Mexican Customs Break Collection Record

Customs in Mexico increased collection by 10.73 percent in real terms in the first eight months of 2022, setting a new record as international commerce continues to grow in the country. 

The National Customs Agency of Mexico (ANAM) announced that from January to August 2022, the agency collected MX$722 billion (US$35.97 billion). The increase represents a historical year in collection, with a real increase of 10.73 percent in comparison to the same period in 2021, explained Horacio Duarte Olivares, Head, National Customs Agency of Mexico via a press release.

ANAM also highlighted its strong commitment to combat corruption and smuggling, as it seeks to monitor the adequate payment of taxes to ensure collection in Mexico’s 50 customs offices, as instructed by President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador. ANAM is a decentralized administrative body of the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) responsible for the administration of customs in Mexico. 

Duarte explained that the increase represents MX$70 billion (US$3.49 billion) more than in the same period last year. Nuevo Laredo, Manzanillo, Veracruz, Lazaro Cardenas and the Mexico City International Airport (AICM) were the five most profitable Mexican customs between January and August 2022.

“In 2021, Mexican customs collected MX$1.4 trillion (US$70 billion), a historical figure since records have been recorded, exceeding by MX$134 billion (US$6.68 billion) what was collected in 2020, despite the impact on foreign trade due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” reads ANAM’s press release. 

Mexican customs had been recently in the spotlight following President López Obrador’s decision to use the Army and Navy to oversee them. “This is one of the most controversial issues in recent times. What is the reason for our president to make such an important decision as calling on the Navy and the Army to coordinate with the General Customs Administration (AGA) in the customs of the country? We can imagine many things, but the truth is that President López Obrador has better and more information about what is going on. As such, CAAREM gave him a vote of confidence so that we could soon have a world-class customs system,” wrote Arturo Reyes, President, Confederation of Associations of Customs Agents of the Mexican Republic (CAAREM), in MBN.