Charging for public information requires proof of the actual cost of materials
Access to public information. Charges arising from the exercise of this right require heightened legislative reasoning to be consistent with the principle of free access.
Official heading (Spanish): ACCESO A LA INFORMACIÓN PÚBLICA. LOS COBROS DERIVADOS DEL EJERCICIO DE ESE DERECHO REQUIEREN UNA MOTIVACIÓN REFORZADA DEL LEGISLADOR PARA SER ACORDES CON EL PRINCIPIO DE GRATUIDAD.
The ruling
The National Human Rights Commission challenged 2025 municipal revenue laws in Michoacán that charged for reproducing information on CD, DVD or magnetic media and for scanning documents. The SCJN (Mexican Supreme Court) held that only the cost of materials, delivery and, where applicable, certification may be charged, and that lawmakers must justify those fees with heightened reasoning grounded in objective costs.
Our take
This is a transparency ruling, but it reaches companies. Legal teams file many information requests to build defenses, review tenders or document dealings with authorities. Where a municipality sets unsupported fees, the ruling gives grounds to challenge them. The burden sits with the legislature: it must show the fee reflects real inputs and is not a revenue source. We agree. The practical weakness is that amounts are usually small and few people litigate them; the value of the precedent lies in refusing charges that condition access to key documents.
What to do
- Review municipal fee schedules before paying for copies or scanning of public information.
- If a charge lacks support, invoke the constitutional free-access principle of article 6 in the request.
- Ask for delivery on your own electronic media to cut costs and avoid discretionary fees.
Details
- Court
- SCJN Plenary
- Type
- Binding precedent (jurisprudencia)
- Identifier
- P./J. 82/2026 (12a.)
- Digital registry
- 2032148
- Published
- May 22, 2026
- Area
- Amparo and constitutional
- View official source ↗
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Prepared by Artegia for information only; not legal advice. Headings in English are unofficial translations. The official text is the one published in the Semanario Judicial de la Federación or the TFJA journal.