Christmas Bonus Calculation Form Mexico (Aguinaldo)

A Christmas Bonus Calculation Form Mexico (Cálculo de Aguinaldo) is the administrative document used by Mexican employers to determine the exact aguinaldo (annual Christmas bonus) amount owed to each worker under Article 87 of the Ley Federal del Trabajo (LFT), published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 1 April 1970. Article 87 LFT establishes one of Mexico's most recognized worker benefits: every employer must pay a minimum annual bonus equivalent to at least 15 days' salary (quince días de salario como mínimo) to each worker who has completed one full year of service, and a proportional amount (aguinaldo proporcional) to workers who have been employed for less than one year, calculated based on the number of days worked in the calendar year (año calendario). The payment must be made before 20 December of each year — this statutory deadline is non-negotiable under Article 87 LFT.

The constitutional basis for the aguinaldo is Article 123, Apartado A, Fraction VII of the Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, which mandates that workers receive a fair share of profits and that all labour benefits maintain real purchasing power. The aguinaldo was formalized in the LFT to provide workers with resources for year-end holiday expenses (gastos de fin de año) and to recognize continuous service to the enterprise. While 15 days is the absolute statutory minimum, many collective bargaining agreements (contratos colectivos de trabajo) in Mexico's manufacturing, telecommunications, banking, and public sector establish aguinaldo amounts of 30, 40, 60, or even 90 days — these superior contractual amounts cannot be reduced unilaterally by the employer under Article 57 LFT.

The aguinaldo calculation base under Article 87 LFT is the worker's salary (salario). Mexican labour courts and the STPS consistently interpret the salary for aguinaldo purposes as the ordinary daily salary (salario ordinario diario) — the same base used for vacation pay under Article 76 LFT — rather than the Salario Diario Integrado (SDI) under Article 84 LFT, which is the broader calculation base for IMSS quotas and severance. However, where an employment contract or collective agreement expressly uses the SDI or a higher base for aguinaldo calculation, that superior provision governs.

The proportional aguinaldo for workers with less than one year of service is calculated based on the days actually worked in the calendar year (días laborados en el año). Under Article 87 LFT and the consistent interpretation by the Tribunales Laborales and STPS, days of authorized paid leave (vacaciones, permisos con goce de sueldo), IMSS-certified incapacity days (incapacidades IMSS), and mandatory public holidays (días festivos under Article 74 LFT) are counted as days worked for proportional aguinaldo purposes — only unjustified absences (faltas injustificadas) reduce the aguinaldo proportionally.

The ISR (Impuesto sobre la Renta) treatment of aguinaldo is governed by Article 93, Fraction XIV of the Ley del Impuesto sobre la Renta (LISR): the aguinaldo is ISR-exempt up to an amount equivalent to 30 times the general minimum daily wage (salario mínimo general) in the year of payment. For 2025, with the SMG at $278.80 MXN per day in the general zone, the ISR-exempt portion of the aguinaldo is 30 × $278.80 = $8,364.00 MXN. Any aguinaldo amount exceeding this threshold is taxable income subject to ISR withholding at the worker's applicable marginal rate under Article 96 LISR. The employer must report both the exempt and taxable portions in the CFDI de nómina (SAT perception code 002 for aguinaldo) and in the Constancia de Percepciones y Retenciones issued by 28 February of the following year.

Employers who fail to pay the aguinaldo by 20 December commit a labour law infraction under Article 994 LFT, subject to STPS fines of 250 to 5,000 UMAs per violation. Workers may claim unpaid or underpaid aguinaldo before the CFCRL and Tribunales Laborales within two years of the due date under Article 516 LFT.

A Christmas Bonus Calculation Form Mexico is required every year for all employers covered by the Ley Federal del Trabajo, to calculate and document the aguinaldo payment owed to each worker by the Article 87 LFT deadline of 20 December. The calculation form is essential for payroll processing, CFDI de nómina issuance, IMSS and SAT reporting, and internal audit documentation.

The calculation is required for every worker on the payroll as of the aguinaldo payment date, regardless of their start date — workers hired after 1 January receive a proportional aguinaldo based on days worked in the calendar year. The form is needed even for workers on IMSS-certified sick leave (incapacidad IMSS) as of the payment date — IMSS incapacity days count as worked days for aguinaldo accrual purposes under the STPS and Tribunal Laboral interpretation of Article 87 LFT.

The calculation form is required for workers under collective bargaining agreements (contratos colectivos de trabajo) that provide superior aguinaldo amounts — for example, 30, 40, or 90 days — to verify that the payment meets or exceeds the contractual minimum and to document compliance for STPS inspection purposes under Articles 540 through 550 LFT and Article 804 LFT retention requirements.

The document is needed when calculating the proportional aguinaldo for workers who will be terminated before 20 December and whose separation Finiquito must include the aguinaldo earned in the partial year. The Finiquito calculation under Articles 76–80 and 87 LFT always includes the proportional aguinaldo for the period from 1 January (or the start date if later) through the separation date.

