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Vacation premium calculator 2026 (prima vacacional)
Enter your monthly salary, completed years of service and the premium in your contract to see the gross prima vacacional, the tax-free share, the ISR and what you take home.
Reviewed by Radif Partners · Editorial policy
Net vacation premium
MX$1,500
12 vacation days · 25 % premium
| Pay for the vacation days | MX$6,000 |
|---|---|
| Gross vacation premium | MX$1,500 |
| Tax-free (15 UMA) | MX$1,500 |
| ISR | − MX$0 |
| Net premium | MX$1,500 |
The prima vacacional, or vacation premium, is an extra payment Mexican employers make on top of the salary for your vacation days. Article 80 of the Federal Labour Law sets it at no less than 25 %, and the number of days it is calculated on depends on seniority: 12 after the first year since the 2023 paid vacation reform, rising with each anniversary. The ISR law exempts 15 times the daily UMA, MX$1,759.65 in 2026 with the UMA of MX$117.31, and taxes the rest as ordinary income. On a MX$35,000 monthly salary with one year of service, the minimum premium is MX$3,500 gross, of which MX$1,760 is tax-free, leaving MX$3,099 after ISR. The calculator uses a daily wage of the monthly salary divided by 30, your contractual percentage when it beats the minimum, and both withholding methods available to employers: article 96 of the ISR law and article 174 of its regulations.
Where the tax-free cap stops covering you
| Monthly salary | Vacation pay (12 days) | Gross premium | Taxable | ISR | Net premium |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MX$12,000 | MX$4,800 | MX$1,200 | MX$0 | MX$0 | MX$1,200 |
| MX$18,000 | MX$7,200 | MX$1,800 | MX$40 | MX$9 | MX$1,791 |
| MX$25,000 | MX$10,000 | MX$2,500 | MX$740 | MX$158 | MX$2,342 |
| MX$40,000 | MX$16,000 | MX$4,000 | MX$2,240 | MX$527 | MX$3,473 |
| MX$60,000 | MX$24,000 | MX$6,000 | MX$4,240 | MX$1,272 | MX$4,728 |
| MX$100,000 | MX$40,000 | MX$10,000 | MX$8,240 | MX$2,509 | MX$7,491 |
Local salaries below roughly MX$17,597 a month never see tax on the first-year premium. Most expatriate and senior packages sit well above that line, so for them only the first MX$1,759.65 is exempt and every additional peso is taxed at the marginal rate shown on the payslip. The second column is not extra money: it is the ordinary salary you keep receiving while you are away.
Premium by years of service on MX$35,000 a month
| Completed years | Days | Gross premium | Tax-free | ISR (art. 96) | ISR (art. 174) | Net |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | MX$3,500 | MX$1,760 | MX$401 | MX$372 | MX$3,099 |
| 2 | 14 | MX$4,083 | MX$1,760 | MX$539 | MX$496 | MX$3,545 |
| 3 | 16 | MX$4,667 | MX$1,760 | MX$676 | MX$621 | MX$3,991 |
| 4 | 18 | MX$5,250 | MX$1,760 | MX$813 | MX$746 | MX$4,437 |
| 5 | 20 | MX$5,833 | MX$1,760 | MX$950 | MX$870 | MX$4,883 |
| 6 | 22 | MX$6,417 | MX$1,760 | MX$1,087 | MX$1,001 | MX$5,329 |
| 11 | 24 | MX$7,000 | MX$1,760 | MX$1,225 | MX$1,138 | MX$5,775 |
| 16 | 26 | MX$7,583 | MX$1,760 | MX$1,362 | MX$1,276 | MX$6,221 |
| 21 | 28 | MX$8,167 | MX$1,760 | MX$1,499 | MX$1,413 | MX$6,668 |
| 26 | 30 | MX$8,750 | MX$1,760 | MX$1,636 | MX$1,550 | MX$7,114 |
| 31 | 32 | MX$9,333 | MX$1,760 | MX$1,773 | MX$1,687 | MX$7,560 |
Each row is the first year of a new step. Days go up by two each year until year five, then by two every five years, and the premium follows. When the taxable part is small relative to the width of your tax bracket, the two withholding methods produce almost the same figure. Someone on MX$60,000 with three years of service gets 16 days and a premium of MX$8,000, of which MX$1,872 goes to ISR.
