Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo has denounced as discriminatory and illegal a proposal by U.S. Republican lawmakers to impose a 5% tax on remittances. She warned that such a measure would violate the U.S.-Mexico Double Taxation Avoidance Treaty in force since 1994.
During her morning press conference, Sheinbaum announced that Mexico’s ambassador to the United States, Esteban Moctezuma, will meet with migrant organizations, and that a Senate commission made up of all Mexican political parties will engage in dialogue with U.S. lawmakers to explain the negative consequences of the initiative. She also urged Mexican nationals in the U.S. to write to their representatives to voice their opposition.
Finance Secretary Edgar Amador Zamora explained that imposing such a tax would amount to double taxation, breaching Article 25 of the bilateral treaty, which prohibits unequal tax treatment based on nationality. He noted that in 2024, remittances totaled $64.7 billion—equivalent to 3.5% of Mexico’s GDP—and that 99.1% of these funds were sent through legal, regulated channels.
Foreign Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente affirmed that the Government of Mexico will mount a strong political and legal defense against the proposal. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already sent a letter, signed by Ambassador Moctezuma and North America Unit Chief Roberto Velasco, to the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee outlining the harmful effects of the tax.
Velasco emphasized that the proposed measure would affect not only undocumented individuals, but any non-U.S. person using money transfer services, thus constituting discriminatory treatment. He added that only 18% of migrants’ income is sent back to Mexico, while the rest stays within the U.S. economy—meaning the tax would harm both Mexican families and domestic consumption in the United States.
