New law to overhaul work visas

IMPACT – MEDIUM

What is the change? Peru has enacted a new Aliens Act that will overhaul work visas.

What does the change mean? The new law creates categories of work visas and imposes new terms for their duration of validity.

• Implementation time frame: The law has been published, but will take effect 90 days after publication of accompanying regulations.
• Visas/permits affected: Designated Worker Visa, Worker Visa, Short Stay Work Visa, Temporary Worker Resident Visa, etc.
• Who is affected: Employers hiring or transferring workers to Peru.
• Business impact: The impact will be clearer after the implementing regulations are published. However, immigration authorities have said that they plan to issue an amendment to administrative procedures that should eliminate some unnecessary procedures and thus simplify the process.
• Next steps: The law has not taken effect yet and will only come into force after new regulations are published.

Background: The main changes enacted in the new Aliens Act (Legislative Decree No. 1236) are:

• Designated Worker Visas (WD1) will be granted for 30 days and cannot be extended.
• Worker Visas (WRA) may be temporary (up to 365 days), provisional (two years) or permanent.
• Short Stay Work Visas will be granted only as nonrenewable visas for a maximum period of 30 days.
• Temporary Worker Resident Visas may be issued to intracompany transferees for stays of up to two years and cannot be renewed.
• Employers and employees are subject to sanctions for violating the terms of the law.

BAL Analysis: The law sets out general work visa categories and does not specify details about application procedures or other changes. Once the regulations are issued, these implementation details will be clearer. BAL will continue to report on these changes as they become available.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group and our network provider located in Peru. For additional information, please contact your BAL attorney.

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