IMMEX Fixed Assets: Return the Machines or Import Them

Every machine a maquiladora brings in under IMMEX arrives on a temporary import, and every temporary import has to be closed one day. Knowing the ways to close it, and what each one costs, lets a plant choose well long before a line change or closure puts a date on it.

For the whole path from the plant floor to the final sale, see our page on maquiladora surplus.

What IMMEX is, and why fixed assets matter

IMMEX, the Programa de la Industria Manufacturera, Maquiladora y de Servicios de Exportación, is the Mexican program that lets export manufacturers import materials and equipment without paying import duty up front. It was created by decree in 2006, bringing the older maquila and PITEX programs together. Most maquiladoras in Mexico operate under it.

IMMEX treats two kinds of imports differently. Raw materials and components come in, are made into products, and leave within a set period. Fixed assets, activo fijo, are the machines, tools, molds, test equipment, cranes and other equipment the plant uses to make those products. Under Article 108 of the Ley Aduanera, fixed assets may stay in Mexico for as long as the IMMEX program is in force.

That rule is generous while the plant runs. It also means every fixed asset carries an open temporary import. The company's inventory control system, commonly called Anexo 24, tracks each one, and the record stays open until the asset leaves Mexico or is imported definitively.

The four ways to close an IMMEX temporary import

When a fixed asset leaves service, there are four common ways to close its record. Your agente aduanal confirms which fit your program.

Return it abroad, the retorno. The asset leaves Mexico on a return pedimento, and the temporary import closes with no Mexican duty or IVA paid. This is the usual choice for equipment the company no longer needs in Mexico.

Import it definitively, the cambio de régimen. The asset stays in Mexico and changes from a temporary import to a definitive one. The company pays the general import tax, IGI, at the rate for that asset's tariff classification, IVA at 16 percent on the customs value, and customs processing fees.

Transfer it to another IMMEX company. An asset sold to another company with its own IMMEX program can move on a virtual transfer. One temporary import closes and another opens, and the asset never crosses the border.

Destroy or donate it, under SAT rules. For equipment with no remaining value, there are procedures to close the record by destruction or donation. They have to be followed exactly, and they are rarely the best use of a working machine.

IMMEX retorno or definitive import: how to compare them

For most fixed assets, the real choice is between the first two. Four questions usually settle it.

Will the asset be used in Mexico again? If another operation in Mexico will use it, a definitive import or a transfer makes sense. If not, a retorno avoids paying Mexican duty and IVA on equipment no one there needs.

What would a definitive import cost? IGI depends on the tariff classification and on where the asset was made. Machines of US, Canadian or Mexican origin may qualify for preferential treatment under USMCA. Machines made in Japan, Taiwan or Europe usually do not, though a sector program such as PROSEC may lower the rate. Your agente aduanal can price each asset.

Where is the asset worth the most? Used machinery often has a deeper market in the United States and abroad. A definitive import's duty and IVA come off the value before anyone sells it.

Does another plant of yours need it? A retorno can send a machine to a plant in the United States or elsewhere, where it can replace a purchase of new equipment.

The IMMEX closure deadline

When a company's IMMEX program is cancelled, or the company ends the program because a plant is closing, its fixed assets cannot stay on temporary import. Under the rules in force since January 2026, the company has 60 calendar days from notice to return its fixed assets or import them definitively, with an extension available on request. Your agente aduanal will confirm the exact dates for your program.

Sixty days is enough when the plan exists before the notice. The companies that meet it with room to spare have already decided which assets stay in Mexico, which go to other plants, and which are sold. Anything that is not staying can be returned to a US customs bonded warehouse inside the deadline. That closes its record on time, buyers can inspect it in Texas instead of Mexico, and the decisions about each asset are made in AssetMan™ while the plant keeps running. Our guide to the customs bonded warehouse for maquiladora machinery explains the choices after the border, and what a bonded warehouse is covers how bond works.

Keeping the Anexo 24 record clean

A fixed asset is only closed when the record says it is. That depends on matching each physical machine to the pedimento it came in on.

The match is easiest when every asset still carries its asset tag and serial plate, the plant's records show which pedimento each serial number arrived on, and someone confirms both before the machine leaves. Machines that were moved between buildings, rebuilt or renumbered over the years are where gaps appear, and they are worth checking first.

On the other side of the border, a clear record helps just as much. Every asset we receive is inspected, photographed and recorded with its serial number and asset tag, so the Mexican entity can close each Anexo 24 entry against a matching trail in the United States.

If matching every machine to its pedimento sounds like a lot of work, we understand. That is why we offer AssetReady™: we agree on a definition up front, then qualify everything that meets it, so the list is ready when the pedimentos are.

Questions sellers ask

What is IMMEX?

IMMEX is the Mexican program that lets export manufacturers, including maquiladoras, import materials and equipment without paying import duty up front. Fixed assets imported under it may stay in Mexico while the program is in force.

What is activo fijo under IMMEX?

Activo fijo means fixed assets: the machinery, equipment, tools, molds and other items a plant uses to produce goods, as opposed to the materials that become part of the product.

What happens to IMMEX fixed assets when a plant closes?

They must be returned abroad, imported definitively, or transferred to another IMMEX company. Under the current rules, a company whose program is cancelled has 60 calendar days from notice, with an extension available on request.

Is it cheaper to return machinery or import it definitively?

For machinery that will not be used in Mexico again, the retorno is usually cheaper, because no Mexican duty or IVA is paid.

When you are ready

If you have one lot to sell, AssetRecovery™ makes one cash offer for all of it. If surplus keeps coming from plants in Mexico, the United States or both, AssetMan™ gives you one accountable partner for every site. Either way, it starts at assetman.kingsurplus.com with a call from a King Surplus rep, or at 830-995-5000.