Yucatán acquisition tax: Mérida's table, Progreso 4%

Who sets the tax

Yucatán has no single state rate. Each municipality’s Ley de Hacienda or annual Ley de Ingresos (the revenue law) sets the tax, and the state congress publishes them in the Diario Oficial. Mérida’s table sits in its Ley de Hacienda (art. 60); Progreso’s Ley de Ingresos for 2026 (art. 22) applies “4%” to the base defined in its Ley de Hacienda; Valladolid’s Ley de Hacienda (art. 62) contains a table of percentages. The laws of the state’s other municipalities were not read for this guide, so they are not computed.

The base: the highest of three values

In Mérida (art. 58) and Valladolid (art. 60) the base is the highest of the purchase price, the value on the current cadastral certificate (cédula catastral) and a commercial appraisal. The appraisal can come from the tax authorities, a credit institution, the federal appraisal agency, a public broker (corredor público) or an appraiser with a postgraduate valuation licence. Mérida adds four rules worth knowing:

• Debts the buyer assumes from the seller count as part of the price.
• The municipal authority may order or use an appraisal dated on the purchase date. If it exceeds the highest value by more than 10%, the whole difference is treated as part of the price.
• The notary must check that the appraiser is on the state’s register of appraisers and that the appraisal carries the Constancia de Validación de Avalúo Comercial issued by the cadastre directorate of the state’s legal-security property institute, and attach it to the transfer papers.
• An appraisal is valid for six months, and the deed date must fall within that period (art. 59).

The tables

Mérida (art. 60), fixed amount plus a rate on the excess over the lower limit:

Valladolid (art. 62): 3% up to MX$800,000, 3.5% to MX$1.8 million, 4% to MX$5 million, 5% above. The law gives one percentage per band, with no fixed amount, and Payotte applies the band’s rate to the whole base, as written. Under that reading the tax jumps from MX$200,000 at MX$5,000,000 to about MX$250,000 one peso later. A marginal reading would give a much lower tax: ask the municipal treasury which one it applies.

Worked examples (calculations)

Base equal to the price, official rates. The state’s recording fee is 12.7 UMA × MX$117.31 = MX$1,489.84.

Adding the recording fee, MX$3 million costs MX$98,490 in Mérida. Notary fees and the appraisal are extra. Compare with Mérida, Progreso, Valladolid, the state page and the closing costs calculator.

Who pays, when, and the notary

The buyer is the taxpayer. In Mérida and Valladolid the tax must be paid within 30 working days from whichever comes first: the signing of the contract, the deed (escritura pública, the notarial deed) or its registration. The fedatario público (the notary or other officer with notarial powers) must file a declaration (“manifiesto”) with the municipal finance office, in Mérida within 30 working days and in Valladolid within 30 calendar days of the act, listing the parties, the deed, the cadastral value, the price and the tax. If the buyer has no tax ID (RFC) or is foreign, the office issues a digital receipt for “residents abroad” or “the general public”.

The notary must attach the payment receipt and the stamped declaration to the deed and, if the taxpayer has not paid, must refuse to authorise the deed. The registrars of the state registry must not record the document without checking the payment. Both the notary and the registrar are jointly liable for the tax and its surcharges. Late payment brings a penalty equal to the surcharges, in addition to the surcharges (Mérida art. 64). The tax claim lapses after five years.

The recording fee

The state’s Ley General de Hacienda (art. 59) charges 2.25 UMA to qualify each registrable act and 10.45 UMA for any recording, i.e. 12.7 UMA, MX$1,490 at the 2026 UMA of MX$117.31. It does not vary with the price.

Exemptions that do not help a buyer

Inheritance and legacies, gifts between spouses and direct-line relatives, and the dissolution of co-ownership within each person’s share are exempt in Mérida (art. 57) and Valladolid (art. 59). They apply to family transfers, not to a purchase from a third party.

Traps

• Valladolid’s bracket cliff. One band rate on the entire value makes a price just above MX$800,000, MX$1.8 million or MX$5 million cost more than the earlier band’s maximum.
• The 10% appraisal rule in Mérida. A municipal appraisal more than 10% above the highest value replaces it.
• Validated appraisal. In Mérida an appraisal without the validation certificate cannot be used by the notary.
• Trust purchases. Valladolid lists acquisitions through a trust “in the cases of the federal Fiscal Code” among the taxed acts; ask the notary how it applies.
• Other municipalities. There is no uniform state rate; read the local law.

Which professional to consult

A notario público (a state-appointed notary, a senior lawyer) in Yucatán files the declaration, checks the receipt and cannot sign without payment. An appraiser on the state register prepares the appraisal. See notary, appraiser and the overview property acquisition tax in Mexico.