Countries › Mexico › Guide › 11. Real estate and land › Beaches and the federal maritime zone (ZOFEMAT): the 20 meter federal strip, concessions of up to 50 years, public access and 2026 duties per square meter

Beaches and the federal maritime zone (ZOFEMAT): the 20 meter federal strip, concessions of up to 50 years, public access and 2026 duties per square meter

Last verified: 2026-10-26 · Status: Stable

Beaches and the 20 meter strip of land next to them are federal public property: a beachfront owner cannot own them and needs a SEMARNAT concession to use them. Concessions over federal property run up to 50 years and can be extended; neighbors of the strip must allow public access to the beach where there is no public road. Users pay an annual duty per square meter set by zone and use: in 2026 from MXN 2.00 (zone I, general use) to MXN 199.25 (Cancún, Puerto Morelos, Playa del Carmen and Tulum), paid in six bimonthly installments.

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. Legal conversions in Mexico use the Banxico FIX, which differs slightly. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Width of the federal maritime land zone next to beaches	20 mLGBN art. 119, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Maximum term of concessions over federal real estate, extendable	50 yearsLGBN art. 73, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
2026 annual ZOFEMAT duty, general use, Benito Juárez, Puerto Morelos, Playa del Carmen and Tulum	199.25 MXN per m2LFD art. 232 C; RMF 2026 Annex 4, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
2026 annual ZOFEMAT duty, general use, zone X (Los Cabos, Acapulco, Puerto Vallarta)	176.00 MXN per m2LFD art. 232 C; RMF 2026 Annex 4, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
2026 annual ZOFEMAT duty, general use, zone I (lowest)	2.00 MXN per m2LFD art. 232 C; RMF 2026 Annex 4, as of 2026-10-26 · in force

The rule

1. The federal strip. Beaches and the federal maritime land zone are public property of the Federation. Where the coast has beaches, the zone is the strip of 20 meters of firm, passable land next to them, and next to river banks from the mouth up to 100 meters upstream; all of the surface of cays and reefs in the territorial sea is federal zone; around lagoons and estuaries connected with the sea the 20 meters run from the highest annual water level. SEMARNAT surveys and delimits the zone. If the sea invades private land, the zone is redrawn and the land becomes federal, but the former owner has a preference to receive a concession.
Cost to do it: No fee for delimitation set in these articles.Ley General de Bienes Nacionales, DOF 20 May 2004, arts. 7, sections IV and V, 119 and 122, LGBN arts. 7, 119 and 122, 2004-05-20 official text · verified 2026-10-26

2. Concessions and public access. Concessions over federal property may be granted for up to 50 years, extendable one or more times within that limit, considering the investment, its payback period, social and economic benefit, the need for the activity, compliance and the value of works at the end. Where no public road reaches the beach, owners of land next to the federal zone must allow free access through accesses agreed with SEMARNAT, with compensation under the regulation; these accesses are easements. Neighboring ejidos and communities have a preference for concessions, and the zone cannot be granted as agrarian land.
Cost to do it: Annual duty under LFD art. 232 C (next rule).Ley General de Bienes Nacionales arts. 73, 126 and 127 (second paragraph added DOF 21 October 2020), LGBN arts. 73, 126 and 127, 2020-10-21 official text · verified 2026-10-26

3. Annual duty per square meter. Anyone using beaches, the federal zone or land reclaimed from the sea pays a duty set by zone and use: protection or ornamental use (no construction or only works without foundations, no profit), agriculture, livestock, fishing and aquaculture, and general use (buildings with foundations or profit). The duty is calculated per fiscal year and paid in bimonthly provisional payments of one sixth by the 17th of March, May, July, September, November and January, or all at once with the first payment, with an annual return within three months after year end. It is owed whether or not a concession exists when the use limits others' free use.
Cost to do it: 2026 general use rates per square meter a year: zone X (Los Cabos, Acapulco, Puerto Vallarta) MXN 176.00; zone XI subzone A (Cozumel) MXN 99.53; subzone B (Benito Juárez, Puerto Morelos, Playa del Carmen, Tulum) MXN 199.25; protection or ornamental use in subzone B MXN 55.60.
Example: A beach club in Tulum uses 500 square meters of federal zone with buildings: 500 times MXN 199.25 is MXN 99,625 a year, MXN 16,604.17 every two months. Left in its natural state the same area would cost MXN 27,800 a year. / About USD 5,338 a year in general use, or USD 1,490 for protection use.Ley Federal de Derechos arts. 232 C, 232 D (zones reformed DOF 7 November 2025), 233 and 234; RMF 2026 Annex 4, LFD arts. 232 C to 234, 2025-11-07 official text · verified 2026-10-26

Zone	Examples of municipalities	Protection or ornamental	General use
VI	Ensenada, San Quintín	MXN 9.08	MXN 26.23
VIII	Playas de Rosarito, Loreto, Bahía de Banderas, Mazatlán	MXN 22.90	MXN 65.91
IX	La Paz, José Azueta	MXN 30.59	MXN 87.88
X	Los Cabos, Acapulco de Juárez, Puerto Vallarta	MXN 61.39	MXN 176.00
XI A	Cozumel	MXN 27.70	MXN 99.53
XI B	Benito Juárez, Puerto Morelos, Playa del Carmen, Tulum	MXN 55.60	MXN 199.25

2026 ZOFEMAT duties per square meter a year for selected zones (LFD arts. 232 C and 232 D; RMF 2026 Annex 4).

Worked example

A hotel in Los Cabos (zone X) holds a concession over 1,000 square meters of federal zone with a deck and bar: the 2026 duty is MXN 176,000 a year (about USD 9,430), paid as MXN 29,333.33 every two months or in full with the March payment (LFD arts. 232 C and 234).

Step by step

1. Ask SEMARNAT for the official delimitation of the federal zone next to the lot; do not rely on fences.
2. Apply for a concession for any use of the strip (deck, palapas, landscaping) and keep it current.
3. Classify the use (protection, ornamental or general) and compute the annual duty by zone.
4. Pay bimonthly by the 17th or all at once, and file the annual return within three months after year end.
5. Keep the agreed public access open if no public road reaches the beach.

Common traps

Buying the beach: the 20 meter strip and the beach are federal and cannot be in a deed or a trust (LGBN arts. 7 and 119).
Using the strip without a concession: the duty is owed anyway (LFD art. 233).
Building with foundations: it moves the area to general use, the highest rate (LFD art. 232 C).
Closing public access: neighbors must allow access where no public road exists (LGBN art. 127).

Sources

← Local property taxes: municipal property tax (predial) and real estate acquisition tax, with Nuevo León as a worked exampleWater rights and land: concessions of 5 to 30 years, the December 2025 ban on transferring titles, reassignment when land is sold and extension windows →