The government tax collection organ, Servicio de Administracion Tributaria (SAT), will step up the performance of electronic tax audits in Mexico during the second half of 2016.

Tax audits in Mexico increasingly done electronically

In a typical year, personnel at the SAT traditionally conducts approximately forty-five thousand audits per year. During the June – December period of 2016, however, the Servicio de Administracion Tributaria, will begin to step up the conduct of electronic tax audits in Mexico by performing four thousand such examination of taxpayers’ reports. Before conducting these audits, however, authorities at the SAT have stated that they will open lines of communication with taxpayers in order to familiarize them with the process attached to such audits, as well as will hold public forums for the purpose of clearly defining and explaining the scope of such audits.

Taxpayers must be aware that discrepancies in data that is submitted to the Servicio de Administracion Tributaria is likely to trigger electronic tax audits in Mexico. These inconsistencies occur when data submitted by a taxpayer conflicts with that submitted in and by:

  • electronic billings
  • clients
  • suppliers

Taxpayers in Mexico can facilitate their dealings with the SAT by opening a “Buzon Tributario,” or Electronic Mailbox in English. Thus far over one million accounts have been registered. The majority of which have been established by businesses.

In addition to being able to submit their information electronically, taxpayers in Mexico are now able to contest the findings of electronic audits in Mexico on-line through their Electronic Mailbox.

A streamlined process

One of the results of Mexico’s recent tax reforms has been that the agency under which the SAT is governed, the Secretaria de Hacienda y Crédito Público (the nation’s equivalent of the IRS), has committed itself to modernizing its capabilities. For instance, newly available software will enable taxpayers to store and classify invoices by supplier electronically. This information can then be downloaded directly to the SAT via an Electronic Mailbox. This and other improvements will facilitate Mexican citizens and business dealings with tax authorities, as well as will streamline the process of electronic tax audits in Mexico.