You imported a resin into Mexico, paid the full duty on the customs entry, turned it into parts, and sold those parts to a customer abroad. The duty is paid. The goods have left the country.
So why did you pay import duty on something that never stayed in Mexico?
That is the logic behind Draw Back (as it’s called in Mexico): a mechanism that lets an exporter recover the general import duty paid on goods that were later exported — either as they came in or built into a finished product.
What Draw Back is
It is a refund of the general import duty (IGI) paid on goods imported on a definitive basis that were later:
- Incorporated into a product that was exported (inputs, parts, components, materials), or
- Returned abroad in the same condition they were imported in, or after repair or alteration.
The legal basis is the Decree establishing the refund of import duties to exporters (Decreto que establece la devolución de impuestos de importación a los exportadores), published in Mexico’s Official Gazette (DOF) in 1995, as amended. It’s an old, stable instrument, but the fine print matters: read the current consolidated decree before building a claim, not a summary of it.
Two clarifications that prevent most misunderstandings:
- It refunds duty, not VAT. Import VAT follows its own crediting rules. For what each line on the entry actually is, see import taxes in Mexico: IGI, DTA, VAT and prevalidation.
- Only duty you actually paid comes back. If the input entered duty-free — under a trade agreement, a program, or a temporary import — there’s nothing to refund.
Why it exists
A Mexican exporter competes with manufacturers in other countries that often don’t carry tariffs on their inputs. If your exported product has Mexican duty built into it, that cost travels in your price.
Mexico has three tools to remove it, and they act at different moments:
- IMMEX avoids paying the duty in the first place: inputs enter temporarily.
- PROSEC lowers the duty at import, whether or not you export.
- Draw Back gives the duty back afterwards, once you prove the goods left.
Who can claim it
Broadly, the decree covers:
- Direct exporters who imported the goods and exported them, as-is or transformed.
- Certain cases of export through a third party, where the company that imported and paid the duty isn’t the one exporting. Check the current decree for the conditions and paperwork this case requires — it’s where most claims fall apart.
In every case you need something that sounds obvious and isn’t: the ability to link each import to its export. The import entry (pedimento) where the duty was paid, the export entry for the finished product, and between them, evidence of how much input each exported unit contains.
That link decides whether the claim holds. A company whose inventory records can’t say which raw-material lot ended up in which shipment will struggle to support the amount it’s asking for.
How the request works, in broad terms
The claim is filed with Mexico’s Ministry of Economy (Secretaría de Economía) through whichever electronic channel it currently uses — today the natural channel for foreign-trade filings is VUCEM, Mexico’s single window — and the refund is paid under the procedure set by the decree itself. The general flow:
- Export the goods under an export entry.
- Build the file: import entries showing the duty paid, export entries, and the support linking input to exported product.
- File the request through the current electronic channel, within the deadline set by the decree.
- The authority reviews it and, if it qualifies, grants the refund.
We’re deliberately not listing forms, deadlines or amounts here: they change with amendments and with how the filing systems run. Confirm the current procedure on the Ministry of Economy’s site or on SNICE before filing. The filing window in particular runs from the export date — miss it and the right is gone.
The trade-agreement limit most people miss
This is what changes the math for many companies.
Free trade agreements — USMCA first among them — restrict duty drawback and duty deferral when the exported product goes to another member of the same agreement. The reasoning is structural: the agreement doesn’t want a non-regional input to enter one member duty-free, get built into a product, and reach the next member duty-free too, enjoying regional preference without anyone ever paying the entry duty.
In practice, if you export to the United States or Canada, Draw Back may be limited or unavailable for non-originating inputs, depending on the agreement’s rules. The same logic reaches IMMEX: duty deferral isn’t unlimited in USMCA trade either.
Other Mexican trade agreements contain similar provisions. Before counting on a refund in your cost model, check:
- Where the exported product is going.
- What the applicable agreement says about drawback and duty deferral.
- Whether your inputs are originating under the agreement’s rules of origin.
Draw Back has the most room in exports to countries without a trade agreement with Mexico, or under agreements whose rules don’t restrict it for your case.
Draw Back, IMMEX or PROSEC: which fits
They compete less than it seems. They fit different profiles:
| Draw Back | IMMEX | PROSEC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it helps | Refunds duty after export | No duty or VAT at import (temporary import) | Reduced duty at import |
| Requires exporting | Yes — it’s the condition for the refund | Yes — it’s the program’s purpose | No |
| When you benefit | Later, once the claim is resolved | From import | From import |
| Cash-flow effect | Pay first, recover later | Best: no outlay | Smaller outlay |
| Operational burden | Link imports to exports, shipment by shipment | Authorized program, inventory control (Annex 24) and recurring obligations | Authorized program by sector |
A practical rule of thumb:
- You export steadily and at volume → IMMEX is usually the answer: the benefit arrives earlier and cash flow shows it. The price is permanent operational discipline.
- You sell mostly in Mexico, in a covered sector → PROSEC lowers duty without requiring exports.
- You export occasionally, or only a small share of what you import → Draw Back can be the sensible route: you don’t have to run a full program for a handful of shipments. In exchange, you pay first and recover later.
- Your input already enters duty-free (by agreement or by tariff) → none of the three saves you duty; the decision is a different one.
Many companies combine tools. What doesn’t work is picking one out of habit without running the numbers on your actual mix of inputs, destinations and volume.
Common mistakes
- Assuming all duty paid is recoverable without checking the destination country’s agreement.
- Being unable to prove consumption: without records tying input to exported product, the claim won’t stand.
- Missing the deadline because the claim gets assembled “when there’s time”.
- Claiming duty that was never paid: inputs that entered under preference or temporarily.
- Scattered files: import and export entries live in different folders and nobody cross-references them until it’s needed.
At TradeWay
We don’t file Draw Back claims, but we do handle IMMEX and PROSEC as part of an end-to-end service: classification, clearance, our Laredo warehouse, and the operational control each program requires — one invoice, one point of contact. If you’re deciding which scheme fits your Mexico operation, or you’re paying duty a trade program could avoid at import, let’s review it together.
