Mexico Recovers $10.9 Billion in Fuel Smuggling Crackdown
Despite Efforts, Billions of Dollars in Tax Revenue Are Still Being Lost as Smugglers’ Operations Continue, Government Estimates
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Mexico has recovered as much as 200 billion pesos ($10.9 billion) in tax revenue this year due to the government’s efforts to stop illegal fuel imports, the head of Mexico’s customs agency said Oct. 20.
While the government expects the amount recovered to climb to 300 billion pesos ($16.3 billion) by year-end, billions of dollars in tax revenue are still being lost as smugglers’ operations continue, Rafael Marin Mollinedo, head of the ANAM customs agency, said in an interview with local media.
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“For every peso recovered, thousands more are still slipping through the cracks,” Marin Mollinedo told El Universal.
President Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration has led a widespread effort this year to stop Mexico’s vast networks of criminals who skirt federal taxes to illegally import refined fuels like gasoline and diesel into the country. Earlier this month, Sheinbaum announced a joint task force between Mexico’s energy, finance and customs authorities, as well as state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos, and other government offices to monitor daily fuel imports.
Authorities have already announced several large-scale seizures this year, including 2.6 million gallons smuggled on an oil tanker in March, and a 4 million gallon bust of illegal fuel in Coahuila state in July. Earlier this year, Mexicohalted fuel imports for daysat U.S.-Mexico border crossings as inspections ramped up.
The practice of illegally importing fuels, known locally by the slang term “huachicol fiscal,” is estimated to have cost the Mexican government tens of billions of dollars in lost tax revenue in recent years. Pemex reported at least $1 billion in losses from fuel theft in 2024.
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