Leaving Peru and Income Tax

Published : October 31 2006

By Ricardo Guevara Bringas

Foreign residents who have been residing in Peru can be in for a rude surprise when they try to leave the country if they do not do consider some of the legal requirements specific to expat residents. Foreigners who obtained any kind of income during their stay in Peru are obliged to file certain tax forms before leaving Peru. Indeed, they will be asked to provide the migratory authorities with one of the forms below:

1.1) Formulario virtual 1692. Foreigners must ask their employers or clients to provide them with a certificado de rentas y retenciones. By such forms, the employer or the client declares that he or she duly retained the income tax at the moment the foreigner was paid. The employer/client will obtain such form through the virtual services offered by SUNAT and must print and sign the form N°1692. This form will expire after 30 days of the filing with the Sunat via the Internet.

However, note that this procedure does not necessarily need to be carried out on-line at the Sunat Webpage. The employer/client may use a physical form called formulario 1492.

1.2) Formulario 1492. Foreigner may ask to their employer/client a certificado de rentas y rentenciones. The employer must sign this certificate form N° 1492 which will expire after 30 days from its signature by the employer/client.

It must be mentioned that in cases 1) and 2) above, said forms will include incomes that foreigner obtained over the last 12 months or income obtained as from the moment the last form was issued if applicable. If there is more than one employer or client, it must be obtained one form from each of them.

1.3) Formulario 1495. Conversely, foreigners who entered Peru with the following visas: artista, religioso, estudiante, trabajador, independiente o imigrante and they did not get any income during their stay in Peru, they must declare such fact on the form N° 1495 provided by SUNAT.

1.4) Formulario 1494. Finally, where the employer/client is a foreign company located abroad and thus it did not retain any income tax, foreigners must fill the form N° 1494 by which it is declared that he or she directly paid the income tax. A receipt which proves that the foreigner paid the income tax must also be provided.