SAT Installment Payment Plan Mexico (Acuerdo de Pago en Parcialidades)

A SAT Installment Payment Plan Mexico (Acuerdo de Pago en Parcialidades ante el Servicio de Administración Tributaria) is a formal administrative agreement between a Mexican taxpayer (contribuyente) and the Servicio de Administración Tributaria (SAT) authorising the payment of outstanding federal tax obligations (contribuciones federales omitidas) in fixed monthly installments rather than in a single lump sum, governed principally by Article 66 of the Código Fiscal de la Federación (CFF) published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación, and supplemented by Rule 2.11.1 of the Resolución Miscelánea Fiscal (RMF) updated annually.

The Código Fiscal de la Federación, originally published in the DOF on 31 December 1981 and subject to annual reforms through the Ley de Ingresos de la Federación, is the foundational statute governing tax administration, collection, and enforcement in Mexico. Article 66 CFF grants taxpayers the right to request autorización de pago en parcialidades o diferido (installment or deferred payment authorization) for determined federal tax liabilities, provided the taxpayer is not in a state of insolvency (concurso mercantil), the debt is not subject to a juicio de nulidad before the Tribunal Federal de Justicia Administrativa (TFJA), and the taxpayer complies with ongoing tax compliance obligations during the installment period.

The SAT, created under the Ley del Servicio de Administración Tributaria published in the DOF on 15 December 1995, is the decentralised federal agency of the Secretaría de Hacienda y Crédito Público (SHCP) responsible for the determination, collection, and administration of federal taxes and customs duties in Mexico. The SAT processes pago en parcialidades requests through its electronic system (Portal del SAT at sat.gob.mx) under the modalidad of autorización de pago en parcialidades, issuing a resolución de autorización that constitutes the formal legal basis for the installment arrangement.

Article 66-A CFF establishes the specific conditions for installment payment authorizations: the taxpayer must pay at least 20% of the outstanding balance as an initial payment (pago inicial) before the authorization is granted; the remaining balance accrues actualization (actualización) under CFF Article 17-A based on the INPC (Índice Nacional de Precios al Consumidor) published by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI), plus surcharges (recargos) calculated at the monthly rate established by the Congreso de la Federación in the Ley de Ingresos de la Federación — typically between 1.13% and 1.47% monthly on the outstanding balance.

The Procuraduría de la Defensa del Contribuyente (PRODECON), established under the Ley Orgánica de la Procuraduría de la Defensa del Contribuyente published in the DOF on 4 September 2006, provides free advisory services to taxpayers navigating SAT installment payment procedures and can intervene as mediator (gestor) if the SAT denies or revokes a pago en parcialidades authorization. PRODECON's ombudsman role is critical for small and medium enterprises (PYMES) that lack the resources to contest SAT determinations before the TFJA.

For taxpayers subject to a Procedimiento Administrativo de Ejecución (PAE) — the SAT's coercive collection procedure — a pago en parcialidades request submitted under Article 66 CFF suspends the PAE and prevents embargo of assets while the SAT reviews the application, provided the request is submitted before the embargo is executed. This suspension mechanism makes the pago en parcialidades one of the most important procedural tools available to Mexican taxpayers facing liquidity difficulties.

The TFJA (Tribunal Federal de Justicia Administrativa), established under the Ley Orgánica del Tribunal Federal de Justicia Administrativa published in the DOF on 18 July 2016, hears nullity actions (juicios de nulidad) challenging SAT tax assessments, resolutions denying pago en parcialidades requests, and revocations of installment authorization — providing an independent judicial check on SAT administrative discretion in tax collection matters.

A SAT Installment Payment Plan Mexico is needed whenever a taxpayer (persona física or persona moral) has outstanding federal tax liabilities (créditos fiscales) that cannot be paid in a single lump sum due to liquidity constraints, and seeks to avoid the Procedimiento Administrativo de Ejecución (PAE), which can result in embargo of bank accounts, real estate, vehicles, and business assets.

The document is required when the SAT has issued a resolución determinante (tax assessment) establishing a specific tax liability (crédito fiscal determinado) that the taxpayer acknowledges as correct or has chosen not to contest before the Tribunal Federal de Justicia Administrativa (TFJA). Taxpayers who dispute the SAT determination must resolve the legal challenge before a pago en parcialidades can be authorised, as CFF Article 66 requires the debt to be firm and undisputed.

The installment plan is essential for small and medium enterprises (PYMES) and self-employed individuals (trabajadores independientes) who face large ISR (Impuesto sobre la Renta) or IVA (Impuesto al Valor Agregado) balances following a SAT audit (revisión de gabinete or visita domiciliaria) and lack the cash flow to pay the assessed amount immediately. In these circumstances, a pago en parcialidades prevents business interruption caused by PAE enforcement.

