🇲🇽
Mexico · National Transplant Center
Donate in Mexico
The Mexican public system is led by CENATRA. If you want to become a living donor or register as a post-mortem donor, this is the official path
17,465 people are waiting for a transplant in Mexico (April 2026). The national donation rate stands at 17.0 pmp (2024), with slow but steady growth
Key figures for Mexico
Waiting list
17,465
recipients on the active list (April 2026, CENATRA)
Donation rate
17.0 pmp
donors per million population (2024, BEI-CENATRA Vol IX)
IMSS 2024
1,436
kidney transplants (59% living donor, 41% deceased)
Family refusal
~30%
in brain death (Nuevo León 2024; national estimate 22%)
Sources: BEI-CENATRA Vol IX · Rev Mex Traspl 2024 · SaludNL 2024
The public system
How donation works in Mexico
Governing body
The National Transplant Center (CENATRA) is the decentralized body of the federal Secretariat of Health that coordinates the National Transplant Subsystem. The General Health Law (Title XIV) and its Regulations on Transplants form the legal framework. The system is based on express consent: the donor must record their wishes.
The CURP does not automatically make anyone a donor. Registration is a voluntary act through CENATRA's official platform.
How to register as a donor
- 1
Go to donavida-cenatra.atdt.gob.mx or dv.cenatra.salud.gob.mx
- 2
Complete the form with your CURP, name, age, postal code, and contact information
- 3
Once complete, download your official Voluntary Donor Card
- 4
Share your decision with your family — family refusal is the main barrier (~30%)
Living donation
If you want to donate a kidney or part of your liver
Mexico allows living donation with a detailed regulatory framework. Learn the requirements before starting the process
Donor requirements
- Over 18 years old, full legal capacity
- Clinical compatibility with the recipient
- Approval from the hospital's Bioethics Committee
- Relationship up to 4th degree by blood or 2nd degree by marriage, spouse, or domestic partner
- Unrelated: requires COFEPRIS authorization
Coverage and protection
- IMSS, ISSSTE, and SSA cover the evaluation, surgery, and complete follow-up
- Federal Labor Law Art. 132.XVI: paid leave for the period determined by the physician (minimum 30 days for kidney)
- Economic compensation is prohibited — organ trafficking is criminalized
- IMSS handles ~50% of the national transplant activity
Main centers
Hospitals with established transplant programs in Mexico. This is not an exhaustive list — check with your local hospital if they have a donation program
Hospital General de México "Dr. Eduardo Liceaga"
Mexico City · First kidney transplant in 1990
Hospital de Especialidades CMN Siglo XXI — IMSS
Mexico City · Mexico's first kidney transplant was performed here (1963); ~50% of national IMSS activity
Hospital Civil de Guadalajara "Fray Antonio Alcalde"
Jalisco · Reference center in western Mexico
UMAE Hospital de Especialidades "Dr. Antonio Fraga Mouret" — IMSS La Raza
Mexico City · Established kidney transplant program
Hospital Universitario "Dr. José Eleuterio González" — UANL
Monterrey · Academic reference center in the northeast
Notable case
Francia Raisa → Selena Gómez
"I'm very aware some of my fans noticed I was laying low this summer and questioning why I wasn't promoting my new music. I found out I needed to get a kidney transplant due to my Lupus and was recovering" — Selena Gómez, September 2017
Francia Raisa, a Mexican-American actress born in Los Angeles to Mexican parents, donated a kidney to her friend Selena Gómez in 2017. It is the most globally recognized case of living kidney donation between people of Latino origin. It raised awareness about lupus and living donation in the Hispanic communities of Mexico and the United States
Official Mexican campaign
México Unido por la Donación y Trasplantes — CENATRA 2024
"Organs are not buried or cremated; they are transplanted and give life" — Dra. Rosa Erro Aboytia, Director General of CENATRA
View official CENATRA materials →Take the first step
Registration is free, voluntary, and takes less than 5 minutes. You can also explore the stories of people who have gone through the process
Verified sources
This page summarizes public information from Mexico's National Transplant Center. Medical and legal decisions are yours and your healthcare team's