Finding a job and working legally in Peru

Peru is a beautiful country, the economy is booming, employment opportunities are everywhere, and living expenses are low - easy-peasy, right? At least that’s the impression some articles about emigrating to Peru and working here like to give.

Sorry to burst the bubble, but reality is usually more complex.

Sorry to burst the bubble, the reality unfortunately is anything like this, 

Yes, Peru is an amazing country with many opportunities. However, even before Covid, Peru was never an ideal immigration destination for people seeking stable employment with a strong income, especially if they need to support a family. Over the years there have been improvements, and besides Latin Americans, more North Americans, Europeans, and Asians are coming to work in Peru. Still, uncertainties remain, and Peru’s economic and political future is not always predictable.

Table of Contents

• Where are the jobs in Peru
• Some legal background when looking for a job in Peru
• How to find work in Peru
• What jobs are in demand in Peru
• Applying for a job in Peru
• Work contract

Where in Peru are the jobs

If you are considering a permanent move to Peru, there are a few realities to keep in mind.

Working in Peru often means longer hours, lower pay, and fewer benefits than you may be used to.

Living costs in smaller cities and rural areas are certainly lower than in North America or Europe. However, jobs for foreigners are scarce (with some exceptions in the mining sector), wages are often very low, and infrastructure such as schools, hospitals, shopping options, and cultural offerings may be limited.

Most people who need to earn a living as employees head to larger cities or tourist hubs like Cusco, Arequipa, Trujillo, Chiclayo, or especially Lima. With over 10 million inhabitants, Lima is Peru’s financial, economic, and cultural center.

While infrastructure in these cities can compare well in parts with North America or Europe, wages remain significantly lower. At the same time, living costs - particularly in safe and comfortable neighborhoods - can easily reach first-world levels.

Legal background when looking for a job in Peru

Even if you are highly qualified and speak Spanish (which is a major advantage), finding employment is rarely easy.

Tourists are not allowed to work or receive payment for professional activities in Peru. To work legally, you need a work visa (or another resident visa allowing you to work, such as a family visa). The most common and successful route is being hired by a Peruvian company that sponsors your visa.

However, regulations for employing foreigners are strict. By law, a Peruvian company may employ only up to 20% foreign staff, and these employees together may not receive more than 30% of the company’s total payroll. Companies must also fully disclose financial and payroll information to SUNAT and Migraciones.

Because of this, many employers hesitate to hire foreigners without residency and work permission. They can usually find qualified Peruvians willing to work for lower salaries and with less administrative hassle. 

Another option is to work in Peru as an independent servive provider. Since 2017, the country offers a “trabajador independiente” (independent worker visa). This allows freelancers to work legally, but you must provide services to a Peruvian company under a service contract valid for at least 12 months. You find more info in our Work Visa article.

Peruvian Work Visa

Peruvian Visa Types

Foreigners who have a valid and legally signed work contract with a Peruvian company that was approved by the Peruvian Labor Ministry or who have a...

Another route is establishing a Peruvian company and employing yourself as general manager. This requires a Peruvian partner holding a small share. Professional legal advice is strongly recommended.

How to find work in Peru

Starting your job search while still in your home country is the safest approach. It offers financial security and allows you to arrive with a visa and income from day one.

Finding work in Peru from abroad

The ideal scenario is working for a foreign company that transfers or hires you for a role in Peru. Salaries and benefits are often closer to home-country standards and may include relocation support, housing, insurance, or school fees.

These opportunities are rare and usually reserved for senior positions or government assignments.

So, to explore the Peruvian job market and find work, use professional networks LinkedIn and job portals such as Indeed Peru, CompuTrabajo Peru, Addeco Peru, Laborum Peru, Trabajando Peru, Jobomas Peru, Devex, Aptitus, Bolsa Laboral Lima.

Another option is to check out international companies with Peruvian branches, which often list openings on their websites. And the Chamber of Commerce of your home country in Peru can also have useful contacts. 

Lst but not least, the hospitality and tourism sectors have largely recovered and can offer opportunities for qualified candidates.

Finding work when already in Peru

Most people planning to move to and to work in Peru, visit the country as a tourist and then look for a job locally. As already stated above, it’s not an easy undertaking to just turn up here in Peru and find a job within the few months you have when visiting the country. Therefore, it is highly recommended to have enough funds to support yourself for an extended period while job hunting. Just in case you can’t secure a job, have a return ticket on hand or put a certain amount of money aside to always being able to buy a flight ticket back home.

A good way to start your job search in Peru is by connecting. Lots of jobs aren’t advertised online or in newspapers, but through word to mouth. So, knowing people that know the right people and letting people know about yourself is still very important in the country.

The expat community in Peru, easily found with a simple online search or on social media, is very welcoming and helpful; and you might even find some job offers on their (web) pages.

Lots of jobs are still not advertised online, but in the local newspaper. Each Sunday, El Comercio, Peru’s oldest and largest daily, publishes a big job market in the supplement Aptitus. As already mentioned above, Aptitus is as well available online, but not all job offers in the print version are available online.

Online job portals such as Indeed Peru, CompuTrabajo Peru, Addeco Peru, Laborum Peru, Trabajando Peru, Jobomas Peru, Aptitus, Bolsa Laboral Lima, etc. might be helpful to locate job openings as getting in contact with companies operating in your field. Rather pay them a visit, as e-mails are often ignored.

What jobs are in demand in Peru?

That’s a hard question to answer. Peru’s economy was growing and broadening before Covid, and there was a demand in a variety of areas. The country is slwoly recovering and improving, but how the future will look, nobody really knows.

