• Description
  • Entry/Exit Requirements
  • Economy
  • climate

Perú is a developing country with an expanding tourism sector. A wide variety of tourist facilities and services is available, with quality varying according to price and location.

A valid passport is required to enter and depart Peru. Tourists must also provide evidence of return or onward travel. Visit the Embassy of Peru Website for the most current visa information. Peru does not require any immunizations for entry, although it recommends vaccination against Yellow Fever.

The U.S. Department of State is unaware of any HIV/AIDS entry restrictions for visitors to or foreign residents of Argentina.

Information about dual nationality or the prevention of international child abduction can be found on our website. For further information about customs regulations, please read our Customs Information sheet.

The U.S. Department of State is unaware of any HIV/AIDS entry restrictions for visitors to or foreign residents of Peru.

The economy of Peru is the 45th largest in the world, Peru is an emerging, market-oriented economy characterized by a high level of foreign trade and a high level of inequality, as its economy depends on commodity exports, it's centralized in Lima and benefits a small percentage of the population. In 2010 Peru's per capita income (PPP) is bordering $10,000. Peru has a Human Development Index score of 0.806; 34.8% of its total population is poor, including 11.2% that is extremely poor. Poverty has steadily decreased since 2004, when nearly half the country's population was under the poverty line.

Historically, the country's economic performance has been tied to exports, which provide hard currency to finance imports and external debt payments. Peru's main exports are copper, gold, zinc, textiles, and fish meal; its major trade partners are the United States, China, Brazil, and Chile. Although exports have provided substantial revenue, self-sustained growth and a more egalitarian distribution of income have proven elusive.

Services account for 53% of Peruvian gross domestic product, followed by manufacturing (22.3%), extractive industries (15%), and taxes (9.7%). Recent economic growth has been fueled by macroeconomic stability, improved terms of trade, and rising investment and consumption. Trade is expected to increase further after the implementation of a free trade agreement with the United States signed on April 12, 2006. Inflation in 2006 was the lowest in Latin America at only 1.8%, but increased in 2007 as oil and commodity prices rose; in the first half of 2008, it had reached about 5.5%. The unemployment rate had increased to 8.8% by January 2009; the current average wage in the country is 1,047 nuevos soles.

Peruvian economic policy has varied widely over the past decades. The 1968–1975 government of Juan Velasco Alvarado introduced radical reforms, which included agrarian reform, the expropriation of foreign companies, the introduction of an economic planning system, and the creation of a large state-owned sector. In 1990 the neoliberal government of Alberto Fujimori ended price controls, protectionism, restrictions on foreign direct investment, and most state ownership of companies. Reforms have permitted an economic growth since 1993, except for a slump after the 1997 Asian financial crisis. In 2007, the Peruvian economy experienced a growth rate of 9%, the largest in Latin America, and this repeated in 2008 with a 9.8% rate; in 2006 and 2007, the Lima Stock Exchange grew by 185.24% and 168.3%, respectively. However, with the current global crisis, growth for 2009 is estimated to close at 1.5% for the year.

The neoliberal policies enacted by Fujimori, were continued by presidents Alejandro Toledo and Alan Garcia. This has increased the inequality in the country. While the poverty of Lima is 18.5% in most Andean regions it goes up from 65% to 86%, while the unemployment rate is 6.5% but only 42% are employed formally.

The climate of Peru is very diverse, with a large variety of climates and microclimates, including 28 of the 32 world climates. Such a diversity is chiefly conditioned by the presence of the Andes mountains and the cold Humboldt Current.

In general, the climate on the coast is subtropical with very little rainfall. The Andes mountains observe a cool-to-cold climate with rainy summers and very dry winters (Köppen climate classification). The eastern lowlands present an Equatorial climate with hot weather and rain distributed all year long.