Within the framework of the Voluntary Compliance with Tax Obligations working line of the EUROsociAL II Programme, financed by the European Union, Mexico's Tax Administration Service (SAT) completed an exchange visit to Spain's State Tax Administration Agency (AEAT) to learn about its experience with implementation of electronic invoicing and electronic transactions on behalf of third parties before the tax agency (electronic power of attorney).

In Mexico, as a result of recent reforms, each taxpayer, by law, is assigned a Tax Mailbox, which consists of an electronic communication system that enables the taxpayer to carry out transactions with the tax agency and receive notifications of administrative actions. One important component within the Tax Mailbox system is the electronic file for storing information about the interactions between the taxpayer and the SAT. 

In this context, the SAT expressed its interest in learning about the regulatory framework that governs electronic administration in Spain, and the experience of the AEAT with electronic invoicing and electronic transactions on behalf of third parties before the tax agency.

During the visit by five civil servants from the SAT in September, various AEAT departments collaborated: the Planning and Institutional Relations Office, the Tax Computing Department, and the Financial and Tax Inspection Department.

Implementation of the Tax Mailbox in Mexico is being done gradually in different phases, and the electronic invoice is expected to go into production in the last quarter of 2015. The electronic power of attorney component will be implemented in the following phase. Use of electronic invoicing is expected to contribute to reducing the institution's operating costs, minimising the use of paper, and facilitating taxpayer compliance. It will also make it possible to set up a process for exchanging information between federal government agencies.

This activity is part of the Voluntary Tax Compliance action of the Public Finance area of the EUROsociAL II Programme, financed by the European Union and coordinated by FIIAPP, in which Spain's State Tax Administration Agency (AEAT) and the Inter-American Centre for Tax Administrations (CIAT) are acting as operational partners.