Right-of-way easements in Peru: what they are and how to claim one

What is a right-of-way easement?

A right-of-way easement (servidumbre de paso) is the right the law grants to the owner of a landlocked property — one with no access, or no adequate access, to a public road — to demand passage across one or more neighboring properties until reaching a public road or street. The property that needs the passage is called the dominant property, and the neighboring property that bears the passage is called the servient property.

This legal figure balances two interests: making sure no property is left completely cut off, while ensuring the neighboring owner does not bear that burden without compensation or a reasonable standard.

When does it actually apply?

It is not enough that current access is inconvenient, long, or less practical than you would like. The typical scenario is that the property has no access to a public road, or its existing access is clearly insufficient for its needs and a better one cannot be obtained without excessive expense, works, or inconvenience. Before claiming a right-of-way easement, it is worth carefully assessing — ideally with legal support — whether the case truly qualifies as being “landlocked” in the sense the law requires, rather than just being a day-to-day inconvenience.

How are the route and width of the passage determined?

When there are several neighboring properties that could technically be crossed, the route should be set by choosing the one that causes the least possible harm to the servient property, even if it is not necessarily the shortest path for the dominant property. Ideally, neighbors define the exact route, its width, and the conditions of use together; when there is no agreement, a judge should determine it.

Is compensation required?

Yes — as a general rule, the servient property’s owner is entitled to compensation for the restrictions and harm the easement causes. The amount can be negotiated directly between the parties or, absent agreement, set through a judicial process. This is a key point: a right-of-way easement is not “free” for the person claiming it, unless the parties agree otherwise.

Agreement between neighbors vs. a judicial process

When both neighbors agree on the route, width, and compensation, the most practical path is to formalize the easement through a notarized deed and register it with Peru’s public registry (SUNARP), so it remains protected against future buyers of the servient property. If your property’s registration status is not yet in order, see our guide on physical-legal title regularization in Peru.

When there is no agreement — for example, the neighbor refuses passage, or the parties disagree on the route or the compensation amount — the path forward is to go to Peru’s Judiciary for a judge to decide.

Is a right-of-way easement forever?

In principle, a right-of-way easement responds to a specific need: the lack of adequate access. If that need disappears — for example, because the dominant property later gains a new, direct way out to a public road — it would generally be worth reviewing whether the easement should be extinguished or adjusted. This is a point that should be checked, in the specific case, against a lawyer and the Civil Code’s current text, since the rules on extinguishing easements can have nuances depending on the situation.

This is not the same as other neighbor disputes

A right-of-way easement is specifically about access or passage to a property that lacks adequate access to a public road. It should not be confused with other neighbor-relations issues, such as shared walls, noise, water seepage, or common expenses in buildings and condominiums — that last topic is covered in our guide on owners’ associations and common expenses in Peru.

Note on this page’s status

This page is marked as partial (parcial) because, during the research session in which it was written, internet access was blocked, making it impossible to read the Civil Code directly or cross-check the information against independent secondary sources (access to official domains and legal blogs was blocked at the network level). The content reflects the general right-of-way easement regime as taught under Peruvian civil law, but the exact article numbers should be confirmed before being used as a definitive legal citation.