Anyway, be aware that most administrative positions and lower level jobs are usually filled with locals that will work for a fraction of the payment you consider fair. If you have special qualifications, such as speaking a foreign language fluently, which is necessary or useful for the company, you can get lucky.

Even though in demand, professionals in the medical area and legal field, as well as experts in the wide field of architecture, for example, have to have their qualifications validated and certifications and degrees recognized. A cost-intensive and time-consuming and not always successful endeavor.

In the growing mining, hydro energy and oil-producing and processing fields, locals are usually trained to do the lower-level jobs while foreign experts are posted from abroad and fill the key positions. If you apply locally, wages are ridiculously low compared to other countries, the work usually is in very remote locations and working as well as living conditions might not be what you are used to.

Before Covid and the political unrest, the hospitality and tourism sector was booming and is improving again. So, professionals in these areas, but as well newcomers with other skill sets, have good chances of finding work in Peru.

High in demand are all sorts of qualified technical professionals, especially in the engineering and IT area. Expect wages and benefits to be less than you are used to.

Over the past years, quite a few call centers (sales, customer service and support) popped up in Lima and a few other Peruvian cities. They are always looking for foreigners with foreign language skills, but not always sponsor a work visa and rather letting you work illegally and without a contract.

Always sought after are foreign language teachers, especially English tutors. In every city in Peru, there are language institutes hiring native English speakers with or without qualifications year-round. But be aware that these rarely help with your work visa. You most certainly work illegally without a contract, legal backing, health insurance, and other benefits.

Most (international) schools and universities, however, are eager to find qualified English (or other language) teachers. They most often pay their foreign employees a decent wage and sponsor a work visa. Be prepared to prove your qualifications with a TEFL or TESOL certificate, for example, or other related diplomas or degrees. The school year in Peru starts at the beginning of March; so the best time to apply for a job is between December and February, while you might get lucky applying midterm (in June or July) as well.

Even though the availability, reliability and speed of the internet isn’t always ideal, working remotely surely can earn you enough money to live in Peru (probably even more than working for a company). And the good news: in November 2023, a new Foreigner Law was published introducing a resident visa for digital nomads, remote workers and freelancers in Peru for the first time and giving remote workers a chance to reside in Peru while working for a foreign company.

However, as of today (March 2025), the corresponding administrative regulations still haven’t been published, But we hope that this will happen soon. You find more information in our article "Peruvian Digital Nomad Visa".

Peruvian Digital Nomad Visa

Peruvian Visa Types

On November 14, 2023, a modification of the Foreigner Law, Decreto Legislativo 1582, was published, introducing a resident visa for digital nomads,...

Applying for a job in Peru

Usually the job offer states how and where you can apply. So, as everywhere in the world, just go for it, if you like the job and meet the requirements.

To prove your professional competence and occupational qualifications it is advisable to bring at least your highest degree or title with you that needs an Apostille (or have to be legalized by a Peruvian consulate and later by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Lima) and then have to be translated by an official translator. Other work related certificates, diplomas, etc. might be helpful as well, but don't need an Apostille.

If you are still abroad, you might be at a disadvantage, but modern technology reached Peru as well, so applying via e-mail is very common and Skype, Zoom, etc. interviews aren’t unheard of.

Quite a few companies ask for a police clearance certificate, national and/or international. Find more info on how to get one when you are already living in Peru in our article "Police Clearance Certificate and Criminal Background Check in Peru".

Peruvian Police Clearance Certificate and Criminal Background Check

Legal Stuff

Foreigners who live or have lived in Peru, as well as Peruvians, are often required to present a police clearance certificate or criminal backgroun...

It is not uncommon that companies in Peru have an “application day”. So, if you are interested in a job this company offers, you and everyone else wanting this job are asked to come with your application documents to an office or even a conference room in a hotel at a set date to apply. Be prepared to find long lines with lots of people wanting to apply as well in front of you.

Even though most job offers indicate to send your application and CV by e-mail, be prepared to never hear from them again. You probably just assume they are not interested in you, but that might not be the only reason possible. Many times e-mails are just ignored, strangely didn't reach the recipient, and are rarely answered. So, if you want to make sure that the one in charge got your application, call and confirm that he or she received your e-mail.

If you are finally invited for an interview with the person in charge, if applicable, address your immigration status and the need for a work visa at one point.

Work contract

You got lucky and are offered a work contract? Congratulations!

Before (!!!) signing your work contract (or any other legally binding document) in Peru when being in the country as a tourist, you have to get a permission to sign contracts (permiso para firmar contratos); otherwise the contract is void and won’t be accepted by the Labor Ministry for approval. Since January 2018, you can apply for the permit online. Our article "Permit to sign contracts" explains in detail how to apply for it.

Permit to sign contracts in Peru

Legal Stuff

Foreign nationals who are in Peru as tourists or hold another temporary immigration status are not allowed to sign legally binding documents unless...

If you, however, entered Peru as a business traveler, you do not need the permit to sign contracts as it's "included" in your business status.

And, in case you sign a work contract with a Peruvian company while still being abroad, make sure to have it legalized by the Peruvian consulate before setting out for Peru. If the contract isn’t in Spanish, it has to be translated by an official translator in Peru.

You have managed the first step on your way to live and work legally in Peru. Now, the red tape follows; the goal: receiving a work visa.

Peruvian Work Visa

Peruvian Visa Types

Foreigners who have a valid and legally signed work contract with a Peruvian company that was approved by the Peruvian Labor Ministry or who have a...

Note: According to Peruvian law, you may not actually start working until your work visa is approved.