Do Americans Need a Visa for Peru in 2026?

No, most Americans do not need a tourist visa for Peru. Peru lets US citizens in for up to 90 days without one, and the days can be extended once. You need a passport with six months left. Filipino citizens get the same terms. If you are Indian or Chinese and live in the US, you can skip the Peruvian visa with a US green card, or a US visa with at least six months of validity. Everything here comes from Peru's foreign ministry, its immigration agency Migraciones, its customs agency SUNAT and the US CDC, read on 4 November 2026.

What do US citizens need to enter Peru?

These are the five things to check before you fly to Peru as a US citizen:

1. Passport: valid for at least six months. Migraciones says you cannot enter without it.

2. Visa: none for tourism, up to 90 days, extendable once.

3. Entry record: no stamp. Download the free virtual TAM after you land.

4. Customs: declare cash over US$10,000 in the Bienvenido al Perú app.

5. Health: no vaccine is required for entry, says the CDC. Yellow fever is recommended for some Amazon areas.

So for a normal tourist trip, a US citizen needs only a valid passport and the TAM check after landing.

Do US citizens need a visa for Peru?

The source is a table on gob.pe, the Peruvian government's site, from the foreign ministry: "Requerimientos y exoneración de visas para ciudadanos extranjeros que cuenten con pasaportes ordinarios". The page is dated 5 March 2026, and the PDF carries the date 16 July 2026 in its file name. It is in Spanish.

Note: United States: exempt from a tourist visa for 90 days. The days can be extended once for the same period, within 365 days counted from your first entry. A transit stop of up to 2 days is also allowed without a visa. The legal basis listed is Supreme Decree 23-95-RE (foreign ministry visa table, file dated 16 Jul 2026, read 4 Nov 2026)

Note: The table has a separate column for business visits, and it marks US citizens "No" there. A note says visa-exempt visitors are admitted as tourist or business visitors to match what they will do in Peru. If you go for business, check with a Peruvian consulate (same table)

So a US citizen on a tourist trip does not need a Peruvian visa.

How long can I stay in Peru as a US citizen?

The foreign ministry table gives 90 days, which can be extended once for another 90 days, inside 365 days from your first entry. Migraciones decides the days at the border and shows them on your virtual TAM.

Note: Peru stopped stamping passports at the migration check on international flights. Tourists download the virtual Andean Migration Card (TAM) at cel.migraciones.gob.pe. You fill in a form and a CAPTCHA, using only letters and numbers, with no dots, dashes or spaces. The card shows your personal details, the date, hour and control post of your entry, and the days you may stay (Migraciones TAM page, last changed 21 Nov 2024, read 4 Nov 2026)

Keep a screenshot of your TAM. Migraciones says you can also use it to prove you entered Peru legally, for example at a consulate.

So read your TAM after you land, because the number on it is the one that counts.

What passport validity does Peru require?

Note: Your passport must be valid for at least six months. If it is not, you cannot enter. Citizens of the Andean Community and Mercosur can enter with an identity card, which does not apply to US passport holders (Migraciones, "Información fundamental para turistas en Perú", last changed 19 Nov 2024, read 4 Nov 2026)

Note: If you leave Peru by land to a neighboring country, pass a Migraciones control post to record your exit. Migraciones says that if you skip it, you cannot enter Peru again or board a flight from Peru. If you lose your passport, go to your consulate for a new one or a travel document (same page)

So check that your passport has six months left on the day you land, and record your exit if you leave by land.

Do I need a TAM card or MigraCheck for Peru?

The TAM is not a form you fill in before you fly. It is the record Migraciones makes when you enter, and you download it after you land.

Note: MigraCheck is a free online pre-registration. Its site says it lets you use the electronic gates at the new terminal of Jorge Chávez International Airport in Lima, for a faster migration check on entry or exit (MigraCheck, read 4 Nov 2026)

No Migraciones page we read says arrivals must use MigraCheck. If you skip it, you use the normal migration desks.

So the TAM is automatic and MigraCheck is optional.

What can I bring through Peru customs?

Note: SUNAT, Peru's customs agency: declare cash or negotiable instruments over US$10,000. You may not bring in more than US$30,000. Larger sums must go through the banking system (SUNAT, traveler baggage rules, read 4 Nov 2026)

Price: Goods that are not on the duty-free "nothing to declare" list pay 12% up to a value of US$1,000. Above that, normal import taxes apply. You file the baggage declaration in the Bienvenido al Perú app (same page)

Note: Restricted goods need a permit from the right agency: farm products, medical and dental equipment, wild plants and animals, weapons and ammunition, and cultural heritage items. Non-resident travelers can bring sports gear for adventure tourism without a deposit (same page)

The duty-free list itself is in Article 9 of Supreme Decree 182-2013-EF, as SUNAT explains on its traveler page.

So declare cash over US$10,000 in the app, and do not pack farm products without a permit.

Do I need vaccines to enter Peru?

