Cancellation of migratory status in Peru: when it applies and how it connects to expulsion
Migraciones can cancel your migratory status (your authorized stay or residence) on five grounds: at your own request, due to death or a court declaration of death or absence, due to naturalization, due to a change of migratory status, or as a result of a mandatory departure or expulsion sanction already resolved through a sanctioning procedure. If you hold residence status and leave the country for more than 183 consecutive days (365 if you hold Permanent residence), you can also lose it, unless you obtained authorization for a justified absence beforehand.
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El Peruano
Checked 1 Oct 2026Next review 19 Dec 2026
The clock running against you
183 calendar days from the start of a continuous absence from Peruvian territory, for residents who do not hold Permanent migratory status.This is a procedural deadline: miss it and you lose that route and have to start another.
If your residence is Permanent, the limit is 365 consecutive days (Article 33.2). In both cases, a justified absence authorized by Migraciones before the deadline avoids the loss (Article 33.3).
DL 1350, Article 33.1
What cancellation of migratory status is
Your migratory status is the authorization that lets you be in Peru for a specific purpose: tourist, worker, resident, among others. Article 32.1 of the Migration Law establishes that Migraciones can cancel that migratory status in five specific cases:
- At your own request — you ask for it to be cancelled yourself.
- Due to death or a court declaration of death or absence.
- Due to naturalization — if you become Peruvian, you no longer need a foreigner’s migratory status.
- Due to application of a Mandatory Departure or Expulsion sanction, following the corresponding sanctioning procedure.
- Due to a change of Migratory Status — when you switch from one status to another, the previous one is cancelled.
Article 32.2 clarifies that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can only cancel, within its own authority, the migratory statuses it itself granted, and only under literals a), b), and e) — not for sanctions.
Cancellation isn’t a sanction in itself
It’s easy to confuse cancellation with expulsion, but they’re different things. Expulsion is a sanction (Article 54.c) that Migraciones imposes after a sanctioning procedure, with a re-entry bar to Peru of up to 15 years, counted from the exit migratory control. Mandatory departure is a less severe sanction, with a re-entry bar of up to 5 years.
Cancellation of migratory status, by contrast, is what happens afterward: once the sanction has been imposed on you, your migratory status stops having effect (Article 32.1, literal d). But cancellation also happens for reasons that have nothing to do with sanctions, such as when you request it yourself or change your migratory status.
There’s an important exception to the up-to-15-year period: when the expulsion stems from a judicial order or from release after completing a sentence (literals g and h of Article 58.1), it isn’t Migraciones that sets the re-entry bar period, but the judicial authority itself.
Losing residence by being absent too long
If you hold a residence migratory status, there’s a time limit on how long you can be outside Peru without losing it. Article 33 sets two rules:
| Type of residence | Limit on continuous absence |
|---|---|
| Residence (any, except Permanent) | 183 consecutive days, within a 365-day period |
| Permanent residence | 365 consecutive days |
This loss isn’t automatic or unavoidable: Article 33.3 allows an exception for those with a justified reason to be outside the country. But that exception requires a procedure: you must request and obtain the absence authorization from Migraciones before the deadline is reached, not after you’ve returned.
How this connects to expulsion and mandatory departure
If you want to understand in detail when Migraciones can impose mandatory departure or expulsion on you — not just what happens to your migratory status after the sanction — check our guides on what to do if your authorized stay has expired and on Migraciones’ fines and sanctions, which cover the complete grounds for each sanction and their amounts.
Looking for the legal term behind what people call “deportation”?
Peru’s migration law doesn’t use the word “deportation.” See the real differences between mandatory departure and expulsion, and what defense rights you have, in deportation and expulsion in Peru.
How to file
- Identify whether your case fits one of the grounds in Article 32.1Request by the person concerned, death or a court declaration of death or absence, naturalization, an already-resolved mandatory-departure or expulsion sanction, or a change of migratory status.
- If you'll be outside the country for more than 183 days while holding residence, get your absence authorization firstArticle 33.3 requires that a justified absence be processed and authorized by Migraciones before the deadline expires — it isn't enough to justify it after you're back.
- If your status is cancelled due to a sanction, check which sanction was applied to youThe re-entry bar depends on whether you were sanctioned with mandatory departure (up to 5 years) or expulsion (up to 15 years, or whatever period the Judiciary sets in cases of a judicial order or release after a sentence).
- Don't confuse cancellation with an entry bar for an unpaid fineThese are different mechanisms: cancellation affects a migratory status you already hold; an unpaid fine can block your entry on a future trip, even if your migratory status was never cancelled.
What people fail to ask in time
Did you know your fundamental rights as a foreigner are recognized even if your migratory status is irregular?
Find out before it matters →What most people believe — and what the law says
Cancellation of migratory status and expulsion are the same sanction.