The calculation is required for payroll accounting purposes: the aguinaldo must be reported in the CFDI de nómina using SAT perception code 002, with the ISR-exempt and taxable portions separately identified under Article 93, Fraction XIV LISR. The employer must withhold ISR on the taxable portion — amounts above 30 times the SMG for 2025 — and remit the withholding to the SAT in the corresponding monthly ISR declaration. Failure to correctly identify the exempt and taxable portions creates CFDI errors that trigger SAT pre-audit alerts (cartas invitación).

The form is needed when an employer operates multiple work centres (centros de trabajo) or payroll groups with different aguinaldo entitlements — for example, unionized workers with 40-day aguinaldo and non-union administrative staff with 15-day aguinaldo. Separate calculation forms for each group enable HR departments to verify that each worker receives the correct amount according to their applicable employment regime.

A valid Christmas Bonus Calculation Form Mexico under Ley Federal del Trabajo art. 87 must contain the following essential elements to comply with STPS inspection requirements, SAT CFDI 4.0 reporting, and Tribunal Laboral evidentiary standards.

Worker and Employer Identification: The worker's full legal name, employee number (número de empleado), RFC, NSS, job title (puesto), and department (departamento); the employer's full legal name (razón social), RFC, and IMSS Registro Patronal. This identification ensures that the aguinaldo calculation record matches the worker's employment contract, IMSS registration, and CFDI de nómina — reconcilable during IMSS and SAT joint audits.

Aguinaldo Days Entitlement: The number of aguinaldo days to which the worker is entitled — minimum 15 days under Article 87 LFT, or the superior amount established in the employment contract, collective bargaining agreement (contrato colectivo de trabajo), or internal work regulations (Reglamento Interior de Trabajo filed with the STPS under Article 424 LFT). Any employer that has historically paid more than 15 days is contractually bound to maintain that level under Article 57 LFT — unilateral reduction of superior benefits constitutes a labour law violation.

Annual Salary Base and Daily Rate: The worker's annual salary or daily ordinary salary (salario ordinario diario) used as the calculation base. For monthly-salaried workers (trabajadores con salario mensual), the daily rate is calculated as monthly salary × 12 ÷ 365. For weekly-salaried workers (trabajadores con salario semanal), the daily rate is weekly salary × 52 ÷ 365. Variable salary workers (workers paid on commission or productivity bonuses) use an average daily salary calculated from the prior 365 days of earnings per Article 89 LFT.

Days Worked Calculation for Proportional Aguinaldo: For workers with less than 12 months of service in the current calendar year, the calculation must show: start date in the current year (or 1 January for workers employed throughout); termination date or payment date (20 December or whichever is earlier); total calendar days in the period; days of unjustified absences (faltas injustificadas) to be deducted; and net qualifying days (días laborados) used for the proportional calculation. The STPS and Tribunales Laborales consider IMSS incapacity days, paid leave days, vacation days, and mandatory holiday days as qualifying days — only unjustified absences reduce the proportional aguinaldo.

Proportional Aguinaldo Calculation: The formula is: (qualifying days worked ÷ 365) × aguinaldo days × daily salary. For a full-year worker with no unjustified absences: 365 ÷ 365 × 15 × daily salary = 15 days' salary. For a worker hired on 1 April with 270 qualifying days: 270 ÷ 365 × 15 × daily salary = 11.1 days' salary (rounded to the nearest day or calculated to two decimal places per employer policy).

ISR Calculation and Withholding: Identify the ISR-exempt portion of the aguinaldo under Article 93, Fraction XIV LISR — 30 times the SMG for the year (for 2025: 30 × $278.80 = $8,364 MXN in the general zone; 30 × $419.88 = $12,596.40 MXN in the ZLFN). The taxable portion is the aguinaldo amount exceeding the exemption. Apply the ISR withholding using the SAT's monthly tariff table for the month of payment (December), or use the annual tariff method if the employer uses annual ISR regularization. Show the ISR-exempt amount, taxable amount, ISR withheld, and net aguinaldo payable.

Payment Date and Method: Confirm the payment date (no later than 20 December per Article 87 LFT) and the payment method — bank transfer (SPEI with CLABE reference), payroll card, or cash (efectivo). For payments made via SPEI, the CLABE and bank confirmation reference should be recorded. CFDI de nómina SAT perception code 002 must be used for aguinaldo amounts in the digital payroll receipt.

Summary and CFDI Reference: Total gross aguinaldo, ISR-exempt amount, ISR withheld, and net aguinaldo payable; CFDI UUID of the corresponding CFDI de nómina stamped by the PAC (Proveedor Autorizado de Certificación). The worker's signature acknowledging receipt of the net aguinaldo completes the documentation required under Article 804 LFT.

Forms-legal.com provides this Christmas Bonus Calculation Form Mexico as a practical compliance tool. Every aguinaldo calculation should be verified by the employer's Contador Público or abogado fiscalista to confirm that the daily salary base, ISR exemption threshold, and unjustified absence deductions comply with current STPS, SAT, and LFT requirements.