Employment contract
The LFT identifies employment from the real provision of personal subordinated services. A written agreement states party identity, term/project, services, workplace, hours, wage and pay date, training, rest/leave and other conditions; remote/hybrid work, confidentiality/IP, equipment, expense, data and safety terms should match reality. Missing paper does not erase employee rights, and an honorarios invoice, SAS or “independent contractor” label cannot override actual subordination.
Probation
An indefinite or over-180-day relationship may use a written probation period normally up to 30 days, extending to 180 days only for management, general administration, professional or specialised technical work. Initial training normally lasts up to three months, or six for management/professional roles. Wages, social security and role benefits continue; periods cannot be repeated or chained or treated as a rights-free exit window, and an unwritten arrangement is generally treated as indefinite.
Hours, rest & overtime
As of August 2026, the statutory 2026 week remains 48 hours. The reform effective 1 May 2026 phases the week to 46/44/42/40 hours in 2027/2028/2029/2030 without reducing pay or benefits. Day, night and mixed shifts are generally capped at 8/7/7.5 hours. The 2026 transitional overtime limit remains nine hours weekly; overtime within the statutory band is ordinarily paid 100% extra and excess hours 200% extra. Record remote, waiting, training, travel and after-hours instructions; mandatory electronic recording begins 1 January 2027 under STPS general rules.
Minimum wage by region
2026 general zone MXN 315.04/day; northern border free zone MXN 440.87/day, with 61 occupational minimum categories. The minimum is the statutory daily floor; CONASAMI’s MIR is not a universal contractual-pay increase index, and a national average, monthly conversion or immigration salary quote does not replace the worksite and occupation-specific rule.
Salary & talent supply
Benchmark market offers with Observatorio Laboral, Servicio Nacional de Empleo, INEGI and dated candidate/vacancy data by city, occupation, sector, seniority, fixed cash, bonus, benefits and shift. The statutory minimum, IMSS registered wage, immigration job-offer amount or one platform average is not a market median. Record period, role definition, region, percentile, data gaps and approval.
Payroll, payslip & payment
Before hire collect the RFC/CURP/NSS, bank and IMSS data lawfully required. Pay on the agreed cycle in Mexican legal currency, issue a SAT-compliant CFDI nómina and retain wage, hours, deduction, leave and receipt records. Each payroll handles ISR withholding, IMSS, INFONAVIT, state payroll tax, lawful deductions and loan notices correctly; a payroll provider, accountant or payment platform does not transfer employer responsibility.
PIT withholding & social insurance
Register each worker with IMSS using the genuine Salario Base de Cotización (SBC) and update fixed/variable components when they change. SBC includes daily pay, bonuses, allowances, food/housing, commissions and other work remuneration, with evidence needed for statutory exclusions. IMSS branches calculate separately by risk class, SBC, UMA, caps and employer/worker shares. The employer INFONAVIT housing contribution is 5% of integrated daily pay and is not deducted from ordinary pay as an employer cost. Retirement savings and state payroll tax also apply; no single national percentage fits every worker.
Employer-cost calculator scope
The current Mexico calculator is only a baseline budget. Minimum wage, IMSS, INFONAVIT, SAR, state payroll tax, aguinaldo, vacation/25% premium, PTU, overtime and exit cost vary by SBC, risk class, UMA, region, service, pay structure and company results. A single employer-on-cost rate is not payroll, SUA/SIPARE, CFDI, a tax return, offer or compliance advice; budgeting must preserve statutory benefits and the 2027–2030 workweek-reduction scenarios.
Annual leave
After one year, employees receive at least 12 paid working days, increasing by two days annually to 20 and then by two days for each further five-year band. The worker may take at least 12 continuous days and allocate them; the employer provides the certificate and leave within six months after the anniversary. A vacation premium of at least 25% of vacation pay is additional. Contracts may improve but not routinely cash out actual leave, and termination includes the applicable proportional settlement.
Public holidays & overtime
Mandatory rest days under LFT article 74 are separate from state, sector, collective-agreement or company holidays. Work on a mandatory rest day receives double pay in addition to ordinary daily pay—normally triple in total—with Sunday premium, overtime and shift interactions assessed separately. Use the official 2026 calendar, schedule and actual-work evidence rather than treating every government closure as a private-sector paid holiday.
