If you hold a Cancún condo through a fideicomiso (Mexican bank trust), it goes to the substitute beneficiaries you name in the trust, not to whoever a court declares as your heirs. Mexican law lets you name several beneficiaries, to receive the property at the same time or one after another. If you name no one and leave no Mexican will, your rights in the trust fall into an intestate succession, where the law decides who inherits. In Cancún, the heir also pays a 3% local acquisition tax.
This is the part of the trust most buyers sign without reading. It takes one decision at closing and a review every few years, and it is the difference between a phone call to the bank and a court case in a foreign language. Here is how it works, with the article of law behind each point.
The trust in sixty seconds
In a fideicomiso, the settlor transfers title of a property to a bank, which holds it for a specific purpose (General Law of Negotiable Instruments and Credit Operations, article 381). In the coastal restricted zone, which includes Cancún, a bank needs a permit from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to hold property in trust for a foreign beneficiary, who gets the right to use it, enjoy it and keep its income (Foreign Investment Law, articles 11 and 12). The trust lasts up to 50 years and can be extended at the beneficiary's request (article 13).
You, the buyer, are the beneficiary (fideicomisario). Because the bank, not you, is on the title, the question "who inherits?" is answered inside the trust agreement. The full mechanics of buying this way are in our guide to buying property in Mexico as a foreigner.
What the law lets you do
Three articles of the General Law of Negotiable Instruments and Credit Operations set the rules:
| Article | What it says | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| 382 | A beneficiary can be designated in the trust deed or in a later act. | You can name heirs at closing and update them afterward. |
| 383 | Several beneficiaries can receive the benefit simultaneously or successively. When their will must be consulted, they decide by majority counted by share; a tie goes to a judge. | A couple can co-own the rights, and each can have substitutes. Give unequal shares on purpose, not by accident. |
| 394, section II | Successive substitution on death is only valid in favor of people alive or already conceived when the settlor dies. | You can name your children and existing grandchildren, not unborn future generations. |
Source: Ley General de Títulos y Operaciones de Crédito, last amended in the Official Gazette (DOF) on March 26, 2024.
Common ways to set it up
Single buyer, children as substitutes
You are the only beneficiary; your children are named as substitutes in the percentages you choose. On your death, the bank recognizes them as the new beneficiaries.
Couple as co-beneficiaries
Both spouses hold the rights at the same time, in set percentages. Each names substitutes for their own share — typically the other spouse first, then the children — so that one death does not leave half the condo without a designated successor.
Buying with siblings or friends
Several co-beneficiaries, each with their own substitutes. Remember article 383: if you disagree on selling or renting and the agreement is silent, decisions go by majority of shares. Write the rules for a sale into the trust or a side agreement.
What happens when the owner dies
- The trust continues. The bank still holds title; nothing is frozen in a court.
- The substitutes contact the bank's trust department with the documents it requires. If the death certificate is issued outside Mexico, ask the bank in advance whether it needs an apostille and a certified Spanish translation.
- The change is documented, and when it is done in a public deed, the notary calculates the local acquisition tax and is jointly liable for it (Benito Juárez Municipal Revenue Law, article 29).
- The new beneficiaries keep paying the bank's annual fee — and should, for a reason explained below.
Banks set their own document lists and timelines, and they are not published in any law, so get your bank's list in writing while you are alive and file it with your estate papers.
The tax your heirs pay in Cancún
The Benito Juárez Municipal Revenue Law (the municipality that includes Cancún and Puerto Cancún) treats the substitution of a trust beneficiary, for any reason, as a taxable acquisition (article 24, section VII), and does the same for property acquired through an estate (section III). The rate is 3% (article 27), applied to the highest of the updated purchase price, the cadastral value, an approved appraisal or the last declared value (article 26). For an estate, the tax is due when the property is adjudicated or three years after the death, whichever comes first (article 28).
To give an order of magnitude, this table applies 3% to the starting list price of each development in Cancún and Puerto Cancún in our portfolio. It is generated from live inventory; the real base will be the highest value at the time of the substitution, not today's list price.
| Development | Stage | From | 3% on that price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Valmira | Move-in ready | $2,660,000 MXN | $79,800 MXN |
| Olivia Wow Condos | Pre-construction | $3,100,000 MXN | $93,000 MXN |
| Koa | Move-in ready | $3,500,000 MXN | $105,000 MXN |
| Ximena Wow Condos | Pre-construction | $3,600,000 MXN | $108,000 MXN |
| Esther Wow Condos | Pre-construction | $3,700,000 MXN | $111,000 MXN |
| Loreta Wow Condos | Pre-construction | $4,600,000 MXN | $138,000 MXN |
| Villalta | Move-in ready | $7,730,000 MXN | $231,900 MXN |
| Vellmari | Pre-construction | $15,289,000 MXN | $458,670 MXN |
| Blume | Move-in ready | $19,256,000 MXN | $577,680 MXN |
Illustrative only. List prices in Mexican pesos, subject to change and availability. Notary and registry fees are on top. The same tax is part of what you pay when you buy; see closing costs when buying property in Mexico. Playa del Carmen and Tulum belong to other municipalities with their own revenue laws.
