Cruise Fee Transparency Demanded in Quintana Roo

Cancún, Mexico — Uncertainty is growing among the business sector in Quintana Roo due to the lack of official information regarding the use of the $5 fee applied to each cruise passenger disembarking at the state’s ports.

The president of Coparmex Chetumal, Josué Osmany Palomo, warned that there is no public clarity on the management of the funds or the projects to which they will be allocated. He added that since February, Coparmex has formally requested to join the committee of the trust responsible for administering these revenues.

However, he stated that the state government has denied access to key information, including the operating rules and the composition of the committee, under the argument that they are reserved data. “They have denied us the information without solid legal arguments,” affirmed the leader. He recalled that the authorities themselves had announced that the business sector would be invited to participate in monitoring the management of the funds.

The president of Coparmex noted that the organization seeks to guarantee transparency because it is an income generated directly by tourism activity, and therefore should be managed with clear accountability mechanisms. He also recalled that the situation is similar to what occurred when they requested to join the tourism promotion trust.

Although Palomo avoided labeling the situation as an act of corruption, he emphasized that the current opacity prevents knowing the destination of the collected money and whether it is being applied appropriately. Coparmex will insist that the state government convene working tables and make public the information of the trust, especially the amount collected to date and the projects that will be funded. For now, the use of the $5 fee per cruise passenger continues without official explanation.

As reported by REPORTUR.mx, Bernardo Cueto, Secretary of Tourism of Quintana Roo, recently stated that the state already has a contingency fund with 140 million Mexican pesos (approximately $7.5 million), which is 30% of the collection from the cruise passenger tax.