Mayacaceae Kunth is an aquatic plant family that currently comprises a single genus, and four to six accepted species. Most of them are widely distributed in the Neotropics, with the exception of Mayaca baumii Gürke, which is endemic to Africa. This family still encompasses taxonomical problems involving mostly nomenclatural issues and the positioning of the family within the Poales, which remains not definite, though several efforts have being made in this direction. Besides all this, the family also suffers from limited studies with different approaches, such as embryological, palinological, phylogenetic and ecological ones. Considering all this problems, the present work make an overview of Mayacaceae to show the main problems that still surround the family and to indicate some directions for future studies. © 2015, Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botanico do Rio de Janeiro. All rights reserved.