Child labor in Peru: minimum ages and required authorization

At what age can a teenager start working in Peru?

Peru’s Code on Children and Adolescents (Ley N° 27337) sets the general minimum working age for adolescents at 14, though authorization can exceptionally be granted from age 12 for specific tasks. Other activities require higher minimum ages:

• 15 for non-industrial agricultural work.
• 16 for industrial, commercial or mining work.

These ages are a legal floor: below them, no paid work is legal, even with parental consent, except for the exception covering unpaid family work.

Who has to authorize an adolescent’s work?

Under Article 50 of the Code, adolescents need authorization to work, with the sole exception of unpaid family workers. Article 52 splits who grants it:

• If the adolescent will work for an employer (third-party or dependent work), authorization is granted by the Regional Labor and Employment Promotion Directorate/Office, following the procedure set by Supreme Decree N° 018-2020-TR. The process is free, includes a medical evaluation confirming the adolescent’s physical, mental and emotional fitness, and the authority has a set deadline to decide (if it doesn’t respond in time, the request is deemed denied).
• If it’s domestic or self-employed work, authorization is the responsibility of the local municipality.

In both cases, besides the authority’s authorization, consent from the adolescent’s parents or guardians is also required.

Hour limits and banned work

The law protects an adolescent’s development by limiting how much and when they can work:

• Ages 12 to 14: maximum 4 hours a day and 24 hours a week.
• Ages 15 to 17: maximum 6 hours a day, up to 36 hours a week under the implementing decree.
• Night work is banned, defined as work performed between 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., except for an exceptional judicial authorization.
• Hazardous work is banned, including underground work, handling excessive weights, or handling toxic substances.
• Work must not disrupt regular school attendance.

These limits sit alongside Peru’s general rules on overtime and working hours, which regulate maximum working time for adults — for minors, the caps are stricter.

What about unpaid family work?

The Code exempts unpaid family workers from the authorization procedure. That exemption, however, does not mean they fall outside every protection: the hour limits, the bans on night and hazardous work, and the requirement not to affect schooling are framed for adolescents in general, not only for those working under a formal authorization.

How to report violations of these rules

If you suspect a minor is working without authorization, under prohibited conditions, or in a situation of exploitation, there are several channels:

• SUNAFIL’s “SOS Alerta contra el Trabajo Infantil y el Trabajo Forzoso” app, available through gob.pe/sunafil.
• The DEMUNA (municipal child and adolescent defense office) at any municipality, which accepts in-person reports, including anonymous ones.
• The Special Protection Units (UPE) of the General Directorate for Children and Adolescents at the Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations (MIMP), reachable through the free hotline 100 or the phone line 01 626-1600.

You can read more about the general labor complaint process in how to file a complaint with SUNAFIL, though for cases involving minors, MIMP and DEMUNA are usually the fastest protection routes.

A detail many families overlook

Parental authorization does not replace the competent authority’s authorization, and vice versa: both are required. If your case involves the benefits an already-authorized adolescent worker is owed, such as bonuses or vacation pay, also check bonuses, CTS and vacation in Peru, since these rights also apply to formally employed adolescent workers.