Overview
- The Secretaría del Trabajo y Previsión Social will publish technical guidelines in October 2026 that detail how the new schedule will be applied and that signal a very limited margin of exceptions for industry sectors.
- A constitutional reform promulgated in March 2026 makes 2026 a transition year and phases the legal maximum weekly hours down to 46 in 2027, 44 in 2028, 42 in 2029 and 40 from January 1, 2030.
- The rules will require electronic records of entry, exit and break times for all workers, including staff classified as 'trust', and position the digital attendance file as the primary piece of evidence in overtime claims.
- Employers must update individual and collective contracts and workplace rules now, install timekeeping systems and prepare for labour inspections that will impose per-worker penalties scaled to company capacity and headcount.
- Analysts warn the change will raise the cost per working hour—estimates point to roughly a 20% increase by 2030—and that sectors with field or sales work face special logistical challenges in adopting digital clocking systems.