Overview
- Mexican law guarantees a minimum aguinaldo of 15 days’ salary payable before December 20 to anyone in a verifiable subordinate employment relationship, even without a written contract.
- Deductions are lawful only in limited cases such as court-ordered child support, employee‑authorized advances or loans, certain provable damages with agreement and limits, and agreed retentions tied to Infonavit or Fonacot; cutting the bonus for vacations or medical incapacity is illegal, according to Profedet.
- Income tax is withheld only on the portion of the bonus that exceeds the 2025 exempt amount of 8,400 pesos, so workers whose aguinaldo surpasses that threshold will see ISR retained on the excess.
- Employees have one year to file claims for nonpayment or shortfalls and experts note employers can face fines ranging from 50 to 5,000 times the UMA for late or missing payments.
- IMSS counts about 25 million formal recipients nationwide, yet high informality leaves many without access—an estimate in Chiapas warns up to 76% of workers could miss out—while advisers urge using the bonus to pay down high‑interest debt, build emergency savings, or invest in regulated products.