The lower house of Mexico's Congress voted to charge cruise passengers a roughly USD 42 immigration tax at Mexico ports, a measure that could go into effect in 2026, on November 28. This followed a decision by some Mexican states to impose a USD 5 tax on cruise passengers. The Senate is expected to vote this month on the new initiative, which, if passed, could bring the total tax to USD 47 per passenger.
Initiatives to limit cruises have been launched around the world out of concern for over-tourism, but the ban on cruises on Mexico's Caribbean coast has long since stopped. According to a report released by the Florida Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA), the Mexican port of Cozumel hosted 4.2 million cruise passengers in 2023, and those passengers spent a total of USD 392 million at the port, making Cozumel one of the busiest cruise ports in the world. In addition, the 2.2 million cruise passengers who called at Costa Maya on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula last year spent a total of USD 145 million.
After the lower house passed the new tax measure, the Mexican Association of Shipping Agents (AMANAC) said the new tax makes cruise travel in Mexico 213 percent more expensive than the average price in Caribbean ports, which will make Mexico's ports among the most expensive ones in the world, severely impacting their attractiveness to tourists and, in turn, constraining the economic growth of Mexico's ports as well as the development of thousands of local small businesses.
When port charges are too high, cruise lines usually adjust ship routes and change destinations to avoid high taxes. For Chinese travel service companies and cruise lines, when planning routes in the Caribbean, they should always compare the transit fees at ports of call in Mexico and other coastal countries, and flexibly adjust the destinations of their routes to provide tourists with a more cost-effective travel experience.
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