Benefits owed to a deceased worker: the clock starts at death
Limitation period in labor matters. The general period under article 516 of the Federal Labor Law to claim benefits owed to a worker who died of natural causes runs from the day after the death, not from the declaration of beneficiaries.
Official heading (Spanish): PRESCRIPCIÓN EN MATERIA LABORAL. EL CÓMPUTO DEL PLAZO GENÉRICO PREVISTO EN EL ARTÍCULO 516 DE LA LEY FEDERAL DEL TRABAJO PARA RECLAMAR PRESTACIONES ADEUDADAS A UNA PERSONA TRABAJADORA FALLECIDA POR CAUSAS NATURALES, INICIA A PARTIR DEL DÍA SIGUIENTE AL DECESO Y NO DESDE LA DECLARATORIA DE PERSONAS BENEFICIARIAS.
The ruling
Two Collegiate Circuit Courts disagreed on when the limitation period starts for beneficiaries claiming benefits owed to a worker who died of natural causes. A Regional Plenary Court held that the general one-year period of article 516 of the Federal Labor Law applies from the day after the death, because the declaration of beneficiaries and payment can be sought in the same claim.
Our take
This is binding Regional Plenary precedent in labor matters and closes a door some courts had left open: waiting for the declaration of beneficiaries before suing. For employers, the time bar becomes an objective defense, easily proven with the death certificate. Two caveats. The ruling covers only death by natural causes and outstanding benefits; occupational risks have special periods under articles 517 to 519. And a time bar is no reason to withhold payment: in our experience, settling promptly with beneficiaries avoids litigation and preserves goodwill with the workforce.
What to do
- Raise the article 516 time bar in claims filed more than one year after the death.
- Keep the death certificate and the calculation of outstanding benefits in the employee file.
- Set an internal process to pay beneficiaries without waiting for litigation.
Details
- Court
- Regional Plenary Courts
- Type
- Binding precedent (jurisprudencia)
- Identifier
- PR.P.T.CS. J/32 L (12a.)
- Digital registry
- 2032853
- Published
- October 30, 2026
- Area
- Labor and social security
- 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.