On December 11, 2025, the Decree enacting the General Water Law (the “LGA”, per its acronym in Spanish) and amending, supplementing, and repealing various provisions of the National Waters Law (the “LAN”, per its acronym in Spanish) was published in the Federal Official Gazette (“DOF”, per its acronym in Spanish).
This new legal framework introduces substantive changes to the management, administration, and protection of water resources in Mexico, with the aim of strengthening sustainability, social participation, and equitable access to water.
The purpose of the LGA is to regulate Article 4, eighth paragraph of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States regarding the human right to access, availability, and sanitation of water. To that end, it establishes a new legal regime for water, aligning human rights, sustainable management by basin and aquifer, intergovernmental coordination, and the recognition of community systems.
Below is a summary of the main aspects of the LGA and the amendments to the LAN:
The National Water Public Registry replaces the Public Water Rights Registry, expanding the catalogue of mandatory entries and expressly incorporating community water systems, registries of agrarian communities, and availability studies. In this way, territorial nomenclature is standardized and the obligation to report well development and drilling works is reinforced.
The National Waters Reserve Fund is created, administered by the Water Authority, and composed of volumes arising from the termination of titles, voluntary transfers, and preferential rights.
These volumes are not counted toward general availability, and their reassignment is carried out through expedited procedures in limited, enumerated cases.
The LGA establishes the bases for concurrent authority among the Federation, the states, municipalities, and community systems for planning, programming, and service delivery, as well as for oversight and enforcement, strengthening intergovernmental coordination and the integration of public information.
It also centralizes, at the national level, the granting of concessions, allocations, and permits within the National Water Commission (“CONAGUA”, per its acronym in Spanish), relegating the Basin Organizations to a secondary role in that process.
The regime applicable to extensions of the term of concession titles is modified. To grant an extension, the competent authority must evaluate: (i) compliance with the conditions set out in the title; (ii) water availability; and (iii) compliance with tax obligations. In addition, the extension request must be submitted within the last three years of the title’s term and, in all cases, at least six months prior to its expiration.
Additionally, the regulation applicable to concession titles is modified regarding transfers of concessions or water volumes, changes in the use of the water resource, and the guaranteed fee to interrupt forfeiture of volumes. For more information on these changes, please refer to the following [Client Alert].
CONAGUA’s inspection, verification, and sanctioning attributions are expanded, incorporating the use of new technologies, as well as the authority to access information classified as reserved and/or confidential.
Likewise, with the restructuring of Title Ten of the LAN, the catalogue of infractions is updated, the grounds for revocation of titles are strengthened (including improper transfer of rights and nonpayment), and the prohibition on diluting wastewater is clarified, except in desalination processes. Enforcement, safety, and sanction measures are reinforced, as are the effects of recidivism.
The amendment to the LAN introduces a chapter on crimes against national waters. These crimes are prosecuted ex officio.
a. Illegal water trafficking. The intentional transport of national waters for profit, knowing that such waters were illegally extracted, is penalized, with a differentiated sanction: where the amount is less than 50,000 liters, imprisonment of 3 to 5 months and a fine of 100 to 200 Units of Measurement and Update (“UMAS”, per its acronym in Spanish).
b. Damage or danger to water bodies. The conduct of diverting or obstructing, without authorization, channels, reservoirs, streams, or flows of national waters is penalized when it causes direct harm to hydraulic conditions or endangers human life, the safety of property, or vital ecosystems. This conduct will be penalized with 3 months to 5 years of imprisonment and a fine of 200 to 2,000 UMAS.
c. Corruption-related acts in water matters:
(i) 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. This crime carries a penalty of 2 to 14 years’ imprisonment and a fine of 400 to 4,000 UMAS.
(ii) 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 is punishable by 1 to 8 years’ imprisonment and a fine of 300 to 3,000 UMAS.
It is important to clarify that the amendment did not modify Article 11 BIS of the Federal Criminal Code; therefore, the new offenses will not give rise to corporate criminal liability, 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.
The LGA and the amendments to the LAN became effective as of December 12, 2025.
a. The entry into force of the LGA and the amendments to the LAN marks the beginning of a new stage in water management in Mexico, oriented toward protecting the human right to water, sustainability, transparency, and social participation.
b. Within 180 calendar days of their entry into force, the corresponding regulatory provisions must be issued or amended. During that period, existing rules will continue to apply to the extent they do not contravene the principles and guidelines of the LGA or the amendments to the LAN.
c. Concession, allocation, and permit proceedings pending before CONAGUA at the time the decree was published must be resolved in accordance with the regulations in force prior to its entry into force.
For any questions or comments, you can contact our expert team.
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