In an effort to reduce the high inflation in Mexico, the Mexican government extended its anti-inflationary policy to all of 2023 and promulgated a presidential decree to exempt products related to basic family consumption from paying import duties and administrative facilities.
The Ministry of Economy published on Friday in the evening edition of the official gazette; among the 33 tariff fractions released from the payment of import taxes, there are two related to the steel industry of the General Import and Export Tax Law (LIGIE).
Flat rolled iron or steel products with a width greater than or equal to 600 mm and those less than 600 mm are exempt from import taxes.
In particular, they are fractions 7210.70.02 (greater than or equal to 600 mm) and 7212.40.04 (less than 600 mm). They will be exempt from taxes "only when they are used to make containers for beverages and food."
The current tax for these products is 15 percent of the value. According to the LIGIE, as of June 2023 it will decrease to 10 percent and to 7.0 percent as of September 22, 2023.
To obtain the benefit, companies must have a "Universal Single License" (LUU) to temporarily exempt from bureaucratic procedures in food imports. To obtain the LUU, companies must be registered and active in the register in charge of the collection arm of the SHCP, Tax Administration Service (SAT).
In the October expansion of the anti-inflation plan, the Mexican government banned the export of metal scrap and aluminum. In the new decree, it is not specified. SteelOrbis requested information from the Ministry of Economy, the regulatory body for Mexican foreign trade headed by Raquel Buenrostro, but for now, there has been no response.