Mexico: New subcontracting inspection protocol published to prevent abuse

On November 24, 2025, the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare (STPS) published the new inspection protocol on subcontracting, whose main objective is to ensure compliance with regulations to prevent abuses, such as simulated employment relationships, tax evasion, and violation of workers' rights, by strengthening the monitoring of compliance with the obligations applicable to specialized services. The authority reiterated that the misuse of subcontracting leads to precariousness, the circumvention of rights, and unfair competition. Therefore, this new instrument updates and standardizes the criteria for action by inspectors throughout the national territory

Similarly, the protocol seeks to ensure that inspections are carried out using technical criteria that are uniform and compliant with the regulatory framework, and that employers have clarity regarding the elements that will be reviewed.

With this update, the STPS confirms that oversight of specialized services will be stricter, with a cross-cutting approach that may include verifications of working conditions, training, safety and hygiene, and other related labor obligations. It is important to remember that penalties for non-compliance in subcontracting can result in fines of 2,000 to 50,000 UMAs ($226,280 to $5,657,000 pesos), as well as tax or criminal offenses in serious cases, so the regulatory risk increases with this new tool.

Among the most relevant aspects, the authority will inspect the places where specialized services are provided, as well as the operation, contracts, registrations with the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), payrolls, evidence of training, list of assigned personnel, and documentation proving that the contracted activities are truly specialized and do not form part of the beneficiary's main activity. Visits may also include interviews with staff to verify activities, wages, payment methods, training, and working hours, as well as on-site checks to confirm consistency between what is reported and what actually occurs in the workplace.

A central element of this new protocol is the exchange of information between the STPS, the Tax Administration Service, the IMSS, INFONAVIT, and other government authorities, which anticipates a more thorough review of employer obligations and facilitates the detection of inconsistencies between payroll, fees, the Registry of Specialized Service Providers (REPSE), contracts, and authorized activities. These data cross-checking tools allow for more targeted and evidence-based inspections, increasing the likelihood of visits in cases of risk detected by the various authorities.

Compliance with these obligations requires companies to conduct a comprehensive review of their inter-company structure and those with their service and works providers, in order to identify, in the latter case, those that constitute specialized services. In addition, they must verify that they have up-to-date documentation, complete files, clear mechanisms for supervising the contractor, identification of assigned personnel, and full alignment between daily operations and the scope of the contract. Prevention and labor compliance are now essential to avoid contingencies, particularly given the increase in the authority's enforcement capacity and the potential economic impact of a sanction.