Mexico overview FAQ

The official name of Mexico is Estados Unidos Mexicanos or United Mexican States.

Mexico is a Federal Republic. It has 31 states and the capital city (Mexico City) with a semi-autonomous status. Mexico City is the seat of the Federal executive, legislative and judicial branches.

The head of the Federal Executive branch is the President, elected by popular vote. The President serves for a six-year term and may not be reelected.

The Federal Legislative branch is divided in two chambers: The Upper House or Senate, with 128 members; and the Lower House or Chamber of Representatives, with 500 members.

The head of the Federal Judicial branch is the Supreme Court, with 11 members. Several Federal Courts of Appeals and District Courts are scattered through the country.

Each state has a Governor, a state legislature and state courts. The number of judges and representatives in state legislatures vary from state to state. The Governor of Mexico City is elected by popular vote; the Major and the legislature of Mexico City have limited powers compared to a state governor or a state legislature; there is also a local courts system. In spite of a recently expanded autonomy, Statehood of Mexico City is a matter of continuous debate.

Mexico’s area is 1,964,375 sq. km. (about 758,446 sq. mi.). The de facto official language is Spanish; Mexico is the most populous Spanish-speaking country in the world. The population in 2020 was 126,014,024. The average age is 29 years old. The urban population is 81%, while rural population is 19%.
There are 64 ethnic groups. In 2020, 7,364,645 people could speak at least one of the 62 different native languages. Further, 2,576,213 people consider themselves with African ancestry.
Mexico’s currency is the Mexican Peso.

The estimated GDP in 2019 was $1.269 trillion USD. The estimated GDP per capita in 2019 was $19,796 USD.
The United States of America is Mexico’s main trading partner; about 80 percent of Mexico’s exports are bound to the U.S.A.

U.S. based companies are the main foreign investors in Mexico, followed by businesses from The Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Japan and Switzerland. French and South Korean companies also have a significant presence.

Mexico has entered into free trade agreements with the following countries or entities: U.S.A and Canada (United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement or USMCA); Colombia; Costa Rica; Bolivia; Nicaragua; Chile; Israel; European Community; El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras; Uruguay; Japan; Peru. There are also trade agreements with Iceland, Norway, Lichtenstein and Switzerland.

Mexico is a member of the Pacific Alliance and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific-Partnership or CPTPP.

Mexico is a civil law country. The Federal Constitution dates from 1917, although it has been amended hundreds of times.
Virtually all statutes and regulations that govern and protect Intellectual Property in Mexico are federal. The main exception is image rights; Mexico City has a special statute about image rights, besides the federal regulation. Trade and financial activities are subject of federal law and regulation. The statutes governing civil contracts and obligations are mainly state laws.

Mexico is a party of the main international treaties concerning Intellectual Property: The Paris Convention, the Berne Convention, the Brussels Convention, the Union for the Protection of Vegetal Varieties Convention (UPOV), the Phonograms Convention, the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), the WIPO Copyright Treaty, the WIPO Performances and Phonographs Treaty and the Universal Copyright Convention and the Marrakech Treaty

Mexico is also a party of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), the Madrid Protocol, the Budapest Treaty, the Lisbon Arrangement for the International Protection of Appeals of Origin, the Hague Arrangement for the International Registration of Industrial Designs, the Nice Arrangement, the Vienna Arrangement, the Strasburg Arrangement and the Locarno Arrangement.

The official name of the Mexican Patent and Trademark Office (MPTO) is Instituto Mexicano de la Propiedad Industrial or Mexican Institute of Industrial Property, also known as IMPI.

The official name of the Mexican Copyright Office (MCO) is Instituto Nacional del Derecho de Autor or National Copyright Institute, also known and INDAUTOR.

Data Sources:
Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (www.inegi.gob.mx)
The World Factbook, (https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/mexico).
Aguayo, Sergio et al, El Almanaque Mexicano 2008, Mexico, Aguilar.