Employment contract drafting for Peru

Foreign companies often arrive in Peru with a global contract template or offer letter and an expectation that it can simply be translated. It rarely can. Peruvian law presumes that every employment relationship is of indefinite duration, treats fixed terms as exceptions that must be justified, and gives employees protections that override contrary clauses.

The business problem

A contract for an indefinite term can be made verbally or in writing. Fixed-term contracts, by contrast, must be in writing, state their duration and the objective cause that justifies the temporary hire, and be filed with the labor authority within 15 calendar days of signature. There are nine fixed-term modalities, each with its own purpose and maximum duration, and their combined length cannot exceed five years. If an employee keeps working after the term ends, or the contract is used for permanent work, it can be recharacterized as indefinite, with the employee gaining protection against dismissal.

Other clauses need adaptation too. The probationary period is three months as a rule, extendable in writing only for qualified, trusted or management staff. Restrictive covenants, bonus plans, mobility clauses and remote work arrangements all have to fit Peruvian rules. Our guide to employment contracts in Peru explains the framework; our notes on fixed-term contracts and on the probationary period go into the two points that most often cause problems.

How we approach it

We start from the roles, not the template. For each position we ask whether the need is permanent or temporary, whether it involves management or trust, and whether it will be performed on site, remotely or in a hybrid format. We then recommend the contract type and document the objective cause for any fixed term in terms an inspector would accept.

Next we review the group’s standard clauses and explain which apply in Peru as written, which need adjustment and which should be dropped. We draft the contracts in Spanish, with English working translations, and prepare a filing checklist. Where the company already has staff, we review existing contracts and flag those at risk of recharacterization, so that finance can see the exposure.

What the engagement includes, and its limits

The service covers templates, individual contracts for senior hires, fixed-term contract libraries, contract review and a renewal control. For companies setting up in Peru for the first time, it forms part of our employment setup service.

We do not recruit, run background checks or act as the employer. Immigration permits for foreign nationals are handled with our foreign employees service. A well-drafted contract reduces risk but does not replace the way the relationship is managed in practice: if the facts contradict the document, the facts prevail.

Coordination with the parent company, finance and payroll

Contracts determine the pay base for statutory benefits, the treatment of bonuses and allowances, and the cost of an eventual exit. We flag those effects for finance and share the final terms with whoever runs payroll, so that each contract is registered and paid as drafted. For the regional office, a clause guide explains in English which group policies have been adapted and why.

Getting started

Send us the global template, the roles to be filled and the expected start dates. We will propose the contract types and a drafting timetable.