The changes to the Law, proposed by President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, propose an increase in taxes on tobacco, nicotine products, sweetening beverages, gambling and video games
Mexico City, October 16 (However).- The Chamber of Deputies approved this Thursday in general, with 351 votes in favor, 129 against and one abstention, the opinion that reforms the Special Tax Law on Production and Services (IEPS), to increase taxes at drinks with sweetenerslos games with bets and video games with violent content.
The project establishes an increase in the tobacco taxgoing from 160 to 200 percent for cigarettesand from 30.4 to 32 percent for cigars y tobaccos handmade. Furthermore, the specific fee for cigarette will increase from 0.6445 pesos in 2025 to 1.1584 pesos in 2030, with annual adjustments to maintain its real value against the inflation.
According to the opinion, these measures seek to reduce the affordability of tobacco and discourage its consumption, in compliance with the constitutional right to health.
In the case of flavored drinks, such as soft drinks, the specific fee per liter is doubled, which will go from 1.6451 pesos in 2025 to 3.0818 pesos in 2026, both for those that contain added sugars and for those with artificial sweeteners.
The reform also defines the concept of sweetener within the Law and exempts oral serums that contain only glucose, sodium chloride, potassium chloride and trisodium citrate from the tax.
In terms of games with bets and raffles, the IEPS rate rises from 30 to 50 percent, also applicable to bets made online or by electronic means, both from national and foreign providers.
Likewise, it is established that digital betting services provided from abroad will be considered carried out in national territory when the user is in Mexico. Suppliers who fail to pay the tax may be subject to sanctions or temporary blocking of their digital platforms.
For the first time, the reform includes an eight percent tax on the sale or download of video games with violent, extreme or adult content, applicable to both physical and digital formats, and memberships or services that allow access or purchase of additional content.
The approved opinion is part of the 2026 fiscal package and will now go to the discussion in particular. It will then be sent to the Senate of the Republic for analysis and eventual ratification. During the session, the president of the Board of Directors, Kenia López Rabadán, reported that proposals were presented to modify 18 articles and three transitional articles of the Law.