On December 11, 2025, the General Water Law (“GWL”) was published in the Federal Official Gazette, together with a decree amending, supplementing, and repealing various provisions of the National Waters Law (“NWL”). The reform introduces a chapter on offenses against national waters. These offenses are prosecutable ex officio.
The criminal provisions prohibit and penalize the following conduct:
1. Knowingly, transporting national waters for profit, knowing that such waters were illegally extracted, with differentiated penalties provided.
2. Diverting or obstructing, without authorization, channels, reservoirs, currents, or flows of national waters that directly affect hydraulic conditions or endanger human life, the safety of property, or vital ecosystems. This conduct will be sanctioned with three months to five years of imprisonment and a fine of two hundred to two thousand Units of Measure and Update.
People who carry out this activity for personal or domestic use, and those within agricultural and livestock production systems, are exempted from these penalties.
3. The conduct of a public servant who grants concessions, allocations, extensions, or permits, or registers concession, allocation, permit, or extension titles for the exploitation, use, or utilization of national waters in exchange for a benefit not included in their compensation, for themselves, their spouse, blood relatives up to the fourth degree, relatives by affinity up to the second degree, or third parties with whom they have professional, employment, or business relationships, or for partners or companies of which the public servant or the aforementioned persons are members. This offense will carry a penalty of two to fourteen years of imprisonment and a fine of four hundred to four thousand Units of Measure and Update.
4. Requesting concessions, allocations, extensions, permits, or the registration of concession, allocation, permit, or extension titles for the exploitation, use, or utilization of national waters by offering or giving gifts to the public servant authorized to approve such procedures. This conduct will be sanctioned with one to eight years of imprisonment and a fine of three hundred to three thousand Units of Measure and Update.
It is important to clarify that the reform did not modify Article 11 BIS of the Federal Criminal Code; therefore, the new offenses will not give rise to criminal liability for legal entities, but they will be for natural persons, employees, or executives of a company who, by act or omission, are perpetrators or participants in the offense.
This includes those who agree to or prepare the commission of offenses against national waters; those who commit them themselves or jointly; those who carry them out by using another person; those who intentionally induce someone to commit them or provide help or assistance for their commission; or those who, after their execution, assist the offender pursuant to a promise made prior to the offense; as well as those who, without prior agreement, participate with others in their commission when it is possible to determine the result produced by each individual, such as direct impacts on hydraulic conditions or the endangerment of human life, the safety of property, or vital ecosystems.
Considering the criminal reforms related to water matters, it is important that companies’ compliance officers and crime prevention officers update risk matrices, implement control and supervision mechanisms, and provide training as part of the 2026 compliance cycle.
This will help reduce the legal, economic, and reputational risks that may result from an investigation by the Public Prosecutor’s Office following citizen complaints or by the Water Authority.
For any questions or comments, you can contact our expert team.
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