Overview
- Wednesday coverage from multiple outlets explained a practical tactic: making payments before your card’s statement closing date cuts the balance that banks average each day and so reduces the interest you are charged.
- The common formula media cited is simple: monthly interest = daily average balance × (annual interest rate ÷ 12), and the resulting interest is subject to Mexico’s 16% VAT on interest charges.
- A worked example used across reports shows a 20,000‑peso purchase on a 50% annual rate yields about 833.33 pesos in monthly interest if you pay nothing, about 583.33 pesos if you pay 12,000 pesos on day 16, and about 500 pesos if you pay the same amount on day 11, each figure before VAT.
- The regulator CONDUSEF reported that roughly 60% of users do not pay their full monthly balance and many make only the minimum payment, a practice that sends most of each payment to interest and fees and lengthens and raises the total cost of debt.
- Journalists and experts warn that late payments trigger automatic moratory charges and negative entries at Buró de Crédito that may remain after repayment, so they recommend paying in full when possible, setting payment alerts, and contacting your bank early if you face liquidity problems.