Accounting for Restaurants in Puerto Vallarta

Restaurants in Mexico owe IVA on alcoholic beverages at 16% but zero-rate food — and tip accounting, high staff turnover, and cash sales create compliance headaches that sink restaurants that ignore them.

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Who This Is For

  • Restaurant owners in Puerto Vallarta — beachfront, downtown, or Zona Romántica
  • Bar and nightclub operators with high-volume alcohol sales and tip income
  • Catering companies and event food service businesses
  • Foreign-owned restaurants needing bilingual accounting and SAT compliance
  • Restaurant owners who have been operating informally and need to formalize

What's Included

  • Daily and weekly sales reconciliation by payment type (cash, card, OTA, delivery)
  • Food and beverage cost tracking and cost-of-goods-sold reporting
  • IVA on food (0%) vs. alcohol and beverages (16%) — proper split accounting
  • Tip (propina) accounting — voluntary service charge vs. discretionary tip
  • Payroll for kitchen, wait staff, and management with CFDI nómina
  • IMSS registration and monthly payments for all restaurant employees
  • Monthly IVA and ISR declarations
  • Monthly P&L by revenue category for owner review

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Why AccountingPV

Accounting experts who know Puerto Vallarta

IVA on Food vs. Alcohol Is Not Simple

Food and non-alcoholic beverages are zero-rated for IVA, but alcoholic drinks are taxed at 16%. Restaurants that charge a single "food and drinks" price without proper IVA allocation are filing incorrectly and potentially under-remitting IVA. We split and track both rates correctly from day one.

Tip Accounting Done Right

Mandatory service charges (propina incluida) are income to the employer and must be reported and taxed. Voluntary tips distributed to staff are income to the employee and should be reported through payroll. Mishandling tips is one of the most common restaurant audit triggers in Mexico.

High Staff Turnover Means Ongoing IMSS Management

Restaurants routinely hire and release workers by season, weekend, or event. Every hire must be IMSS-registered before their first shift. We handle enrollments, departures, and low-season staff reductions to keep your labor compliance current.

Food Cost Visibility Every Month

We track food and beverage cost of goods sold as a percentage of revenue every month. Most restaurants discover their true food cost is 5 to 10 points higher than they estimated. This visibility is the foundation of restaurant profitability management.

FAQ

Common questions

It depends on what you sell. Food and non-alcoholic beverages sold in restaurants are subject to 0% IVA (tasa cero). Alcoholic beverages are subject to 16% IVA. If your menu includes both, you must split your sales by category and apply the correct IVA rate to each. Single-rate billing for mixed menus is a common compliance error.

If you include a mandatory propina on every bill, it is income to the business and must be declared as revenue, subject to ISR and potentially IVA. If the propina is then paid out to staff, it must be run through payroll with CFDI nómina. We structure this correctly so both the business and staff are properly covered.

Delivery platforms withhold and remit IVA on the platform commission they charge you. However, the IVA on the food order itself is your obligation to declare. We reconcile each platform's payment statements and ensure your total IVA position is correct.

Every employee must be registered with IMSS before their first day of work using the IDSE online portal. We handle registrations, integrated daily wage calculations, and monthly OBAR payments. We also manage the low-season enrollment reductions and high-season adds that most restaurants need.

Industry benchmarks for food cost vary by restaurant type: fast-casual typically targets 25-30%, full-service restaurants 28-35%, and high-end properties may run higher due to imported ingredients. We report your actual food cost monthly so you can compare against your targets and take action.

Staff meals are a deductible expense if documented and provided as part of the employment relationship. They should be reflected in the employment contract or company policies and recorded in your accounts. We track this properly to capture the deduction without creating audit risk.

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Related services & resources

Service Bookkeeping Services Monthly bookkeeping for your restaurant. Service Payroll Services Payroll and IMSS for restaurant staff. Calculator IVA Calculator Calculate IVA on food and beverage sales. Calculator Payroll Calculator Estimate total labor cost per employee. Resource Payroll Requirements in Mexico IMSS and payroll rules for restaurant owners. Landing Hotel & Boutique Hotel Accounting Accounting for hotels in Puerto Vallarta.

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