[co-author: Jorge Andazola]

Mexico's Federal Official Gazette issued on May 24, 2021, the agreement announcing the general provisions for the registration of individuals or legal entities that provide specialized services or perform specialized works in connection with the outsourcing reform dated on April 23, 2021.

These guidelines are addressed to individuals and legal entities that perform specialized services or works (and that must provide personnel to perform such specialized service or work in accordance with the outsourcing reform), as well as to all those companies that provide complementary or shared services or works in the same business group. These services and works have elements or distinctive factors of the activity performed by the contractor, which must be substantiated with training, certifications, permits or licenses that regulate the activity, equipment, technology, assets, machinery, etc., which provide added value to the beneficiary.

Public Register of Contractors of Specialized Services or Specialized Works

In order to register, interested parties must meet the following requirements.

In addition to the above, it is essential to note that individuals or legal entities must be up to date with their tax and social security obligations with the Tax Administration Service, the Mexican Social Security Institute and the National Workers' Housing Fund Institute at the time they apply for the registry. They will have to describe in detail the services or type of work they intend to provide. For each of these activities, they must accredit, under penalty of perjury, the specialized nature of the same and describe the elements or factors that accredit the exceptional nature of these activities.

Information and documentation must be provided to verify specialized services and works, according to the platform requirements, regarding training, certifications, permits or licenses that regulate the activity, equipment, technology, assets, capital stock, machinery, risk level, average salary range and experience, among others. The specialized services or works they wish to register must be outlined in their corporate statement of purpose.

Persons and entities registering through the platform must submit the following documents in PDF or XML format:

• Current Official Identification of the natural person or the company's legal representative (PDF)
• Power of Attorney (PDF)
• Payroll Voucher (XML)
• Current Articles of Incorporation and Corporate Purpose (PDF)
• Proof of Registration in the Federal Taxpayers Registry (PDF)
• Employer Registration(s) with the Mexican Social Security Institute (PDF)
• Proof of Address (i.e., electricity, property tax, telephone) (PDF)

Registration Procedure

1. Once the required information has been uploaded, the platform will assign a folio number for tracking purposes.
2. The Ministry of Labor shall respond to the registration within 20 business days after receipt. Applicants also may request the Ministry to issue the corresponding registration notice within three business days following the filing of the request. Once the term has elapsed without a registration issuance notice, the registration will be deemed to be in effect for all legal purposes.
3. The Ministry, through the Dignified Work Unit and its Administrative Units, may at any time request additional information or documentation from the applicant or any government entity to corroborate and validate the provided information and documentation.
4. Once the entire process has been approved, the Ministry, through the Dignified Work Unit and the General Directorate of the Federal Labor Inspectorate, will proceed to register it in the Registry, issuing for such purpose, the corresponding registration notice, which will be notified to the applicant through the communication means left for such purpose.
5. The registration will be valid for three years and will be essential for the contractor to provide its services under the applicable legal provisions.

Registration Refusal, Cancellation and Renewal

If the applicant does not comply with any of the requirements set forth herein, the Ministry, through the Dignified Work Unit and the General Directorate of the Federal Labor Inspectorate, may deny the registration.

Likewise, the registration may be canceled at any time if any of the following situations arise:

• providing specialized services or works not registered in the Registry
• providing specialized services or works that are part of the beneficiary's corporate purpose or main economic activity
• debts derived from noncompliance with tax and social security obligation
• failure to comply with the requirements that served as the basis for the registration procurement
• non-compliance with the outsourcing provisions of the Federal Labor Law
• refusal to comply with any request for information or documentation required by the Ministry
• failure to renew the registration within the established term

The Ministry will warn and notify the registered person and entity of any possible noncompliance, and the latter will have five business days to state what he/she or it deems appropriate.

Registered individuals or legal entities must initiate the renewal process three months before the registration expiration date.

Likewise, the registered persons or entities will be obliged to fully identify their employees by means of the picture, name, badge or identity code that links such employees with the company rendering the specialized service or executing the specialized work during the performance of their employment in the company's facilities.

The agreements that the contracting companies enter into with companies that provide specialized services or perform specialized works must include the current registration and folio of such companies' activity or specialized work. It will be possible to verify at any time through the platform the registration and the validity of the same of the companies that provide specialized services or execute specialized works.