The Mexican government reported that eight IMMEX companies made illegal imports. The total amount was Ps. 24 billion. 

These operations are currently under investigation by the Mexican Attorney General’s Office.

Background: On December 19, 2024 a decree was published. This imposed a 35% tariff on 138 tariff fractions of textile products. The purpose of this decree is to protect the industry against unfair trade practices.

Illegal imports

The IMMEX program allows goods to be imported temporarily without paying the general import tax. Also, in some cases, it exempts from the payment of antidumping or countervailing duties. All this, as long as the goods are used to manufacture export products.

During a press conference, Marcelo Ebrard, Secretary of Economy, explained the findings. The government reviewed the use of the IMMEX program and discovered irregularities.

“A review was made and we saw that eight companies were making illegal use of this; that is, they were deceiving the Mexican government, saying I am importing textiles or footwear to later export them; we verified, checked and saw that they were not exporting: they were lying,” said Ebrard. 

As a result, their program was cancelled, their accounts were frozen and a formal investigation began. These companies used IMMEX to import without exporting, in violation of the law.

Dumping

Ebrard also clarified that not only tariffs were imposed. The government reviewed other companies that were abusing the temporary import scheme. Some were selling products below their real cost, affecting competition.

On the other hand, the president requested a key meeting for May 14. The objective is to bring together textile producers with companies that demand these products in Mexico. More than 200 companies have already registered. There are even trade agreements for 38 million dollars.

Finally, Ebrard emphasized that the government seeks a fairer market. It wants to increase production, improve competitiveness and generate more jobs. It also intends to combat smuggling and strengthen agreements with trading partners.

Thanks to these measures, textile imports have dropped. Before, they were growing year after year. In addition, the textile industry had lost 80,000 jobs. Now, with the new policies, this trend is expected to be reversed.