What Changes for Foreigners When Peru’s New President Takes Office on July 28

Peru · Immigration

Keiko Fujimori is inaugurated on Peru’s Independence Day, July 28, but immigration rules carry over unchanged; the digital-nomad permit still cannot be filed, and naturalisation now requires five years’ residence, up from two.

Peru swears in a new president on July 28, and for foreigners the honest headline is continuity: nothing at the border changes on day one. Here is what actually shifts — and, more importantly, what does not.

The handover, in brief

President-elect Keiko Fujimori, who collected her credentials on July 15, is inaugurated on July 28, Peru’s Independence Day. She becomes the first woman elected to the office by direct vote.

For residents and visitors, the transition is administrative. Immigration rules, visa categories and entry requirements carry over unchanged into the new government.

In many countries, a change of president can signal immediate shifts in border policy or enforcement priorities. Peru’s legal framework is different: immigration law is set by statute and decree, not by the president’s personal authority alone.

That means the rules on the books stay in place until a formal legal process changes them. The inauguration itself does not trigger any automatic revision of visa rules, residency requirements, or entry procedures.

Foreigners who hold valid tourist stamps, residency cards, or pending applications can expect those to be honoured without interruption.

What does not change on day one

Nothing at the border shifts when the new president takes office. Tourist entry, residency permits and the paperwork foreigners already hold continue exactly as before.

The digital-nomad permit created in law still cannot be filed, because the enabling regulation has never been issued. Remote workers continue to rely on tourist stays or the independent-worker route.

This gap between a law and its regulation is a common feature of Peruvian bureaucracy. Congress can pass a law creating a new permit category, but until the executive branch publishes the detailed regulation—the “reglamento”—the permit exists only on paper.

The regulation spells out the practical steps: which forms to use, what documents to submit, how much it costs, and which office processes it. Without that, immigration officers have no legal instrument to accept an application.

For digital nomads, this means the status quo holds until the new administration decides whether to prioritise issuing that regulation.

The rules already in force

Two changes that predate the handover still stand. Naturalisation now requires five years of residence, up from two under a 2024 law, lengthening the path to a Peruvian passport.

And the Foreign Ministry’s rewrite of the national migration policy, a two-year process launched in mid-2026, is the framework that could eventually reshape visa categories, including the stalled nomad permit.

The shift from two to five years for naturalisation is significant for long-term residents who had been planning on a faster route to citizenship. It means anyone who arrived expecting to apply for a Peruvian passport after two years must now wait considerably longer.

This change was already in force before the election and is not affected by the inauguration. The migration-policy rewrite is a broader, slower-moving project.

It involves reviewing the entire architecture of who can enter, stay, and work in Peru, and it typically includes consultations across multiple ministries. Its outcome will set the direction for years to come, but it is not something that produces overnight changes.

What to watch after July 28

The signals that matter are the incoming interior and migration appointments, and whether the new government finally issues the regulation that would make the nomad permit usable. Both would take time.

Any change to residency or nomad rules would come through that policy rewrite, not the inauguration itself. For now, the guidance is to hold your current status and watch the appointments.

The interior minister oversees the national police and, crucially, the immigration superintendency, Migraciones. The person appointed to lead Migraciones will signal the new administration’s posture toward foreigners—whether it leans toward facilitation, restriction, or simply maintaining the current course.

These appointments are worth watching because they shape enforcement tone, processing speed, and the priority given to long-stalled regulations. Will the new government see the nomad permit as an economic opportunity or a low-priority item?

The answer will become clearer once the key officials are named and begin making public statements.

What foreigners should do

If you live in or plan to move to Peru, no action is needed around the inauguration. Keep your residency or tourist status current, and track official announcements from Migraciones for any new regulation.

None of this is legal advice, and rules can change with the new administration. Confirm your situation with Migraciones or a Peruvian immigration lawyer if you are unsure.

Staying informed through official channels is the most reliable strategy. Migraciones publishes updates on its website and social media accounts, and those are the first places where a new regulation or procedural change would appear.

In the meantime, the safest course is to avoid making major immigration decisions based on speculation about what the new government might do. The legal reality on July 28 is the same as it was on July 27, and that continuity is the most important thing for foreigners to understand.

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