 May 2024.
What is still open
These points could not be confirmed from an official source yet, so they are not stated as rules.
- The state or municipal acquisition tax rate in force for 2026 could not be confirmed from an official source yet.
- Notary fees, trust set up and annual trustee fees and registry costs could not be confirmed from an official source yet.
- The tax treatment of an inheritance received by an heir resident abroad could not be confirmed from an official source yet.
- The main residence exemption on a sale by an owner resident abroad could not be confirmed from an official source yet.
- The property value that qualifies for a temporary residence visa could not be confirmed from an official source yet.
- Mortgage lending to foreigners, bank account opening and loan to value ratios could not be confirmed from an official source yet.
- The 2026 amount of the foreign ministry trust permit fee could not be confirmed from an official source yet.
- The reported proposals to change the restricted zone are not stated as a rule because only secondary sources describe them.
Sources
Official pages these figures come from (8)
See what this does to your own numbers
Add a property in Mexico next to everything else you own, and see the income and net worth that follow after tax, year by year.
Free to start. No card. Rules checked 29 October 2026.
This is education, not financial, tax, legal or immigration advice. Rules change and depend on the buyer's own facts. Advice from a licensed professional in the country concerned is what settles a particular purchase.