Capital Contribution Agreement Mexico (Acuerdo de Aportación de Capital)

A Capital Contribution Agreement Mexico (Acuerdo de Aportación de Capital) is a formal contract between an investor or existing shareholder (accionista or socio aportante) and a Mexican company (sociedad mercantil) documenting the terms, amount, and conditions under which the investor contributes capital (aporta capital) to the company in exchange for equity participation (acciones or partes sociales), governed by the Ley General de Sociedades Mercantiles (LGSM) published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 4 August 1934 and by the Código Civil Federal (CCF) Article 2688 governing the sociedad civil (civil partnership).

The Ley General de Sociedades Mercantiles is the principal statute governing commercial companies in Mexico. Article 6 LGSM establishes the mandatory contents of the articles of incorporation (escritura constitutiva or estatutos) of any Mexican commercial company, including the names and domiciles of the founders, the capital structure (capital social), the type and value of each share or equity interest, and the rules for capital increases. For the Sociedad Anónima (S.A.) — the most common form for large and medium enterprises — Article 89 LGSM requires a minimum capital of $50,000 MXN; for the Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada (S. de R.L.) — common for smaller and foreign-owned entities — Article 70 LGSM limits the number of partners (socios) to 50 and establishes minimum capital at $3,000 MXN. The Sociedad por Acciones Simplificada (SAS), introduced by reform in 2016 under LGSM Articles 260 through 272, requires no minimum capital and can be incorporated online through the Sistema de Creación Inmediata de Empresas (SIGER).

Article 2688 of the Código Civil Federal defines the sociedad civil as a contract by which two or more persons combine their resources or efforts for the realisation of a common, non-speculative purpose. For civil partnerships and professional associations (asociaciones civiles) governed by the CCF, the capital contribution agreement documents the resources each socio commits to the common enterprise.

Capital contributions in Mexico may be in cash (aportación en efectivo) — the most straightforward form, where the contributor transfers pesos to the company's bank account; or in kind (aportación en especie or aportación no dineraria) — contributing tangible assets (machinery, equipment, vehicles, inventory), real property (bienes inmuebles), intellectual property rights (derechos de propiedad intelectual), or even services (servicios aportados) in the case of civil partnerships. For in-kind contributions to mercantile companies, Article 141 LGSM requires that an independent appraisal (avalúo) be conducted by a registered valuator (valuador autorizado) to determine the fair market value of the contributed assets, and the appraisal must be approved by a shareholders' meeting (asamblea de accionistas or reunión de socios).

For income tax purposes under LISR Article 88, the receipt of capital contributions by a Mexican company does not constitute taxable income — capital contributions are not revenue (ingresos acumulables) for the receiving company. However, the contributing shareholder must report the contribution in their own RFC records, and any future capital gain upon sale of the resulting shares will be calculated based on the contributed cost (costo fiscal de las acciones) established at the time of contribution. The Cuenta de Capital de Aportación (CUCA) maintained by the company under LISR Article 78 tracks the inflation-adjusted value of all capital contributions received, which is relevant for calculating tax-free return of capital (reembolso de capital) to shareholders.

The SAT (Servicio de Administración Tributaria) monitors capital contributions through its transfer pricing rules under LISR Article 76 — contributions between related parties (partes relacionadas) must reflect fair market value to avoid reclassification as disguised loans, services, or dividends. The CFF Article 17-H bis gives the SAT power to restrict the RFC of entities involved in transactions that lack economic substance (operaciones que carecen de razón de negocios).

A Capital Contribution Agreement Mexico is required whenever an investor, shareholder, or partner injects new capital (aportación de capital) into an existing or newly formed Mexican company or civil partnership, and the terms of the investment need to be formally documented beyond the public notarial deed.

The agreement is needed at company formation (constitución de la sociedad) — even though the founding capital contributions are recorded in the notarial escritura constitutiva, a separate capital contribution agreement may be used to document side arrangements between founding shareholders regarding the timing, conditions, and milestones attached to each founder's contribution, which may not be appropriate to include in the public record.

The document is essential for capital increases (aumentos de capital) in existing companies when new investors subscribe new shares (suscripción de nuevas acciones) or existing shareholders inject additional funds — the agreement documents the subscription price (precio de suscripción), the number of new shares or equity interests being issued, any share premium (prima sobre acciones), the conditions and timeline for payment of the subscribed capital, and the resulting post-investment ownership structure.

