Mexico strengthens intellectual property enforcement at its borders through a new inter-institutional agreement

On 24 March 2026, the National Customs Agency of Mexico (ANAM) and the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI) signed a Coordination and Collaboration Agreement to strengthen the protection of intellectual property in cross-border trade. This agreement was published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación on 9 April 2026.

The agreement establishes four main mechanisms:

• Information exchange: ANAM and IMPI will establish channels to identify goods entering or leaving Mexico that may infringe trade mark, copyright, or related rights.
• Training: IMPI will deliver at least four specialized training programs for customs officers, covering techniques for detecting counterfeit and pirated merchandise.
• Joint working group: A coordination body will standardise action criteria and design joint strategies to prevent and address possible infringements.
• Technical observers: IMPI may designate specialist observers at customs checkpoints to assist in the identification of goods that do not comply with IP requirements.

The agreement is particularly relevant at this moment in time. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA/T-MEC) is due for its first formal review in 2026, with the enforcement of intellectual property rights at borders being one of the areas under assessment. In spring 2026, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is also expected to publish its annual Special 301 Report, in which Mexico's enforcement record will be evaluated.