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Selling consumer products in Mexico

In Mexico, product rules are mostly Normas Oficiales Mexicanas (NOMs), mandatory technical regulations published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación. COFEPRIS applies sanitary control to food, drinks, supplements, cosmetics and cleaning products; the Secretaría de Economía and PROFECO oversee commercial information and consumer law; SADER covers pet food.

Updated · Each section links to the official source it comes from

Main instruments
Normas Oficiales Mexicanas (NOMs)
Health products
COFEPRIS, under the General Health Law
Commercial information
Secretaría de Economía and PROFECO
Pet food
SADER and SENASICA
Language
Spanish
Official gazette
Diario Oficial de la Federación (DOF)

By product

What each kind of product has to meet in Mexico.

Before a product goes on sale

The questions to answer, in the order they usually come up.

  1. 1Which NOMs apply to the product class? Read more
  2. 2Is the product under sanitary control, and is an aviso de funcionamiento needed? Read more
  3. 3Does the label carry the commercial information in Spanish? Read more
  4. 4Must conformity be shown at the point of entry? Read more
  5. 5Who can order a recall? Read more

The rules, by area

What each area covers, the texts that set it, and what the official pages say.

How Mexican product rules work

NOMs, the laws behind them, and who oversees which products.

  • The Quality Infrastructure Law (Ley de Infraestructura de la Calidad), of 1 July 2020, makes NOMs mandatory technical regulations (Article 4, fracción XVI); each NOM includes a conformity assessment procedure (Article 30).
  • COFEPRIS, the Comisión Federal para la Protección contra Riesgos Sanitarios, exercises the Secretaría de Salud's sanitary regulation, control and promotion powers (Article 17 Bis, General Health Law).
  • Food, drinks, alcohol, supplements, baby food, cosmetics and cleaning products are under sanitary control, with sanitary NOMs issued jointly with the Secretaría de Economía where they cover labelling.
  • Commercial information NOMs, such as NOM-050 for general products, NOM-015 for toys, NOM-024 for electronics and NOM-004 for textiles, are overseen by the Secretaría de Economía and PROFECO.
  • Pet food is a product for animal consumption under the Federal Animal Health Law, administered by SADER with SENASICA.

How we help: Compliant Always works out which NOMs apply to your product and keeps the documents behind each one ready. Ask about this

Sanitary control

What the General Health Law requires of businesses under sanitary control.

  • The General Health Law sets sanitary control over the processing, import and export of food, drinks, cosmetics, cleaning products and other listed products (Article 194).
  • Establishments that do not need a sanitary licence file an aviso de funcionamiento within 30 days before starting operations (Article 200 Bis), and notify changes within 30 working days (Article 202).
  • The importer of products under sanitary control must be domiciled in Mexico (Article 285), and the Secretaría may require prior import authorisation for products it names (Article 286).
  • The Regulation on Sanitary Control of Products and Services (Reglamento de Control Sanitario de Productos y Servicios) sets detailed rules by product type.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps your aviso, import documents and product files together, dated, with the changes you have notified. Ask about this

Spanish and commercial information

What every label sold to consumers in Mexico has in common.

  • Information and instructions are in Spanish, and prices in Mexican pesos (Article 34, Federal Consumer Protection Law).
  • Information must be truthful, verifiable and clear (Article 32), and imported products state their origin (Article 33).
  • Products without a specific NOM carry the commercial information of NOM-050-SCFI-2004: name, quantity, maker or importer, origin, warnings and instructions.
  • Food and non-alcoholic drinks carry the front-of-pack warning seals of NOM-051-SCFI/SSA1-2010.

How we help: Compliant Always sets each label beside the NOM that covers it, so a missing item shows up before printing. Ask about this

Import, enforcement and recalls

Conformity at entry, and what authorities can do.

  • Imported goods subject to a NOM must meet it; those identified by tariff heading in the foreign trade rules show conformity at the point of entry (Article 64, Quality Infrastructure Law).
  • PROFECO may order products withdrawn, issue alerts and order recalls of products that put consumers at risk (Article 25 Bis, Federal Consumer Protection Law).
  • COFEPRIS and the state governments oversee the sanitary NOMs.

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the certificates a shipment needs with the product and lot, and shows what expires before the next one leaves. Ask about this

Circular economy

Producer responsibility under the 2026 law.

  • The General Circular Economy Law (Ley General de Economía Circular), published in the DOF on 19 January 2026, makes producers and importers responsible for their products' life cycle, through circular management schemes registered with SEMARNAT.
  • Its implementing regulations are due within 180 days of entry into force.

How we help: Compliant Always watches SEMARNAT's publications under the new law and shows when they affect your products. Ask about this

Who answers for what

WhoWhat they answer forHow we help
BrandThe product sold under its name, and what its label and claims say.The NOMs that apply, with the paperwork behind each, in one place.
ManufacturerMaking the product to the NOMs, and the evidence that it was.Specifications, test reports and certificates ready for each customer's form.
ImporterBeing domiciled in Mexico for sanitary products, its details on the label, and conformity at entry.Suppliers' documents read and dated before the goods arrive.
RetailerSelling products that carry the required information.The documents for each product, ready when PROFECO or COFEPRIS asks.

Federal rules and the states

Product rules in Mexico are federal: the General Health Law, the Federal Consumer Protection Law and the Normas Oficiales Mexicanas apply across the national territory.

Health surveillance is shared. Under the General Health Law, a notice of operation (aviso de funcionamiento) goes to the Secretaría de Salud or to the government of the state (entidad federativa), and several sanitary NOMs are enforced by COFEPRIS and the state governments together.

Questions businesses ask

What is a NOM?
A Norma Oficial Mexicana: a mandatory technical regulation published in the DOF, with its own conformity assessment procedure (Articles 4 and 30, Quality Infrastructure Law).
What does COFEPRIS regulate?
It exercises the Secretaría de Salud's sanitary powers over products such as food, drinks, supplements, alcohol, cosmetics and cleaning products (Article 17 Bis, General Health Law).
Must labels be in Spanish in Mexico?
Yes. Information and instructions are in Spanish, and prices in Mexican pesos (Article 34, Federal Consumer Protection Law).
What is an aviso de funcionamiento?
A notice that establishments under sanitary control that do not need a licence file within 30 days before starting operations (Article 200 Bis, General Health Law).
Must an importer of health products be based in Mexico?
Yes. The importer of products under sanitary control must be domiciled in Mexico (Article 285, General Health Law).
Who regulates pet food in Mexico?
SADER, under the Federal Animal Health Law, with inspections ordered by SENASICA.
Can PROFECO order a recall?
Yes. PROFECO may order withdrawals, issue alerts and order recalls of products that put consumers at risk (Article 25 Bis, Federal Consumer Protection Law).
How does Compliant Always help with selling in Mexico?
Our team reads the rules for the markets you sell in, including the Normas Oficiales Mexicanas and COFEPRIS requirements. Compliant Always shows which apply to your product, keeps the documents behind each one ready, and watches the sources for changes. It shows what the requirements say and what your documents show; you decide.

Sources

Compliant Always is a product of Lettuce Labs LLC. It shows what requirements say and what your documents show. It is not legal advice, and you decide.

Tell us what you make, and we will show you the rules for it.

Name the product and the markets you sell in. We will come back to you with what applies in Mexico and what your paperwork needs to show.

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