The agreement is required for venture capital and private equity investments in Mexican startups (empresas emergentes) and growth-stage companies — the capital contribution agreement typically accompanies a shareholders' agreement (acuerdo de accionistas) and the modified articles of incorporation (estatutos sociales modificados) to document the investment round terms, investor rights (information rights, anti-dilution protections, drag-along and tag-along clauses), and governance provisions.

The document is needed for family business capital restructuring — when a Mexican family business (empresa familiar) issues equity to successors or reorganises its capital structure — the capital contribution agreement documents the terms under which family members contribute assets or cash in exchange for equity, coordinating with the estate plan (plan sucesorio) and any fideicomiso familiar (family trust) structure.

The agreement is essential for compliance with LGSM Articles 6 and 141 when contributions are made in kind — it serves as the primary document describing the contributed assets, the agreed valuation, and the basis for the independent appraisal (avalúo) required by law for non-cash contributions to mercantile companies.

A complete Capital Contribution Agreement Mexico under LGSM Article 6 and CCF Article 2688 must contain the following essential elements:

Party Identification: Full legal name, RFC, CURP (for individuals), and registered domicile of the contributing party (aportante — whether an individual persona física or a legal entity persona moral). Full legal name, RFC, corporate address, and legal representative (representante legal) of the receiving company (sociedad receptora). Confirmation of the receiving company's corporate type (S.A., S.A. de C.V., S. de R.L. de C.V., SAS, or Asociación Civil), number of registration in the Registro Público de Comercio, and date of incorporation.

Nature and Amount of Contribution: Whether the contribution is in cash (aportación en efectivo) — specifying the amount in Mexican pesos (MXN), the payment method (transferencia bancaria, cheque certificado), and the destination bank account (CLABE); or in kind (aportación en especie) — with a detailed description of the contributed assets, the agreed valuation, and the appraisal methodology consistent with LGSM Article 141.

Equity Interest Received: The number of shares (acciones) or equity interests (partes sociales) to be issued to the contributor in exchange for the capital contribution, the par value (valor nominal) or, for variable-premium shares, the subscription price (precio de suscripción) and the share premium (prima de emisión or prima sobre acciones) to be credited to the company's capital reserve (reserva de capital). The resulting percentage equity stake (porcentaje de participación) of the contributor after the contribution must be stated.

Capital Account Treatment (CUCA): Confirmation that the contribution will be credited to the Cuenta de Capital de Aportación (CUCA) maintained by the company under LISR Article 78 — relevant for calculating the tax basis of the shares and for future tax-free return of capital to the contributor. For in-kind contributions, the CUCA entry must reflect the fair market value (valor de mercado) of the contributed assets as determined by the appraisal.

Conditions Precedent and Timeline: Any conditions that must be satisfied before the contribution is made — regulatory approvals (e.g., Comisión Federal de Competencia Económica — COFECE approval for acquisitions meeting merger control thresholds under the Ley Federal de Competencia Económica), CNBV authorisation for contributions to regulated entities, or specific corporate resolutions approving the capital increase. The agreed timeline for payment of the subscribed capital — LGSM Article 89 requires that at least 20% of subscribed capital in S.A. companies be paid at subscription, with the balance payable within one year.

Shareholder Rights and Anti-Dilution: Provisions governing the contributor's rights as a new or additional shareholder — pre-emptive rights (derecho de tanto) on future capital increases under LGSM Article 132 for S.A. companies; information rights (derechos de información) under LGSM Articles 166 and 173; and any agreed anti-dilution protections (ajuste de precio por dilución) for venture capital or private equity investments.

Representations and Warranties: The contributor represents that the contributed funds are from lawful sources (origen lícito de fondos) in compliance with the Ley Federal para la Prevención e Identificación de Operaciones con Recursos de Procedencia Ilícita (LFPIORPI) — critical for anti-money-laundering compliance. The receiving company represents that it has obtained all required corporate authorisations (acuerdo de asamblea de accionistas or reunión de socios) to increase its capital and issue the new shares.

Forms-legal.com provides this Capital Contribution Agreement Mexico template as a reference for private capital injection transactions. Capital increases in Sociedad Anónima or S. de R.L. companies must be formalised through a notarial deed (protocolización ante Notario Público) and registered with the Registro Público de Comercio of the relevant state within 15 business days of the corporate resolution under LGSM Article 9. Tax advice from a Contador Público Certificado and corporate legal advice from a Licenciado en Derecho are strongly recommended before executing any capital contribution transaction.