Peru Retirement Visa | An Incomplete Guide

What is retirement visa?

Retirement visas are a type of passive income visa that has been popular worldwide since the 1980s. Typically, they are issued to retirees who have sufficient retirement funds or stable income.

In general, global retirement visas have the following characteristics:

1. Applicant Qualifications: Typically, retirement visas require applicants to be retirees, reach a certain age, or have retirement funds.

2. Restrictions on Employment: Visa holders are usually not allowed to work locally.

3. Path to Permanent Residency: After residing in the destination country for a certain period, retirement visa holders can often apply for permanent residency or even citizenship.

If you’re interested in retirement visas or passive income visas, you might want to read our informative article: ‘Global Passive Income Visa | An Incomplete Guide‘.

Peru Retirement Visa:

Peru offers a permanent retirement visa for eligible retirees, which primarily requires the applicant to have a lifelong, stable income source from outside Peru: your monthly income must not be less than $1000.

Your income could be from a pension or other lifelong passive income, but it must not be from temporary sources like rental income, investment returns, or active income such as employment.

Additionally, if you apply for the retirement visa program with dependents, the primary applicant’s monthly income requirement increases by $500 for each additional dependent.

During the application process, Peruvian visa officers may require a slightly higher income, and you must prove and commit to regularly transferring your income to Peru.

Besides the financial requirements, you must also meet other basic criteria, such as being in good health, purchasing health insurance that covers Peru, and committing not to work locally.

Application Process:

You can choose to apply for the Peruvian retirement permanent residence either online or in person at a Peruvian consulate.

For online applications, you need to visit the website of the Peruvian immigration authority, click on “Cambio de Calidad Migratoria”, then on “Rentista Residente”, register an account, fill out the application form, upload the required documents, and submit your application.

For in-person applications, you need to make an appointment with the Peruvian consulate, bring all the required documents at the scheduled time and place, fill out the application form, and submit your application.

Required documents for this program include:

Identity documents: All primary and dependent applicants must provide a passport valid for more than six months, passport-sized photos, birth certificates, marriage certificates, or other documents proving the relationship between primary and dependent applicants.

Criminal record certificate: All adult applicants must provide a criminal record certificate issued by law enforcement authorities in any region where they have lived for more than six months in the past five years.

Application form: You need to fill out an application form, a letter expressing your desire to live in Peru, and a letter committing to transfer a monthly income of over $1000 to Peru.

Proof of income: You need to prove that you have sufficient pension income and commit to transferring the proven pension amount to a Peruvian bank account each month.

Health insurance proof: You need to purchase a comprehensive health insurance policy valid in Peru for each primary and dependent applicant annually.

All documents must be notarized, and non-Spanish documents must be translated into Spanish.

Dependents:

For the Peruvian retirement visa, the primary applicant’s spouse and minor children can also obtain visas as dependents.

Visa Validity:

The Peruvian retirement visa is valid for life, but visa holders are required to submit an annual report to the Peruvian immigration authorities proving their actual residence in the country.

If you are absent from the country for more than six months in a calendar year, your retirement visa may be revoked.

Currently, foreigners who have legally resided in Peru for two years and can demonstrate sufficient proficiency in Spanish and knowledge of Peruvian culture are eligible to apply for Peruvian citizenship.

If you have lived in Peru for three years and do not wish to become a citizen, you can apply for an immigration visa similar to a permanent residency card. This immigration visa is renewable every five years and can essentially be held indefinitely.

Even as a permanent resident, if you leave the country continuously for more than 365 days at a time, your permanent residency card may be revoked.