---
title: "Attendance control for consulting and professional services firms: how to comply with the law · Sicheca"
description: "How to keep the electronic working-time record at a consulting firm: shifts, overtime, fines and the simplest way to record."
url: https://sicheca.com/en/blog/control-de-asistencia-para-consultoras
lang: en
alternate_es: https://sicheca.com/blog/control-de-asistencia-para-consultoras.md
---
By industry · 5 min read

# Attendance control for consulting and professional services firms: how to comply with the law

Short answer

A consulting firm can meet the electronic working-time record requirement from each person's phone, wherever they are. The law requires recording each person's start and end time; it does not require a wall-mounted time clock.

## How work happens at a consulting firm

A consulting firm employs consultants, analysts and administrative staff, with work at client offices, at home and on the road. That brings three challenges for measuring working hours:

- Consultants work wherever the client is.
- Travel mixes commuting and work.
- Deliverables stretch the workday.

## What the law requires of consulting and professional services firms

Since the 2026 reform, the Federal Labor Law requires recording electronically the start and end time of each worker's workday (article 132, section XXXIV). Failing to do so is fined 250 to 5,000 UMA. The STPS will define who it applies to and what exceptions there will be. The details are in [the reform guide](https://sicheca.com/en/reforma-laboral-2027).

**Work peaks.** Overtime has a weekly cap: 9 hours at double time in 2027, with a maximum of 4 per day on no more than 4 days, and never more than 12 total hours in a day.

**Work outside the premises.** The time a person is at the company's disposal is working time, even if they are not at your facilities.

**Work from home.** Someone who works remotely also has working hours. The law does not exclude them from the record.

## How to record working time at a consulting firm

1. Register your team and agree on a reference schedule.
2. Each person records the start and end of their day from their phone.
3. Long breaks are also recorded.
4. The report shows each person's work mode.

**Example.** The consultant clocks in from their phone, whether they are at the client's office, at home or in another city.

## Calculate your overtime

## How to do the math by hand

Take a salary of $400 per day on a day shift. The ordinary hour is worth 400 ÷ 8 = $50. In 2027, with 11 overtime hours in the week, the first 9 are paid at double time (9 × $100 = $900) and the remaining 2 at triple time (2 × $150 = $300). Total: $1,200.

## Common mistakes at a consulting firm

- Keeping attendance from memory or in a notebook.
- Recording the clock-in and forgetting the clock-out.
- Covering peaks only with overtime, until exceeding the weekly cap.
- Asking staff who work offsite to stop by the office just to clock in.
- Assuming that someone who works from home has no working hours.

## What to check every day and every week

**Every day.**

- Who did not record their clock-in or clock-out.
- Records made in unexpected places.
- Departures later than planned.

**Every week.**

- Each person's overtime against the weekly cap.
- Days when someone came close to 12 hours.
- Rest days that were actually taken.

## How much an overtime hour costs: example in pesos

Suppose a daily wage of $600 on a day shift. The ordinary hourly rate is $75. One overtime hour at double time costs $150 and one at triple time, $225. If a person works 9 overtime hours in a week in 2027, that is $1,350 extra.

It is an example to show the calculation, not a reference wage for the sector.

## What changes every year, from 2026 to 2030

| Year | Maximum working hours | Double-time overtime | Triple-time overtime |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026 | 48 h | 9 h | 4 h |
| 2027 | 46 h | 9 h | 4 h |
| 2028 | 44 h | 10 h | 4 h |
| 2029 | 42 h | 11 h | 4 h |
| 2030 | 40 h | 12 h | 4 h |

Decree published in the Official Gazette of the Federation on May 1, 2026, second and fourth transitory provisions, and article 68 of the LFT. Each change applies from January 1.

## Related terms

**[Sunday premium: what it is and how it is calculated](https://sicheca.com/en/blog/prima-dominical).** The Sunday premium is an additional payment of at least 25% on the salary of an ordinary day for anyone who works on Sunday.

**[What the STPS is and what it does](https://sicheca.com/en/blog/que-es-la-stps).** The STPS is the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare.

**[What is a labor severance payment (liquidación)](https://sicheca.com/en/blog/que-es-una-liquidacion).** The liquidación is what is paid when the company ends the employment relationship without just cause.

## Frequently asked questions

### Does a consulting firm need to buy a time clock?

No. The law requires an electronic record of working time, not a device. An app on a phone complies.

### What options are there for recording working time?

An app on each person's phone, a shared tablet or a clock connected to a system. All three comply if they generate an electronic record per person, with a start and an end time.

### Can I ask for more overtime in peak season?

The weekly cap is not extended for the season. It helps to plan relief staff.

### Is staff tracked during the day?

No. The location is used only at the moment of recording.

### Can someone work more than 12 hours in a day?

No. The sum of ordinary and overtime hours cannot exceed 12 hours per day.

## Legal basis and sources

- Electronic working-time record: article 132, section XXXIV, of the LFT and fifth transitory provision of the decree.
- Overtime: articles 66 and 68 of the LFT and fourth transitory provision of the decree.
- Working hours: articles 58 to 64 of the LFT and second transitory provision of the decree.
- [Decree amending the Federal Labor Law on the reduction of the working week](https://sidof.segob.gob.mx/notas/docFuente/5786537). Official Gazette of the Federation, May 1, 2026.
- [Federal Labor Law, current text](https://www.diputados.gob.mx/LeyesBiblio/pdf/LFT.pdf). Chamber of Deputies.

**How we write this content.** The Sicheca team writes it from the official text of the law. When something is not yet defined by the authority, we say so. It is general information and does not replace the advice of a lawyer or an accountant.

## Keep reading

[ By industry **Electronic working-time record for architecture and engineering firms**](https://sicheca.com/en/blog/registro-de-jornada-para-despachos-de-arquitectura) [ By industry **Electronic working-time record for contact centers**](https://sicheca.com/en/blog/registro-de-jornada-para-centros-de-contacto) [ By industry **Time clock for marketing and advertising agencies: working-time record without devices**](https://sicheca.com/en/blog/reloj-checador-para-agencias-de-marketing-y-publicidad) [ Calculators **Overtime calculator**](https://sicheca.com/en/blog/calculadora-de-horas-extra)

[See all articles](https://sicheca.com/en/blog/)

Who publishes this blog

Sicheca is a digital time clock for recording working time from your phone. We write these guides from the official text of the law, so any business can understand what applies to it. If you want to try it, there is a waitlist.

[Join the waitlist](https://sicheca.com/en/lista-de-espera?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=articulo&utm_campaign=control-de-asistencia-para-consultoras&utm_content=final)