Do YouTubers pay taxes in Mexico?
Paying taxes is a constitutional mandate, adds Tavares. Article 31, section IV, indicates that among the obligations of Mexicans is to contribute to the public expenses of the Federation, the states, Mexico City and the Municipality in which they reside, in the proportional and equitable manner provided by the laws.
Platforms pay content creators for activities such as advertising and views. This income is subject to the payment of taxes because it is the product of a business activity, explains Ramiro Ávalos, fiscal vice president of the Mexican Institute of Public Accountants (IMCP).
Payments from the platforms to the content generators are through bank transfers to accounts that may be in Mexico or abroad, and even if they are outside the country, they must be reported to the SAT. The platforms do not pay in cash, the transfers are traceable, that is, there will be a time when the tax authority detects it, if you do not declare it, details the IMCP vice president.
How do YouTubers pay taxes?
If you are not registered in the RFC, you must do so. The SAT offers different tax regimes, so you must choose one according to factors such as your professional profile, income level in a year, if you hire staff, if you buy professional equipment.
There is the general regime, and the Simplified Trust Regime (Resico), both for natural persons (professional or business activity) and legal entities or companies.
The general regime of a natural person providing professional services may sound optimal for the YouTuber or TikToker. This requires corroborating that you have a profession, if you do not have it, that of natural person with business activity can also work.
In what regime?
The natural person, whether with business or professional activity, is the most common where you will pay up to 35% of your earnings (the difference between your income and your expenses or deductions) on a table that is progressive, the more income you have will approach the 35% rate, explains the CCPM representative.
The declarations that must be presented under this regime are monthly and an annual Income Tax (ISR). In this scheme you can deduct expenses for supplies or contracting services to carry out your activity (authorized deductions), and also personal expenses such as medical services, school transport, psychologist, nutritionist, housing interest.
If you have no income or estimate income of less than 3.5 million pesos in the year, the Resico for legal entities may be convenient for you, here the rate is applied directly on the income and the rates range between 1% and 2.5%, but you cannot do deductions, Ávalos explains.
If your income exceeds 3.5 million pesos a year, you already hire staff or even sell products, the most prudent thing to do is to set up a company and register as a legal entity. As for this there is a general regimen and Resico, adds Tavares.
“The punishment of not being registered in the SAT while receiving income from a platform income is greater, the omission will be more expensive. There are two scenarios that you are not registered or that being registered you are not complying with your declarations and payments”, said Ávalos.
Remember that the tax authority can review your income for the last five years or fiscal years, and charge you taxes, surcharges and fines.