The agreement is also needed when a taxpayer is currently subject to a PAE and wishes to suspend coercive collection proceedings — filing a pago en parcialidades request under Article 66 CFF before the embargo is executed stays the enforcement procedure while the SAT processes the application, giving the taxpayer time to arrange financing or negotiate an acuerdo conclusivo before PRODECON.

Under CFF Article 66 and RMF Rule 2.11.1, the SAT Installment Payment Plan application must be submitted electronically through the Portal del SAT with the taxpayer's e.firma (formerly FIEL — Firma Electrónica Avanzada), certified by the SAT under the Ley de Firma Electrónica Avanzada. The resolución de autorización issued by the SAT specifies the number of installments, the amount of each monthly payment including recargos and actualización, and the consequences of non-compliance.

The plan is also valuable for employers with outstanding IEPS (Impuesto Especial sobre Producción y Servicios) liabilities arising from a reclassification of products or services by the SAT following a sector audit (auditoría sectorial), where the cumulative assessed amount over multiple fiscal years exceeds the company's available cash reserves. The SAT's división de grandes contribuyentes (large taxpayers division) has specific installment procedures for SAT SIPRED (Sistema de Presentación del Dictamen Fiscal) taxpayers with audit-generated créditos fiscales.

The SAT installment plan is likewise required when a foreign investor's Mexican subsidiary faces a crédito fiscal arising from a transfer pricing adjustment (ajuste de precios de transferencia) under LISR Article 76, where the SAT and the taxpayer disagree on the arm's-length value of intra-group transactions — once the crédito is determined and firm, the installment plan provides the liquidity bridge needed while the company arranges intra-group financing or asset sales to satisfy the obligation.

A SAT Installment Payment Plan Mexico under Article 66 of the Código Fiscal de la Federación and Rule 2.11.1 of the Resolución Miscelánea Fiscal must contain the following essential elements to be valid and enforceable:

Taxpayer Identification: Full legal name (nombre completo) of the taxpayer, RFC (Registro Federal de Contribuyentes) assigned by the SAT under CFF Article 27, tax domicile (domicilio fiscal) registered in the Registro Federal de Contribuyentes, and type of taxpayer (persona física or persona moral). The RFC must be active and in good standing — taxpayers with suspended RFC cannot request pago en parcialidades.

Credit Identification: The exact number of the crédito fiscal being paid in installments, as assigned by the SAT in the resolución determinante. For each credit: the type of contribution (ISR, IVA, IEPS, cuotas IMSS, etc.), the taxable period covered (ejercicio fiscal), the principal tax amount (contribución omitida), actualization (actualización), and surcharges (recargos) and fines (multas) as of the request date.

Initial Payment (Pago Inicial): Under CFF Article 66-A, the taxpayer must pay at least 20% of the total outstanding balance (contribución, actualización, recargos, y multas) before the SAT authorises the installment plan. The initial payment amount, payment date, and the SAT receipt (acuse de recibo) number confirming the payment must be documented.

Installment Schedule: The number of monthly installments (number of parcialidades), the amount of each installment in Mexican pesos (MXN) including principal reduction, monthly recargos calculated under Ley de Ingresos de la Federación rates, and actualización calculated under CFF Article 17-A using the INPC. The maximum number of installments authorised by the SAT under current RMF rules is 36 monthly payments.

Recargos Rate: The monthly surcharge rate (tasa de recargos) established annually by the Congreso de la Federación in the Ley de Ingresos de la Federación — typically 1.13% to 1.47% monthly on the outstanding balance. For 2025, the applicable recargo rate under Ley de Ingresos de la Federación 2025 is specified in the agreement.

Termination Events: The agreement must specify the conditions under which the SAT will revoke the pago en parcialidades authorization and resume PAE enforcement — primarily: failure to pay any installment (incumplimiento), failure to file current-period tax returns (declaraciones del ejercicio), new tax credits arising from audits, or the taxpayer entering concurso mercantil under the Ley de Concursos Mercantiles.

SAT Authorization Number: The número de folio of the SAT's resolución de autorización de pago en parcialidades, which must be quoted in all subsequent installment payment receipts filed through the Portal del SAT under the e.firma credentials of the taxpayer.

Guarantee of Fiscal Interest: For large créditos fiscales, the SAT may require the taxpayer to provide a garantía del interés fiscal — acceptable forms include real estate mortgage (hipoteca fiscal), government bond (bono del gobierno federal), bank guarantee (fianza de institución autorizada), or cash deposit (depósito en efectivo). The garantía amount must cover the full outstanding balance including projected recargos and actualización through the end of the installment period under CFF Article 141.

Forms-legal.com provides this SAT Installment Payment Plan Mexico template as a reference document for taxpayers preparing their pago en parcialidades application. All SAT installment payment requests must be processed electronically through the Portal del SAT — this template documents the agreed terms for the taxpayer's records. Taxpayers navigating complex multi-credit installment plans or SAT audit disputes should consult a Contador Público Certificado (CPC) or Licenciado en Derecho fiscal before submitting their application to PRODECON or the SAT.