In the Mexican customs ecosystem, there are things that work and many others that don’t, as revealed by the National Survey of Logistics, Customs and Foreign Trade (ENLACE) , presented during the 85th National Congress of Customs Agents by the Confederation of Associations of Customs Agents of the Mexican Republic (CAAAREM) .

The exercise, one of the most ambitious in the industry, compiled responses from executives and foreign trade specialists to identify the current state of operations in the sector.

Customs legislation fared well: 68.1% of respondents considered it efficient. However, this positive perception is tempered by the need to simplify requirements, update regulatory content, and make it easier to consult through digital tools.

In terms of digital services, 31% rated the Ministry of Economy ‘s website as deficient . This complaint isn’t new, but it is a recurring one: frequent crashes, poor stability, and slow response times.

Customs infrastructure also received a negative evaluation. Maritime infrastructure received a negative evaluation, while land infrastructure barely exceeded the adequacy threshold. On average, 57% of users believe the facilities are inadequate.

The same situation persisted regarding connectivity : ports and state highways experienced the highest levels of congestion, and only 26% of respondents reported operating with adequate infrastructure.

There is a good perception of transparency  in land customs and bureaucratization in maritime customs, although recent efforts by the National Customs Agency of Mexico (ANAM) in Manzanillo, Colima, and Lázaro Cárdenas, Michoacán, are recognized.

When asked about the use of logistics services , the answer was straightforward: improving delivery times is the number one reason (54%). Environmental sustainability, in contrast, was hardly mentioned as a motivation.

Logistical challenges are well identified: lack of qualified personnel (36%) and theft or damage to merchandise (21%). Not only was efficiency called for, but also safety and professionalism.

In this regard, trucking received a negative rating; its cargo handling is perceived as limited and vulnerable. Poor storage conditions, inefficient claims processes, and constant road thefts keep its perception on red alert. Thirty percent of the incidents were directly attributed to the actions of the authorities.

Despite this, there is confidence in customs brokers: 72% of those surveyed rated their performance as efficient to excellent . But there is also room for improvement: continued professionalization, services beyond clearance, and greater technical training.

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Mexico’s National Customs Agency (ANAM) has seized more than 50 million liters of diesel that have been smuggled into the country via trains, ships, or tankers over the past five months, Rafael Marín Mollinedo, head of the agency, reported Thursday.

The customs official indicated that this illegal practice has been detected at customs offices in Tampico, Laredo, Ciudad Juárez, Matamoros, and other locations.

After participating in the 85th National Congress of Customs Agents , organized by the Confederation of Associations of Customs Agents of the Mexican Republic (CAAAREM) , he commented that they are monitoring the different customs declarations that have been entering different parts of the country and have detected various modifications.

“First, they started changing the tariff items; instead of saying diesel, they said fuel oil additives. We flagged all those items under Chapter 27, but then they started changing them to other products; now it’s a chemical product,” he explained.

It’s worth remembering that on July 7, a joint operation involving various authorities seized 129 tanker trucks and 15 million 480 thousand liters of fuel in Coahuila, considered the largest seizure so far during the six-year term of Claudia Sheinbaum, President of Mexico.

The first action took place in the municipality of Ramos Arizpe, where state police informed security agents about several tanker trucks that were apparently abandoned near a train station; at the site, they located 33 tanker trucks containing 3.96 million liters of hydrocarbons .

In another incident, near a station in Saltillo, 96 tank trucks were found stranded on the railroad tracks, containing 11 million 520 thousand liters of hydrocarbons.

In this regard, Marín Mollinedo explained that they were able to detect what was passing through the railroads through the Electronic Customs Data Processing Center, which provides information from the 14,000 cameras located at all customs offices.

“We checked what was coming on those trains, and there we found the last seizure we made. 129 trains, tank trucks, passed on one train. They had only declared 10% of the fuel, meaning they were carrying 120,000 liters, and they had only declared 10,000 liters on the customs declaration,” he explained.

Regarding the results of the National Customs, Logistics, and Foreign Trade Survey presented at the congress, which highlighted the limited infrastructure at maritime customs offices and the state of the facilities, among other topics, he indicated that they are working to remedy this situation.

“We’ve replaced many customs directors, and we’re reviewing their operations and performance. Wherever we see a lack of progress, we make the change. We’re there, monitoring all the requests from ANAM and the central offices, ensuring that people pay what they owe,” he explained.

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