Mexico Cuts 59 Aviation Rules, Pauses AFAC Year-End Deadlines

Mexico’s Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transport (SICT) has eliminated 59 administrative procedures overseen by the Federal Civil Aviation Agency (AFAC) and confirmed a year-end suspension of administrative deadlines across the ministry. Both measures were published in the Official Gazette of the Federation (DOF) and take effect in mid-December, with direct implications for airlines, aviation service providers, training institutions, and technical personnel operating in Mexico.

According to the DOF, the agreement eliminating the AFAC procedures entered into force on Dec. 16. The SICT stated that AFAC, as a decentralized administrative body, is tasked with ensuring that air transport “participates in the process of sustained, sustainable and safe growth.” The ministry said the elimination of procedures forms part of a broader strategy aimed at administrative simplification and regulatory improvement.

The eliminated procedures span a wide range of permits, licenses, revalidations, and notifications previously required for aeronautical technical personnel, aviation service operators, and aircraft operations. These include the removal of AFAC’s educational services procedures, as well as requirements related to the retention of supervision reports for infrastructure, facilities and equipment at civil aerodromes.

The agreement also removes processes related to the assignment and registration of emergency locator transmitter (ELT) identification codes, including initial approvals and subsequent modifications. In personnel-related matters, AFAC eliminated multiple permits linked to training, certification, and reinstatement of aeronautical technical staff, including certificates of competency for flight instructors, glider pilots, and various ground and flight technical roles.

Several categories of pilot licenses were eliminated, including licenses for private and commercial balloon pilots, glider pilots, ultralight aircraft pilots, agricultural pilots, and rotary-wing pilots across different operational levels. The measure further removes licenses and certificates for meteorologists, air traffic controllers in Class I, II and III categories, as well as technical maintenance personnel across multiple educational and professional pathways.

In addition, AFAC eliminated revalidation requirements for licenses and certificates of competency associated with aircraft type ratings, class ratings, and instrument flight rules (IFR). The agreement also removes theoretical and practical exams previously required for certain public transport pilot licenses and technical flight capacities.

Operational requirements were likewise affected. The agreement eliminates authorization requirements for certain foreign private, non-commercial aircraft to overfly Mexican airspace and land within national territory. It also cancels notifications related to the start of operations, the departure of temporarily imported foreign aircraft, and specialized air services, including aerial spraying and aerial photography. Additionally, AFAC removed authorization requirements for a range of technical and operational manuals, including those related to air safety, maintenance, dispatch, and flight operations.

Separately, SICT published a second agreement in the DOF establishing the ministry’s year-end administrative calendar for 2025. Under this measure, all administrative procedures before SICT units and decentralized bodies may be conducted through Dec. 21, 2025. The period from Dec. 22, 2025, through Jan. 6, 2026, will be treated as non-working days due to a suspension of activities.

The agreement specifies that during this period, “deadlines and terms corresponding to acts, procedures and administrative processes carried out before the administrative units and decentralized bodies of the SICT will not be counted.” This suspension applied to the receipt of documents, agreements, hearings, resolutions, notifications, requests for information and appeals, among others.

SICT clarified that procedures governed by the Public Sector Acquisitions, Leasing and Services Law and the Public Works and Related Services Law are excluded from the suspension. For all other matters, the agreement states that any action, requirement, request or filing submitted to the SICT during the designated non-working days will take effect on the first subsequent working day— Jan. 7, 2026—in accordance with Article 28 of the Federal Administrative Procedure Law.”

The ministry added that the determination “does not prejudice the authority of this Ministry to enable the days and hours it requires to fulfill its powers,” including assigning on-call personnel when necessary.