CRYPTO & TAXES IN MEXICO
Bitso and taxes: what you have to file
Direct answer
Operating on Bitso does not exempt you from filing with the SAT: in Mexico buying and holding crypto is not taxed, but selling, swapping or paying with crypto can each be a taxable event. Bitso does not withhold ISR for you — filing is your responsibility — and your transaction statements are the strongest evidence of your cost basis.
Which Bitso movements can be taxed
Mexico has no crypto-specific tax law. The Fintech Law recognizes crypto as "virtual assets", and the SAT taxes them under general rules as intangible property (enajenación de bienes). Buying and holding is not taxable by itself, but there can be a taxable event when you dispose of them.
The gain is the sale price minus your proven cost (costo comprobable), adjusted for inflation (INPC). Occasional gains stack onto your other income and are taxed on the progressive ISR scale (1.92% to 35%). The annual return is due April 30, and everything is valued in pesos at the Banxico rate.
- Selling crypto for pesos: a disposal.
- Crypto-to-crypto swaps (for example BTC to USDT): a permuta, and also potentially taxable.
- Paying with crypto, including the Bitso card: a potential disposal of the asset.
- Buying and holding: not taxable on its own.
Your Bitso statements are your best evidence
Bitso is a Mexican exchange: pesos move in and out over SPEI, and withdrawals reach your CLABE. Every transaction is recorded with date, amount and exchange rate. That history is the strongest evidence for building your cost basis and your bookkeeping.
Bitso does not withhold ISR or file for you. The platform gives you the data; the calculation and the filing are your responsibility. Without supporting records, the SAT can treat your cost as zero in practice, and you end up paying tax on the full sale amount.
- Download the full transaction history, not just an annual summary.
- Keep the SPEI withdrawals and the fees too: they adjust your cost.
- If you traded on several platforms, consolidate everything before you calculate.
CARF and AML: platforms report, and you have obligations too
From 2026, under the OECD Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF), exchanges and intermediaries must report the operations of Mexican users to the SAT; international automatic exchange expands in 2027. The point is simple: the authority already has visibility into these movements. Confirm your case in your consultation.
Also, as Bitso explains in its own materials, buying and selling crypto is an "actividad vulnerable" under the anti-money-laundering law in Mexico (PLD). That can mean registration and periodic reports through the PLD portal. Thresholds and obligations depend on your profile: review your case and ask us in your consultation.
- From 2026, intermediaries report operations to the SAT (OECD/CARF).
- From 2027, international automatic exchange expands.
- Crypto activity may be considered vulnerable for AML: review your case.
- Using a foreign platform does not exempt you from filing in Mexico.
Frequently asked questions
Does Bitso withhold ISR for me?
No. Bitso does not act as a withholding agent for ISR on your crypto gains; it gives you the information about your operations, but the calculation and the filing are your responsibility. If you do not file, the omission is yours, not the platform’s.
Does Bitso report to the SAT?
Under the OECD CARF, from 2026 exchanges and intermediaries report the operations of Mexican users to the SAT, and international automatic exchange expands in 2027. The platform does not decide whether you owe tax: it just reports. Confirm your case in your consultation.
Does paying with the Bitso card create a taxable event?
It can. Paying with crypto is disposing of that asset: for the SAT it can be a disposal or a swap, and if the value rose above your cost basis there would be a gain. Record it as one more operation in your history.
Related questions
Continue with the rest of the crypto & taxes series:
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