Incorporating a business in any county be challenging, here's what you need to know to incorporate in Peru.

Peru has one of the fastest growing economics in Latin America driven by increases in private investment, modernization and development. But, starting and incorporating a business in Peru can be a little challenging as it is a bit of a bureaucratic process that can be summarized in seven steps.

Incorporating a business in Peru depends on the type of shareholders that will be used to set up the company. There are two different options: local or foreign shareholders. If the company will use local shareholders then the process is less challenging and could take a maximum of three weeks.

If the company chooses to use foreign shareholders, the process becomes more difficult since there are required steps to carry out before incorporation, which translates into greater documentation. These documents have to go through other processes in Peru causing the incorporation process to take up to three months. Prior to incorporation, you must set up legal powers of attorney that will sign all the necessary documents for the company incorporation.

The company must decide how they wish to be incorporated such as: "Sociedad Anónima Cerrada (SAC)", "Limited Liability Company" (SRL) or "Sucursales" (Branches, in English), among others.

The seven steps to incorporation in Peru are:

  1. Search for the availability of the corporate name in the Registry of Legal Entities and reserve it as the name of the company.
  2. Prepare the minutes of incorporation of the company including the bylaws of the company.
  3. Deposit the initial capital in a temporary bank account in a financial institution of the country. The customer can choose the financial entity.
  4. Process the public deed registration with the registration authority, National Superintendency of Public Registries, SUNARP. This can take up to 8 days.
  5. Submit the necessary forms and requirements in the SUNAT, the National Revenue Authorities, to obtain the tax identification number.
  6. Open the company's primary bank account.
  7. If applicable, start the immediate transfer of the shares to the final shareholders. For this, the relevant documents will be prepared with the required formalities.

It is very important to work with a local person who has intimate knowledge of the incorporation process as well as the compliance landscape in Peru. Multinational companies face an increasing number of new regulations and local experts know what documents and steps are necessary to comply with the provisions of Peruvian law.

Get help from local TMF Group experts

TMF Peru has the local knowledge to help you identify and face any challenge or opportunity for your business. Whether you are a small new business or a multinational company, we can help our clients with services to help with incorporation. Businesses require other essential services to operate, and they must follow Peruvian regulations and safety standards. TMF Group has the local expertise to offer its clients specialized financial and administrative services that are essential to any business around the world.

Learn more about  TMF Peru.

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The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.