Paying for property in Mexico: cash limits and AML rules for buyers

By Lic. Pati Claudia Galarza, attorney (Licenciada en Derecho), Cédula Profesional 15176510 · Published October 18, 2026 · Español

If the property you are buying in Mexico is worth 8,025 UMA or more (roughly 941,000 pesos in 2026), the price cannot be paid in cash, in pesos or in dollars, even if the cash is deposited through a bank. You pay by bank transfer, the notario público records how the price was paid in the escritura, and the notary identifies you and, in larger deals, reports the transaction to the Secretaría de Hacienda. These rules come from the Ley Federal para la Prevención e Identificación de Operaciones con Recursos de Procedencia Ilícita (LFPIORPI), Mexico's anti-money-laundering law, last amended in the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 16 July 2025.

The cash prohibition

Article 32 of the LFPIORPI prohibits paying, or accepting payment, with coins and bills, whether Mexican pesos or foreign currency, for the creation or transfer of real rights over real estate worth 8,025 times the daily UMA or more, measured on the day the payment is made. The article says the prohibition applies even when the cash payment is made through a financial institution, so walking into a bank with cash and depositing it to the seller does not get around it.

The rule looks at the value of the transaction, not the size of each payment. Splitting a cash price into smaller payments does not take a property above the threshold out of the prohibition. Below the threshold cash is not prohibited by this article, but the notary still asks how the price was paid.

Estimate as of October 2026. UMA 2026: 117.31 pesos per day (INEGI, in force since 1 February 2026). 8,025 UMA = about MXN 941,400. At an assumed 18.49 pesos per US dollar (Banxico FIX of 16 October 2026), that is about US$50,900. The peso figure changes every February when the UMA is updated, and the dollar figure changes every day with the exchange rate.

Real estate is an actividad vulnerable

The LFPIORPI lists activities that must identify clients and, above set amounts, file reports (Avisos) with Hacienda. Several touch a property purchase:

Notaries: article 17, fraction XII, section A. The transfer or creation of real rights over real estate is reportable when the agreed price, the valor catastral or the commercial value, whichever is highest, reaches 8,000 UMA (about MXN 938,500 in 2026, estimate). Creating or amending a fideicomiso that transfers ownership is reportable from 4,000 UMA (about MXN 469,200, estimate). Irrevocable powers of attorney for acts of administration or ownership are always reported.
Real estate developers and brokers who habitually intermediate in purchases and sales: article 17, fraction V, reportable from 8,025 UMA.
Independent professionals, including lawyers, who prepare a property purchase for a client: article 17, fraction XI. Their Aviso is triggered when they carry out a financial operation for the client, which Galarza Legal does not do.

Under article 23, Avisos are filed no later than the 17th day of the month after the transaction. Article 24 lets notaries file the real estate Aviso through the federal tax filing channels. Article 17 also allows operations by the same person over six months to be added together when they exceed the reporting amount.

What the notary will ask you for

Article 18 requires anyone carrying out an actividad vulnerable to identify the client with official identification and keep copies, ask for the client's activity or occupation when there is an ongoing business relationship, and keep the file for at least ten years. In practice the notary will ask for your passport or other official ID, proof of address, your RFC or tax ID, CURP if you have one, and your occupation.

Article 33 requires the notary, in deeds of 8,025 UMA or more, to identify the form in which the price was paid. That is why the escritura describes the transfers, and why the notary asks for the bank confirmations. For lower amounts paid before signing, the parties' statement under oath (bajo protesta de decir verdad) is enough.

Beneficiario controlador

The law asks who really benefits from the purchase. Under article 3, fraction III, the beneficiario controlador is the individual who ultimately obtains the benefit of the property or who ultimately controls a company that is the buyer, for example by holding the vote over more than 25 percent of its capital. Under article 18, fraction III, an individual buyer signs a statement saying whether they know of a beneficiario controlador other than themselves; a company or trust buyer must provide documents identifying its beneficiario controlador.

If you are buying with money from a parent, a partner or an investor, say so. Article 21 obliges clients to provide the information the notary needs and allows the notary to refuse the transaction if they do not.

How buyers usually pay

By wire transfer to the seller's bank account, or to the notaría's account, following the notary's written instructions.
Galarza Legal never receives, holds or moves the purchase price or any closing cost. You pay the seller, the notary, the bank trustee, the appraiser and the registry directly.
Confirm any payment instructions by telephone with the notaría, using a number you already know, before sending money. Changed bank details sent by email are a common fraud.
Keep the transfer confirmations: the notary needs them for the escritura.

Proof of where the money came from

Banks and notaries commonly ask for bank statements or documents showing the origin of the funds, such as the sale of a home, savings or a loan. This follows from their duty to know their client: article 18 for notaries, and article 15 of the LFPIORPI together with article 115 of the Ley de Instituciones de Crédito for banks. Have those documents ready before the signing date; a missing document can delay the closing.

Sending US dollars

A wire transfer is not cash, so article 32 does not apply to it. Many prices in Baja California are agreed in US dollars. Article 8 of the Ley Monetaria says that obligations in foreign currency to be paid in Mexico may be paid with the equivalent in pesos at the exchange rate of the place and date of payment, and that payments transferred from abroad through Mexican banks are delivered in the currency transferred. Agree in the contract on the currency and on who bears the exchange difference, and ask your US or Canadian tax adviser about any reporting at home.

What happens if the rules are broken

Under articles 53 and 54, taking part in a cash payment prohibited by article 32 is fined from 10,000 to 65,000 times the daily UMA, or 10 to 100 percent of the value of the transaction, whichever is higher. Using 2026 figures, 10,000 UMA is about MXN 1,173,100 (estimate). Under article 62, giving false information or documents to someone who must file an Aviso is a crime punished with two to eight years in prison.

How Galarza Legal can help

We review the purchase contract and the payment terms, prepare the identification and source-of-funds documents the notary and bank will request, and coordinate the payment instructions with the notaría so that you pay each party directly. We do not handle the money at any stage.

Frequently asked questions

Can I pay part of the price in cash if the property is worth more than the limit?

The prohibition in article 32 of the LFPIORPI is tied to the value of the transaction (8,025 UMA or more), and it bans paying with bills and coins in pesos or foreign currency. Plan to pay the whole price by bank transfer.

What is the cash limit in pesos and dollars in 2026?

8,025 UMA. With the 2026 UMA of 117.31 pesos, that is about MXN 941,400, or about US$50,900 at an assumed 18.49 pesos per dollar (Banxico FIX of 16 October 2026). Both figures are estimates and change with the UMA and the exchange rate.

Will the notary report my purchase to the government?

The notary files an Aviso with Hacienda when the highest of the price, the valor catastral or the commercial value reaches 8,000 UMA (article 17, fraction XII). An Aviso is a report, not an accusation.

Can I send the money to my lawyer to hold until closing?

Not with Galarza Legal. The firm never receives or holds client funds. You wire the seller or the notaría directly, following the notary's written instructions.

General information about Mexican law as of the date shown; not advice on a specific case. Every figure is an estimate.