If you never name substitutes
Then your rights in the trust become part of your estate. Mexico's Interior Ministry explains that, without a will, the law sets the heirs and their shares — descendants, spouse or partner, ascendants and collateral relatives up to the fourth degree — and an intestate succession proceeding is opened to declare the heirs, appoint an executor (albacea), and inventory, value and distribute the assets. Segob itself warns that this can mean high costs, lost time and family disputes. For a family living abroad, that process also runs in Spanish and under Mexican procedure.
A Mexican will signed before a notary is the usual complement: it covers what the trust does not, such as a Mexican bank account or the furniture. Segob notes that a will can be changed as often as you like and that the most recent one prevails. How it should interact with a will or living trust at home is a question for a Mexican notary and your estate lawyer together.
Keep the trust alive for your heirs
Two rules can bite a family that inherits a trust without knowing it exists:
Unpaid bank fees
If the trustee bank goes unpaid for three years or more, it may terminate the trust after giving 15 business days’ notice to pay, and transfer the assets to the settlor or beneficiary as applicable (article 392 Bis). Keep the annual fee on autopay and make sure your heirs know which bank holds the trust.
The 50-year term
The trust lasts up to 50 years and is extended at the beneficiary’s request (Foreign Investment Law, article 13). If your children will inherit, they are the ones who will request the extension; leave them a copy of the trust agreement.
If your heirs would rather sell than keep the condo, they will face the tax on the sale as non-residents; we explain the two options in selling your Cancún condo as a foreigner.
Checklist at closing (and every few years)
- Name substitutes in the trust deed, with exact percentages, before you sign.
- Couples: one set of substitutes per share, so each half has a successor.
- Get the bank's procedure in writing for changing substitutes and for a beneficiary's death.
- Put the trust fee on autopay and tell your heirs which bank holds the trust.
- Review after life events — marriage, divorce, births, a death in the family.
- Consider a Mexican will for assets outside the trust, coordinated with your plan at home.
If you are still choosing, our advisors can show you condos for sale in Cancún and explain how the trust is set up at closing for each one.
This article is general information, not legal, estate-planning, tax or investment advice. The articles cited come from the federal laws as last amended on March 26, 2024 (credit operations) and May 27, 2024 (foreign investment), and from the Benito Juárez Municipal Revenue Law as amended on December 10, 2025, consulted on November 6, 2026. Confirm your situation with a Mexican notary and your trustee bank.
Frequently asked questions
What happens to my fideicomiso when I die?
The trust does not end. The bank keeps holding title as trustee, and the rights pass to the substitute beneficiaries you named in the trust. Mexico’s General Law of Negotiable Instruments and Credit Operations (articles 382 and 383) lets you name several beneficiaries, to receive the benefit at the same time or one after another. Your substitutes then deal with the bank to formalize the change, because the trust itself already says who comes next.
Who can I name as a substitute beneficiary?
Anyone with legal capacity to receive the benefit, including your spouse, children or other relatives. One limit matters: when beneficiaries replace each other because of a death, the law only allows the substitution in favor of people who are alive or already conceived when the settlor dies (article 394). In practice, you can name your children and existing grandchildren, but not a chain of future generations.
Can I change my substitute beneficiaries later?
The law allows a beneficiary to be designated in the trust deed or in a later act (article 382). How you change them in practice depends on your trust agreement and your bank: ask the trust department for its procedure, and keep the designation current after marriages, divorces, births or deaths.
Do my heirs pay tax when they take over the condo?
Locally, yes. In Cancún (Benito Juárez municipality), the property acquisition tax applies to the substitution of a trust beneficiary for any reason and to acquisitions through an estate. The rate is 3% on the highest of the updated price, the cadastral value, an approved appraisal or the last declared value. Notary and registry fees are separate. Federal income tax treatment depends on each heir’s situation; ask a Mexican accountant.
What if I never named substitute beneficiaries?
Then your rights in the trust become part of your estate. According to Mexico’s Interior Ministry (Segob), without a will the law decides who inherits and in what shares, and an intestate succession proceeding is opened to declare heirs, appoint an executor, and inventory and distribute the assets, which can mean time, cost and family disputes. Naming substitutes in the trust avoids that for the condo.
Do I still need a Mexican will if I have substitute beneficiaries?
The substitutes cover only what is inside the trust: the condo. A Mexican bank account, a car or furniture are outside it. Many owners also sign a will before a Mexican notary for those assets. Segob notes that a will can be changed as many times as you want and that the last one prevails. Ask a notary how a Mexican will should fit with your estate plan at home.
