IMSS Limits New Modalidad 40 Registrations in Temporary Federal Rule

Overview

• The IMSS Consejo Técnico published a temporary agreement in the Diario Oficial on 22 October that changes how Modalidad 40 works for new applicants.
• Under the new rules new registrations can only use their last recorded salary as the base for cotización or exceed it by up to one UMA and retroactive hiring has been banned while current enrollees and pensionados keep their contracted terms.
• The government, led by IMSS and Hacienda officials, says the changes respond to suspected large-scale abuses that have strained public finances and ordered the IMSS finance office six months to measure the scheme’s fiscal impact and another six months to design a program to modify or cancel it.
• Legal experts warn the Consejo Técnico agreement cannot replace legislation and predict a wave of amparos and political debate in Congress over any permanent reform.
• The rule mainly affects workers under the 1973 pay-as-you-go system whose pensions rely on late-career salaries and adds short-term uncertainty for people planning retirement while highlighting long-running pressure on pension spending.