Number of Foreigners Coming to Peru for Work Grew 800% in the Last Decade

According to a recent article in Gestion Peru, the amount of foreigners applying to work in Peru has increased by over 800% in the last decade. With economic growth rates that were the envy of most of the world until recent years, Peru has attracted workers from all over the world particularly in other  South American countries, and Spain which is suffering from high unemployment, especially among the youth population.

Via Gestion Peru (Google translate with authors corrections for clarity)

Number of Foreigners Coming to Peru for Work Grew 800% in the Last Decade

Source: mero de extranjeros que llegó al Perú a trabajar creció casi 800% en última década | Economía | Gestion.pe (Spanish)

During the first half of 2015 6,728 foreign nationals have completed the process to work in Peru, and most come from South America and Europe, according to the National Superintendency of Migration.

The number of foreign nationals who came to Peru to work temporarily or as a resident increased by 793% between 2004 and 2014, the National Superintendency of Migration reported.

They added that in 2004 they approved a work visa or change in immigration status to worker for 1,463 foreign nationals, during 2014 the same procedure was approved for 13,065 people of different nationalities who applied to stay and work in Peru .

“Peru has become very important for citizens around the world who seek to develop their skills and talents in a serious country with future destiny. This work not only helps them thrive, but also contributes to our own development, “said the National Superintendent of Immigration, Boris Potozén.

Compared to 2015 figures, it shows that during the first half of this year 6,728 foreigners have made the process to work in Peru, 5,621 of which they requested as a resident and another 1,107 as temporary workers.

Of this total, the majority come from countries in South America (4,570) and Europe (1,254) workers. Another 478 came from North America, 108 from Central America, 267 from Asia, 41 from Oceania and 10 from Africa.

Colombia is the country of origin of most of the workers who have come during the first half to Peru with 1,713. Followed by Spain with 757, Argentina 638, Chile with 556, Ecuador with 515, Brazil with 412, 349 from Venezuela and from the United States 330, among others.

“This wave of migration must be accompanied by an improvement and streamlining of services and procedures for Migration. That is why we declare the Superintendency to be in the process of modernization. Today we can say that the procedures for foreigners who come to work in Peru are much simpler, ” added Potozén.

Most foreign workers who came to Peru for the first six months of 2015 are engineers (8,045) followed by employees in different fields (5,504), business managers (1,748), managers (966), technical (800), economists (612), businessmen (557) Drivers (515), counters (449), among others.

As the Peruvian economy slows, many are finding that the high cost of Lima is no longer the best option. (See link below)

Up until now there has been a great demand for engineers particularly in the mining sector, but with falling commodity prices, and recently delayed mining projects also due to protests, we may see a slowdown in this trend going ahead. However, there is still a need for skilled workers in the technology fields.

Anecdotally, the processes at Migraciones are becoming more streamlined with online appointments seeming to expedite things and permit shorter waiting times. Now instead of DMV times five, it’s only DMV times two…

©2015 Ben Gangloff

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