How the figure is built
The daily wage is your monthly salary divided by 30, the article 89 rule for salaries agreed by the month. That wage times your vacation days gives the vacation pay, and the premium is a percentage of it, never under 25 %. The exempt part is deducted and the remainder is taxed. Under article 96 the employer adds it to the month’s pay and withholds the difference in ISR. Under article 174 of the regulations it spreads the taxable part over the year to find a rate and applies that rate to the premium alone.
Contracts drafted abroad often express leave in calendar days or in weeks, and may say nothing about a premium. On a Mexican payroll the statutory premium still applies, and a more generous policy is perfectly legal. If you are comparing an offer, the net-to-gross calculator shows the monthly side, and the guide to vacation days in Mexico explains how many days each year brings.
What this calculator leaves out
It assumes a fixed monthly salary. Commission-based or variable pay needs the average the employer uses, which is set by the contract or the collective agreement. It does not combine the premium with the aguinaldo, the Christmas bonus that has its own 30-UMA exemption, so if both land in the same December payroll the real withholding can be higher. For a departure, use the finiquito calculator, which adds the pro-rated premium to the rest of the settlement.
Frequently asked questions
Is the vacation premium the same thing as vacation pay?
No. While you are on vacation your normal salary keeps running, and the prima vacacional is an extra payment on top of it: at least 25 % of the pay for your vacation days under article 80 of the Federal Labour Law. On MX$35,000 a month with one year of service, that is MX$3,500 gross for 12 days.
How much of the prima vacacional is tax-free in 2026?
Up to 15 times the daily UMA, MX$1,759.65 in 2026, under article 93 section XIV of the ISR law. The UMA is the reference unit Mexico uses for tax caps instead of the minimum wage. With 12 vacation days and the 25% minimum, salaries up to about MX$17,597 a month receive the whole premium tax-free.
My offer letter promises a 50% vacation premium. How is that taxed?
The tax-free cap stays at MX$1,759.65 whatever percentage your contract grants, so everything above it is added to taxable income. On MX$35,000 with one year of service, a 50% premium is MX$7,000 gross and about MX$5,775 net, against MX$3,099 net at the legal minimum. Enter your percentage in the calculator.
Do foreign employees on a Mexican payroll receive a vacation premium?
Yes. The Federal Labour Law covers anyone employed in Mexico, whatever their nationality, visa or the location of the parent company. If you are on a Mexican payroll, the statutory vacation days and the ${f.pct(pct, 0)} premium are a floor that no clause in an international contract can lower. A better premium agreed abroad remains valid.
Do I get a vacation premium if I leave before my first anniversary?
Yes, pro-rated. The final settlement, called the finiquito, pays the share of vacation earned since your last anniversary plus the premium on it. After about 200 days in your first year you have earned 6.58 vacation days, so the minimum premium is 1.64 days of pay. The finiquito calculator does the full sum.
Related calculators and guides
Sources
- Federal Labour Law (Ley Federal del Trabajo), current text (Orden Jurídico Nacional)
- DOF 27/12/2022, decree amending articles 76 and 78 of the Federal Labour Law (paid vacation reform)
- Income Tax Law (Ley del ISR), articles 93, 95, 96 and 152 (Orden Jurídico Nacional)
- Income Tax Regulations, article 174 (withholding on aguinaldo, PTU and vacation premium)
Written by Radif Partners
Publisher of calculators and practical guides · ISR, IMSS and Mexican labour-law benefits
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Rates 2026, checked on