Mexico's Secretaría de Hacienda y Crédito Público (SHCP) published on August 7 in the Diario Oficial de la Federación Agreement 115/2026, which replaces uniform anti-money laundering controls with a Risk-Based Approach (RBA) for vulnerable activities, including casinos, real estate firms, jewelers, art houses and virtual asset operations.
The regulation amends the General Rules under the Federal Law for the Prevention and Identification of Operations with Illicit-Origin Resources and will take effect in November with a phased implementation schedule, according to El Universal. Under the RBA, each obligated entity must identify, assess, classify and document the risks associated with its clients and operations, while supervisory resources will be directed toward the highest-exposure sectors. The adjustment aligns with Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards and reaffirms Mexico's commitment to strengthening its national anti-money laundering framework.
The timeline is staggered: the rules take effect on November 30, 2026; starting March 1, 2027, the core obligations will apply, including risk assessment, an internal policies manual, and know-your-customer and beneficial-owner requirements; and the deadline for integrating automated monitoring systems falls on June 1, 2027, according to Excélsior. Reforma adds the obligation to file notices with the authority within 24 hours. The framework contemplates three risk levels (low, medium and high) and a mandatory annual audit whose first period will cover January to December 2028, with an opinion due no later than March 2029 for high-risk entities, which must engage an independent external auditor.
The phased schedule, from November 2026 to June 2027, gives vulnerable sectors time to adapt to a proportional risk framework, and the first 2028 audit will mark the first verification checkpoint of the model. The signal going forward: Mexico's preventive regime is now aligned with FATF's international standards.
This article was drafted with artificial intelligence assistance based on verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.