Puerto Vallarta cannot charge foreigners a fee with no defined public service
Fees for the use of municipal services, property and public spaces. Failure to identify the public service giving rise to the levy violates the principles of legality and legal certainty.
Official heading (Spanish): DERECHOS POR EL USO O APROVECHAMIENTO DE SERVICIOS, BIENES Y ESPACIOS PÚBLICOS MUNICIPALES. LA FALTA DE IDENTIFICACIÓN DEL SERVICIO PÚBLICO QUE DA ORIGEN A LA CONTRIBUCIÓN VULNERA LOS PRINCIPIOS DE LEGALIDAD Y SEGURIDAD JURÍDICA.
The ruling
The National Human Rights Commission challenged article 80 Bis of Puerto Vallarta's 2025 Revenue Law, which imposed a fee on foreign individuals entering the municipality for the use of public services, property and spaces. The SCJN struck it down: because it fails to identify the service giving rise to the charge, the fee is open-ended and ambiguous, breaching legality and legal certainty.
Our take
Fees (derechos) are consideration for a specific service. If the law does not say which service the municipality provides, there is no fee, only a charge without cause. The ruling matters beyond tourism: more municipalities are creating generic charges for the use of spaces or public property to raise revenue. For companies with foreign staff, tour operators or developments that receive visitors, the question is always the same: what specific service is being paid for? If the law does not answer, there is a strong argument. We agree with the SCJN; tax legality does not tolerate levies with undefined content.
What to do
- Identify generic municipal charges paid by the company or its staff without a defined service.
- Compare each fee's taxable event with the service the municipality actually provides.
- Assess an amparo against similar charges within the legal deadline from their first application.
Details
- Court
- SCJN Plenary
- Type
- Binding precedent (jurisprudencia)
- Identifier
- P./J. 91/2026 (12a.)
- Digital registry
- 2032161
- 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.