Note: US CDC, Peru page: a yellow fever vaccine is not required for entry. It is recommended for travelers 9 months and older going to areas below 2,300 m (7,550 ft) in Amazonas, Cusco, Huánuco, Junín, Loreto, Madre de Dios, Pasco, Puno, San Martín and Ucayali, and parts of 7 other regions. It is not recommended for travel limited to Lima, Cusco city, the Inca Trail or Machu Picchu (CDC, Peru, last reviewed 1 Oct 2026, yellow fever section updated 12 Feb 2026, read 4 Nov 2026)

Note: The CDC also says all international travelers should be fully vaccinated against measles (MMR) at least 2 weeks before they leave, and warns that Machu Picchu and other popular places are at high altitude (same page)

So no vaccine is needed to get in, but ask a doctor about yellow fever if you go to the Amazon lowlands.

What happens if I overstay in Peru?

Price: Overstay fine: 0.1 percent of the UIT for each extra day, says Migraciones' tourist page, which still shows the 2024 unit of S/ 5,150 (Migraciones tourist page, last changed 19 Nov 2024, read 4 Nov 2026)

Price: The 2026 UIT is S/ 5,500, set by Supreme Decree 301-2025-EF, published on 17 December 2025 and in force from 1 January 2026 (El Peruano, read 4 Nov 2026)

At the 2026 unit, 0.1 percent is S/ 5.50 for each day over. That figure is our arithmetic from the two official numbers, not a figure Migraciones prints.

So check the end date on your TAM, because each extra day costs S/ 5.50 in 2026.

Where do the official pages leave gaps?

So the core rule is clear (no visa, 90 days, six months on the passport), and the open points are the small print.

Note: The US State Department Peru page agrees: no visa for tourist stays of 90 days or less, a passport with 6 months of validity from the date of entry and 1 blank page for the entry stamp, and no required vaccinations. Its advisory is Level 2, "Exercise increased caution", issued 4 September 2026, with Level 4 areas that include the VRAEM and the Colombia border area in Loreto. It says the City of Cusco, the Sacred Valley, the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu are outside those areas (read 4 Nov 2026)

Price: Lima's Jorge Chávez airport lists its airport use fee (TUUA) as US$30.24 for an international departure, US$12.60 for a domestic one and US$11.86 for an international connection, IGV included, payable in dollars or in soles at the day's rate. The connection fee has applied to international-to-international transfers since 7 December 2025 (Lima Airport Partners fee page, read 4 Nov 2026)

Can non-US citizens who live in the US visit Peru without a visa?

Indian, Filipino and Chinese passport holders are the three largest groups of foreign nationals in the US. The foreign ministry table treats them in two ways. Philippine citizens need no visa and no US document. Indian and Chinese citizens can skip the Peruvian tourist visa only with a visa or permanent residence from certain countries, and the United States is one of them.

Note: Philippines: exempt from a tourist visa. The stay is 90 days, extendable once for the same period, within 365 days from first entry (foreign ministry visa table, file dated 16 Jul 2026, read 4 Nov 2026)

Note: India and China: marked "Si/No". A holder of a valid ordinary passport can enter without a tourist visa if they hold a visa "con una vigencia mínima de seis (6) meses" from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia or a Schengen state, or hold permanent residence in one of those places. The stay is 180 days and cannot be extended, within 365 days from first entry. The legal bases listed are Supreme Decrees 006-2017-RE (India) and 069-2016-RE (China) (same table)

The 6 month minimum is written for the visa. The table sets no minimum for permanent residence. For India and China the transit and business columns carry the same "Si/No" condition as tourism, and the business stay is also 180 days.

Not confirmed: whether the US visa must allow multiple entries, which US visa types count, whether a visa that is still valid but nearly expired is enough on the day you land, and how a green card is shown at the border. The table does not say any of these. Your airline may ask for the same proof at check in. Ask a Peruvian consulate before you book.

So an Indian or Chinese passport holder with a green card, or a US visa with six months left, can enter Peru without a Peruvian visa.

What we checked and what can change

Read on 4 November 2026:

• The foreign ministry's visa table page (dated 5 March 2026) and its PDF (file dated 16 July 2026), read in full for the US, Philippine, Indian and Chinese rows and notes.

• Migraciones' page for tourists (last changed 19 November 2024) and its TAM page (last changed 21 November 2024).

• The MigraCheck site.

• SUNAT's baggage rules and traveler page.

• El Peruano's notice of the 2026 UIT (Supreme Decree 301-2025-EF).

• The US State Department Peru page: Level 2 (issued 4 September 2026), 90 days visa-free, 6 months of passport validity, 1 blank page.

• The Lima Airport Partners fee page: the TUUA departure and connection fees.

• The US CDC's Peru page (last reviewed 1 October 2026).

Not confirmed: whether an airline ticket already includes Lima's airport fee, how Indian or Chinese citizens apply for a Peruvian visa, the legal texts the visa table cites, and the rules for stays longer than the visa-free days.