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Dollars are not legal tender: foreign currency debts payable in Mexico can be paid in pesos

Argentina. For full detail on Argentina, go to The Argentine Thread.

Last verified: 2026-10-27 · Status: Stable

Abroad, a contract in a foreign currency is paid in that currency; in Mexico foreign currency has no legal tender status, and a foreign currency debt payable in Mexico may be discharged in pesos. The peso amount uses the Banxico FIX rate published in the DOF on the banking day before payment, and any clause waiving this rule is void. Transfers from abroad through banks are paid in the transferred currency, so the usual protection is to make the debt payable outside Mexico or to hedge.

USD conversions use MXN 18.6638 per US dollar, the US Federal Reserve H.10 noon buying rate in New York for 23 October 2026 (FRED series DEXMXUS), the latest observation available when this page was verified. Mexican law uses the Banxico FIX rate published in the DOF for foreign currency amounts, which differs slightly. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Foreign currency debts payable in Mexico may be settled in pesos at the prevailing rate	Yes textLey Monetaria art. 8, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Clause waiving the right to pay foreign currency debts in pesos	Void textLey Monetaria art. 9, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Rate for paying dollar debts in pesos	FIX published in the DOF on the banking day before payment textBanxico Circular 3/2012, art. 172, as of 2026-10-27 · in force

The rule

1. Foreign currency has no legal tender status in Mexico unless a law expressly says otherwise. Foreign currency payment obligations contracted in or outside Mexico to be performed in Mexico are discharged by delivering the equivalent in pesos at the exchange rate prevailing at the place and date of payment, determined under Banco de México rules. Payments in foreign currency arising from transfers of funds from abroad made through Banco de México or banks must be made in the currency transferred.
Cost to do it: No fee; the cost is the FX difference between the contract currency and the peso amount received.
Example: A Mexican customer owes a USD 100,000 invoice payable in Monterrey. At a rate of MXN 18.6638 it can pay MXN 1,866,380.00 and the debt is discharged, even if the supplier wanted dollars. / USD 100,000 owed; the supplier bears the cost of converting the pesos back to dollars.Ley Monetaria de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, DOF 27 July 1931 (consolidated text, last reforms DOF 19 January 2026), Art. 8, 1986-01-08 official text · verified 2026-10-27 · changed: The DOF 8 January 1986 reform added the Banxico rate rule and the exception for transfers from abroad.

2. The rules in arts. 7 and 8 cannot be waived, and any contrary clause is void. A contract clause saying that a debt payable in Mexico must be paid only in dollars does not remove the debtor's right to pay in pesos.
Cost to do it: No fee.
Example: A lease of a Mexico City office priced in dollars with a 'dollars only' clause can still be paid in pesos at the legal rate. / No direct effect; the risk is FX exposure.Ley Monetaria de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, DOF 27 July 1931 (consolidated text, last reforms DOF 19 January 2026), Art. 9, 1931-07-27 official text · verified 2026-10-27

3. Dollar obligations contracted in or outside Mexico to be performed in Mexico are paid with the peso equivalent at the exchange rate that Banco de México publishes in the DOF on the banking day immediately before payment (the FIX). Banxico publishes that rate in the DOF on the banking day after it determines it. Other currencies are converted through their dollar cross rate on the payment date.
Cost to do it: No fee.
Example: A dollar invoice paid in pesos on a Tuesday uses the FIX published in the DOF on Monday. / No direct effect.Banco de México Circular 3/2012, Disposiciones aplicables a las operaciones de las instituciones de crédito, la Financiera Nacional y las entidades financieras que actúen como fiduciarias (compiled text through Circular 11/2017, published by the federal government), Arts. 171 and 172, 2012-03-02 official text · verified 2026-10-27 · changed: Banxico's Circular 3/2012 compiled through Circular 11/2017 is the version consulted.

Situation	Debtor may pay in pesos?	Rate
USD invoice payable in Mexico	Yes	FIX published in the DOF the banking day before payment
USD invoice payable to an account outside Mexico	Payment is performed abroad, outside art. 8	Contract terms
Transfer from abroad through a bank in USD	No, paid in the currency transferred	Not applicable
Contract clause requiring dollars only, payable in Mexico	Yes, the clause is void	FIX

Where the debt is payable decides the currency of payment. Sources: Ley Monetaria arts. 8 and 9; Banxico Circular 3/2012 art. 172.

Worked example

A US supplier sells equipment to a Mexican buyer for USD 100,000 payable at the buyer's offices in Mexico.
On payment day the buyer delivers the peso equivalent at the FIX of the previous banking day. If the FIX were MXN 18.6638, it would pay MXN 1,866,380.00 and the debt would be settled.
If the supplier needed dollars, it should have set the place of payment as its US account, or hedged the peso proceeds.
Argentine exporters selling to Mexico meet the same rule; the Argentine side of the transaction, including its own FX regime and the Argentina Mexico double taxation agreement, is covered by The Argentine Thread guide.

Step by step

1. Decide whether you need to receive dollars or can accept pesos.
2. If dollars are essential, make the obligation payable to an account outside Mexico and say so in the contract.
3. If payment is in Mexico, price the FX risk or hedge it.
4. Keep the DOF FIX of the day before each payment with the payment file.

Common traps

A 'dollars only' clause payable in Mexico is void (Ley Monetaria art. 9).
The FIX of the banking day before payment may differ from the rate the creditor gets when converting.
Peso amounts used for tax purposes follow separate rules on the FX pages.

Sources

← Large cash payments are banned: property, vehicles, shares and luxury goods