No. Expulsion is a sanction (Article 54.c) imposed at the end of a sanctioning procedure. Cancellation (Article 32) is a later administrative effect: once the mandatory-departure or expulsion sanction is applied, Migraciones cancels the migratory status as a consequence (Article 32.1.d). Status is also cancelled for reasons that aren't sanctions at all, such as requesting it yourself, naturalizing, or changing your migratory status.
If I hold residence status, I can leave Peru for as long as I want without losing it.
Article 33 sets a limit: more than 183 consecutive days of absence (365 if your residence is Permanent) can make you lose your residence migratory status, unless you obtained a justified-absence authorization from Migraciones before that deadline passed.
If my status is cancelled at my own request, it's the same as if it's cancelled due to a sanction.
Article 32.1 treats these as separate grounds (literals a and d). Cancelling it at your own request doesn't carry the consequences of a cancellation stemming from mandatory departure or expulsion, which does carry a re-entry bar.
The re-entry bar always has a fixed period of 5 or 15 years.
For most expulsion grounds, the up-to-15-year period under Article 54.c does apply. But when the expulsion stems from a judicial order or from release after completing a sentence (grounds g and h of Article 58.1), it's the judicial authority itself that sets the bar period, not Migraciones.
Frequently asked questions
What exactly are the five grounds on which Migraciones can cancel my migratory status?
At your own request, due to death or a court declaration of death or absence, due to naturalization, due to an already-resolved mandatory-departure or expulsion sanction, or due to a change of migratory status. These are independent grounds: only one of them stems from a sanction.
If I'll be outside Peru for more than 183 days while holding residence, what do I need to do before I travel?
Process and obtain a justified-absence authorization from Migraciones before the deadline is reached. Article 33.3 requires that this be done beforehand, not after you've come back; otherwise you can lose your residence migratory status.
What's the difference between my migratory status being cancelled and being barred from re-entry over an unpaid fine?
They're different mechanisms. Cancellation affects a migratory status you already hold, under the five grounds in Article 32.1. An unpaid fine, by contrast, can block your entry on a future trip without your migratory status ever having been cancelled.
Can the Ministry of Foreign Affairs cancel any migratory status for any reason?
No. Under Article 32.2, that Ministry can only cancel the migratory statuses it itself granted, and only under three of the five grounds: request by the person concerned, death or a court declaration, and change of migratory status. It cannot cancel status linked to a sanction.
The exact law
Legislative Decree N.º 1350Article 32, numerals 32.1 and 32.2read
Cases for cancellation of Migratory Status
«MIGRACIONES en el ámbito de su competencia puede disponer la cancelación de la Calidad Migratoria en los siguientes casos: a. A solicitud de parte. b. Por fallecimiento o declaratoria judicial de muerte o ausencia. c. Por nacionalización. d. Por aplicación de sanción de Salida Obligatoria y Expulsión, luego del procedimiento sancionador correspondiente. e. Por cambio de Calidad Migratoria. El Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores puede cancelar las Calidades Migratorias otorgadas en el ámbito de su competencia, bajo los supuestos de literales a), b) y e) descritos en el numeral 32.1 precedente.»
↳Article 33, numerals 33.1 to 33.3read
Loss of Residence Migratory Status due to absence from national territory
«Los extranjeros con cualquiera de las Calidades Migratorias de Residencia excepto la Permanente, las pierden si el período de ausencia del territorio nacional es mayor a los ciento ochenta y tres (183) días consecutivos, en un plazo de trescientos sesenta y cinco (365) días. Los extranjeros con Calidad Migratoria de Residencia Permanente la pierden si el periodo de ausencia del territorio nacional es mayor a los trescientos sesenta y cinco (365) días consecutivos. Se exceptúan los extranjeros residentes ausentes del territorio nacional por motivo justificado. En estos casos, el período de ausencia puede ser extendido, debiendo tramitarse y obtenerse la autorización de ausencia correspondiente ante MIGRACIONES.»
Legislative Decree N.º 1350, as amended by Legislative Decree N.º 1582Article 54, literals a) to c)read
The three administrative sanctions and their re-entry bar periods
«Las sanciones administrativas que puede imponer MIGRACIONES son: a. Multa [...] b. Salida Obligatoria: Determina que el extranjero abandone el territorio nacional, y puede conllevar el impedimento de reingreso al Perú hasta por el plazo de cinco (5) años, contados desde el día que efectúe su control migratorio de salida del país. c. Expulsión: Determina que el extranjero abandone el territorio nacional, y conlleva el impedimento de reingreso al Perú hasta por el plazo de quince (15) años, contados desde el día que efectúe su control migratorio de salida del país. En caso de los supuestos de expulsión establecidos en los literales g) y h) del numeral 58.1 del artículo 58 del presente Decreto Legislativo, el plazo del impedimento de reingreso al país es determinado por la autoridad judicial.»
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