On October 19, 2020, the Ministry of the Public Function (“MPF” or the “Ministry”) published in the Federal Official Gazette, the Protocol to Protect Corruption Whistleblowers. This Protocol provides the guidelines for granting, implementing, and following up on measures aimed to protect whistleblowers, as we explain below.

On October 23, 2018, the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare published the NOM-035-STPS-2018, for the identification, analysis and prevention of psychosocial risks at work, in the Official Federal Gazette, which indicated it would enter into force gradually and therefore certain matters would become mandatory one year after its publication and others two years afterwards.

On October 19 and 20, 2020, the Plenary of the Chamber of Deputies approved (i) the report of the draft decree that reforms, amends and eliminates various provisions of the Income Tax Law, the Value Added Tax Law and the Federal Tax Code; (ii) the report of the draft decree that issues the Federal Revenue Law for Fiscal Year 2021; and (iii) the report of the draft decree that reforms, amends and eliminates various provisions of the Federal Fees Law (“Draft Decrees”).

On October 7, 2020, the Energy Regulatory Commission (“CRE”) published in the Official Federal Gazette the “Resolution of the Energy Regulatory Commission (“Resolution”) amending general administrative provisions (“Provisions”) that establish the terms for requesting authorization for the modification or transfer of power generation or electricity supply permits, contained in resolution number RES/390/2017.”

On October 7, 2020, the Federal Economic Competition Commission (“COFECE” or “Commission”) issued comments and recommendations to the National Regulatory Improvement Commission (“CONAMER”) regarding the regulation issued by the Energy Regulatory Commission (“CRE”), which modifies the electric power self-supply and cogeneration permit system.

Today the modification to Annex 2.4.1. “Tariff classifications of the tariff of the general import and export taxes law in which the merchandise subject to compliance with the Mexican official standards in the point of its entry into the country and in the point of its exit is classified” (better known as the NOMs Annex) of the Ruling amending the other ruling by which the Ministry of Economy issues general rules and criteria in Foreign Trade matters was published in the Official Federal Gazette (DOF).

The U.S. company Verizon Communications acquired Tracfone Wireless, subsidiary of América Móvil in the United States for 6.250 million dollars in cash plus common shares of Verizon. The amount is subject to adjustments in function of certain performance goals during 24 months and a commercial agreement, which would be a return for the seller of up to 650 million additional dollars.

On September 25, 2020, the Head of Government of Mexico City published in the Official Gazette the Twenty-Second Notice announcing the color of the Epidemiological Traffic Light for Mexico City, and the modification of the Guidelines for the Execution of the Gradual Plan toward the New Normality in Mexico City (hereinafter, the Notice).

Under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (hereinafter the USMCA), it is possible for Mexican manufacturing or services companies that deny their workers certain collective rights to be sanctioned. The sanctions may include the elimination of the preferential tariff treatment on the merchandise they export, fines and even the denial of access of the merchandise to such market in the case of recurrence.

Von Wobeser y Sierra S.C. has helped global pharmaceutical company Merck sign a power-purchase agreement (PPA) in Mexico with Spanish power generation company Iberdrola.