Open Source Content Management

Yesterday, the Energy Regulatory Commission (“CRE”) published in the Federal Official Gazette (“DOF”), the “Ruling resuming the legal terms and deadlines for the Energy Regulatory Commission, which were suspended as a measure to prevent and combat the spread of the COVID-19 virus in the various numbers A/010/2020, A/014/2020, A/015/2020 and A/018/2020”. (“Ruling”).

Today the Decree that adds a fifth paragraph to article 1 of the Public Sector Acquisitions, Leases and Services Act (“Acquisitions Act”) entered into force.

On August 3, 2020, “the Ruling by which the National Hydrocarbons Commission (“CNH”) establishes various measures to promote the development of oil activities” (the “Ruling”), which had been published by the National Commission for Regulatory Improvement to receive comments on July 17, 2020, was published in the Official Federal Gazette.

The Tax Administration Service (SAT) published on its webpage today a minisite related to the “Payment of Fees of Certified Companies”, through which it intends to charge, retroactively and into the future, the companies Certified under VAT and IEPS category with certain fees. In effect, SAT considers that these companies have been obligated to pay annual fees from the moment they obtained their certification and for its entire duration. The “defaulting” companies may pay the fees with the applicable adjustments for inflation and surcharges.

Please be informed that on August 3, the Ministry of Health published in the Official Federal Gazette, the Ruling establishing new activities or industries considered essential, in order to guarantee the correct initiation of the school year 2020-2021.

As part of the New Normality measures, it was determined that in Mexico City employers had to test their employees for the COVID-19 illness. However, on July 28, 2020, changes were published in the Official Gazette of Mexico City to the “Guidelines for the Execution of the Gradual Plan toward the New Normality in Mexico City”, which document provides new guidelines in relation to the application of those tests.

On July 27, 2020, the Ministries of Health and of Labor and Social Welfare, together with the Mexican Social Security Institute, published in the Official Federal Gazette, the Ruling announcing the method for disseminating the standards for vulnerable population (hereinafter, the Standards).

On July 27, 2020, the Regulation of Sanitary Control for the Medical Production, Research and Use of Cannabis and its Pharmacological Derivatives was published on the webpage of the National Regulatory Improvement Commission (CONAMER). Its primary purpose would be to establish the sanitary regulation, control, promotion and oversight of the raw material, molecular compounds, pharmacological derivatives and medicines of cannabis for production, scientific, industrial and medical purposes.

On July 24, 2020, the “Ruling concluding the suspension of the time periods in the proceedings carried out before the National Hydrocarbons Commission (“CNH”)” (the “Ruling”), was published in the Official Federal Gazette (“DOF”).

On July 16, 2020 and, subsequently, on July 24, 2020, the official communications SS/17/2020 and SS/19/2020, respectively, issued by the Plenary of the Superior Chamber of the Mexican Court of Administrative Justice (TFJA), were published in the Official Federal Gazette (DOF), in which the suspension of activities and terms was extended due to the health contingency caused by COVID-19.

Today a draft inter-institutional ruling among the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Health and the Federal Consumer Protection Agency (PROFECO) was published on the webpage of the National Regulatory Improvement Commission (CONAMER), related to the verification of compliance with the modification of the “NOM-051-SCFI/SSA1-2010, General labeling specifications for prepackaged food and non-alcoholic beverages-commercial and health information”, which would require the inclusion of a new front warning label system on prepackaged food and non-alcoholic beverages beginning on October 1, 2020.

On July 22, the President of Mexico announced the presentation of a bill reforming the Social Security Law, in order to strengthen the Pension System through an increase in the amount of the pensions and an increase in the percentage of workers that will have access to a guaranteed pension.

Yesterday the Commission of Labor and Social Welfare, and of Legislative Studies of the Chamber of Deputies approved the bill reforming and adding various provisions to the Federal Labor Law regarding Telework, which has become relevant due to the health emergency we are experiencing and was not included in the labor reform of May 1, 2019.

Today, it was published in the Official Federal Gazette (“DOF”) the Ruling by which the suspension of legal terms for the National Energy Control Center (“CENACE”) is extended for the fifth time (the “Ruling”).

On July 3, 2020, a new official communication issued by the Mexican Industrial Property Institute (IMPI) was published in the Official Federal Gazette (DOF) establishing the following, among other things:

The Standards Office (DGN) and the Federal Commission for Protection from Sanitary Risks (COFEPRIS), published on the page of the National Commission for Regulatory Improvement (CONAMER) the draft of the “Ruling establishing the criteria for the implementation, verification and oversight, as well as the evaluation of conformance with the Amendment of the Official Mexican Standard NOM-051-SCFI/SSA1-2010, General labeling specifications for prepackaged food and non-alcoholic beverages-Commercial and health information, published in the Official Federal Gazette on March 27, 2020 (Implementation Ruling).”

As part of the process of implementing the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), in force as of July 1, 2020, the enactment of a new General Import and Export Taxes Act (GIETA) and amendments to the Customs Act (CA) was published in the Official Federal Gazette.

On July 1st,2020, the National Water Commission (“CONAGUA”) published in the Federal Official Gazette the “Ruling establishing temporary and extraordinary measures to guarantee the supply of National Waters to population centers for domestic and public urban use, in light of the health emergency generated by the SARS-Cov-2 (COVID-19)” (“Ruling”).

The Board of the Commission in its session held on June 25, which was published in the Official Gazette on June 30,1 decided that the initial (March 23 to April 17), the second (April 20 to April 30), the third (May 6 to May 29), the fourth (June 1 to June 12) and the fifth (June 15 to June 30) suspension of terms will be extended. In this regard and effective as of July 1, all times and terms will be suspended until July 10, 2020, excepting those related to merger control procedures and the issuance of opinions or decisions in the granting of licenses, concessions, permits and similar procedures.

In preparation for the entrance into force of the Agreement between the United States of America, the United Mexican States and Canada (USMCA) on July 1, 2020, today the promulgating executive order was published in the Official Federal Gazette, which contains the full text of the agreement, its Protocol of Amendment and various parallel agreement.