Family & medical leave
Maternity generally includes six weeks before and six after birth, with medical approval allowing part of the prenatal period to move after birth; adoption, breastfeeding and job protection have separate rules. Fathers/adoptive fathers receive five paid working days. IMSS sickness, risk and maternity cash benefits depend on eligibility, SBC, certification and waiting rules and do not let an employer deny LFT protection or appropriate arrangements. Record statutory leave, IMSS incapacidad/benefit, top-up, benefits, reinstatement and anti-discrimination separately.
Statutory & market benefits
Minimum wage, IMSS/INFONAVIT/SAR, at least 15 days’ aguinaldo paid before 20 December, vacation, the 25% premium, mandatory rest days, PTU and safety duties are not optional benefits. PTU generally distributes 10% of taxable profit, with an individual cap of three months’ salary or the prior three-year category average, whichever is more favourable, subject to statutory new-business and other exemptions plus worker eligibility. Meal vouchers, medical/life cover, savings fund, bonus and any extra 13th-month component are separately governed by contract, tax and non-discrimination rules.
Termination & disputes
First distinguish evidenced just cause under LFT article 47, resignation, agreement, term/project end, collective termination and unjustified dismissal. In an unjustified case the worker may generally seek reinstatement or three months’ salary, potentially plus back pay/capped-period interest, 20 days per year where applicable, seniority premium, unpaid wages and proportional aguinaldo/vacation/premium/PTU; the claim and procedure determine the combination. Give required written notice, calculate finiquito/liquidación, issue CFDI and handle IMSS/INFONAVIT and immigration—never treat “probation,” a trust role or a fixed three-month quote as a universal cap.
Contractor classification
Personal subordinated service is presumed employment, assessed from real control, schedule, instructions, tools, integration, economic dependency, substitution, profit risk and continuity—not an honorarios invoice, RFC, corporation or remote label. Labour-only outsourcing is prohibited; only specialised services/works outside the customer’s corporate purpose or predominant activity may use a contract, current REPSE and labour/social-security/tax compliance with joint-liability exposure. Misclassification can create wage, overtime, leave, PTU, IMSS/INFONAVIT, tax, penalty and liability arrears.
Foreign workers
Before work verify the matching A2 residence/work permission, passport data and employer CIE without reducing LFT, minimum-wage, social-security or safety rights by nationality. The LFT generally requires at least 90% Mexican workers; professional/technical roles should use Mexicans unless temporarily unavailable, with Mexican-worker training, subject to statutory exceptions such as directors, administrators and general managers. A company, offer, RFC, CIE or director title creates no work right; workplace/employer changes and exits align with permit and INM 90-day notification duties.
Recruiting channels
Use Servicio Nacional de Empleo/Portal del Empleo, schools, associations and role-specific channels, optimising qualified rate, time-to-fill, acceptance, cost and 90/180-day retention. Advertising, screening, interviews, background/credit, AI and pay must not discriminate by sex, age, marriage/pregnancy, health, disability, origin, nationality or other protected ground absent a strict lawful occupational basis. Placement may not charge workers; foreign recruitment, specialised-service vendors and REPSE require separate licence/record checks.
Retirement age
There is no nationwide automatic private-job termination at age 60 or 65. IMSS age-60 cesantía and age-65 vejez are pension eligibility points, not an employer dismissal right; age discrimination, capability, accommodation, contract/collective terms, pension and the genuine exit reason are assessed separately. Handle voluntary retirement, seniority premium, pension claim, benefit conversion, succession and release separately.
Employment compliance calendar
At hire verify status, written terms, minimum/occupational wage, classification, work permission, RFC/CURP/NSS, IMSS and risk class. Each payroll checks hours/overtime, CFDI, ISR, IMSS, INFONAVIT, state tax and deductions. Monthly/bimonthly manage SUA/SIPARE, loans and personnel changes; anniversaries trigger vacation/premium; April–June covers PTU by employer type and aguinaldo is paid before 20 December. Annually update minimum wage, UMA, SBC, risk, REPSE, policies, safety/training and the 2027–2030 workweek phase. Each exit completes notice, finiquito/liquidación, CFDI, social security, asset/data and immigration steps, assigning owner, evidence, deadline and escalation.