In Peru, can a shop round up the price or keep your change because there is «no sencillo»?
No. Article 44 of the Consumer Code prohibits rounding prices to the consumer's detriment unless you expressly accept it at the moment of payment. Without your explicit yes, the change is yours down to the last céntimo.
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Peruvian State portal (gob.pe)
Checked 1 Oct 2026Next review 12 Mar 2027
What we read and what we did notArticles 44 and 110 of Ley 29571 were read in full in the Third Official Edition of the Consumer Protection Code published by Minjus.
What article 44 says
Article 44 of the Consumer Protection and Defence Code fits in one sentence: «Se encuentra prohibido que los proveedores redondeen los precios en perjuicio del consumidor, salvo que este manifieste expresamente su aceptación al momento de efectuar el pago».
Three pieces:
- Rounding to your detriment is prohibited. The base rule. Rounding in your favour is not prohibited; the problem is rounding that costs you money.
- Unless you expressly accept. You can say yes. But it has to be express: said or ticked by you, not inferred from your silence or from the fact that you did not complain.
- At the moment of payment. Not earlier, on a sign, and not later, on the receipt. When you pay, for that purchase.
In the copy we read, the article continues with a second sentence on donations: establishments must have signs stating prominently where the donations go or which institution benefits, without prejudice to any further obligations set by Indecopi.
«No tengo sencillo»
The most common scene: you pay with a note, the change includes small coins, and you are told there is no change. What the statute says about that is simple. Lack of change is not an exception to article 44. If the shop cannot give you exact change, its options are to find some or to round in your favour. Rounding in its own favour because it has no coins is precisely what is prohibited, unless you, at that moment, say you accept.
And accepting is your call. You can say no and wait for the change. You are not required to give away the difference for the sake of convenience.
Voluntary rounding and donations
Many chains ask whether you want to round up your purchase for a campaign. That is valid, and the statute allows for it. The conditions are the same as for any rounding:
| Situation | Valid? |
|---|---|
| They ask, you say yes, it is rounded | Yes |
| They ask, you say no, it is rounded anyway | No |
| Nobody asks, the receipt comes rounded | No |
| A general sign exists and the system rounds everyone | No: express acceptance at payment is missing |
| The sign does not say who receives the donation | Breaches the signage part, per the copy we read |
The word that matters is expresamente. A sign at the till does not replace your yes at each purchase.
How it links to the total price
Article 44 does not stand alone. Article 4.2 says you cannot be made to pay sums or surcharges on top of the fixed price. An unconsented rounding is, in practice, a small surcharge on the fixed price. Both rules point the same way: you pay the price, not a céntimo more, unless you decide otherwise.
What to do
- Say you do not accept the rounding, citing article 44.
- Wait for exact change, or rounding in your favour.
- If they rounded without asking, keep the receipt.
- Libro de reclamaciones.
- Indecopi’s Reclama Virtual; a denuncia through the Mesa de Partes if you want a sanction.
If you run a business
Set the system so rounding always favours the customer by default, or so the cashier asks and records the answer before applying it. If you run a donation campaign, put up a visible sign naming the beneficiary institution, and ask at every payment.
How to file
- When they say «no tengo sencillo», answer calmly«El vuelto es mío; el artículo 44 del Código del Consumidor prohíbe redondear en mi perjuicio si no lo acepto.» The shop must find change or absorb the difference in your favour.
- If they ask about rounding or a donation, you decideYes or no, out loud. Silence is not a yes. If you say no and they apply it anyway, ask for the receipt to be corrected.
- Keep the receipt if they rounded without askingIt shows the price, what you paid and the rounding applied. That is all the evidence you need.
- Libro de reclamaciones, then Indecopi if they do not answerDescribe it as rounding to the consumer's detriment without express acceptance. Reclama Virtual conciliates; a denuncia through the Mesa de Partes opens a sanctioning procedure.
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What people fail to ask in time
And if the purchase was so small they gave you no receipt at all: could you have insisted?
Find out before it matters →What most people believe — and what the law says
If there is no change, the shop can round up.
Lack of change is the shop's problem, not yours. Article 44 prohibits rounding against you unless you expressly accept. Without your yes, they owe you the exact change.
It is a few céntimos, that is not a breach.
The statute sets no minimum. Five céntimos rounded without consent, multiplied by every customer of the day, is exactly what article 44 was written to stop.
If the system already rounds the price on the receipt, it is legal because it is printed.
Printed is not accepted. Acceptance must be express and given at the moment of payment. An automatic rounding nobody asked you about is still to your detriment.
Rounding up for charity is compulsory if the shop is running a campaign.
It is valid only if you accept. It is a donation, and an unconsented donation is a charge. In the text we read, the same article requires signs stating prominently where the donations go or which institution benefits.
If I said yes once, it applies to all my purchases.
Acceptance is «al momento de efectuar el pago». Each payment is a new decision. There is no standing consent from having agreed before.
Frequently asked questions
What penalty can a business face for rounding my change without my consent?
Article 110 of Law 29571 allows penalties ranging from a warning to 450 UIT, depending on severity (minor offenses up to 50 UIT, serious up to 150 UIT, very serious up to 450 UIT). For microenterprises the cap is 10% of gross income and for small businesses 20%, subject to conditions.
What should I do if I was already charged a rounded amount without being asked?
Keep the receipt, since it records the price, what you paid, and the rounding applied. Then log it in the complaints book, describing it as rounding to the consumer's detriment without express acceptance; if there's no response, Reclama Virtual seeks a conciliation, and a denuncia through the Virtual Filing Desk opens a sanctioning procedure.
Is rounding my change in my favor also prohibited?
No. Article 44 only prohibits rounding to the consumer's detriment; rounding in your favor is not a legal problem.
How does rounding relate to the ban on additional charges?
Article 4.2 of the Consumer Code says you can't be forced to pay additional sums or surcharges on top of the set price. Unconsented rounding functions, in practice, as a small surcharge on that price, so both provisions point the same way: you pay the price, not a cent more, unless you decide otherwise.
What the fine is
| Conduct | Severity | Range | Authority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rounding the price to the consumer's detriment without express acceptance at the moment of payment Ley 29571, arts. 44 and 110 Article 110 runs from a warning up to 450 UIT depending on gravity (minor up to 50, serious up to 150, very serious up to 450). Grading depends on the case. Micro-enterprises are capped at 10% of gross income and small enterprises at 20%, subject to conditions. | variable | up to 450 UIT up to S/ 2,475,000.00 up to $715,939 | Indecopi |
Fines are set in UIT. When the UIT moves, every fine moves with it. UIT 2026 = S/ 5,500 (Decreto Supremo N.º 301-2025-EF). Reference conversion only. The debt is owed in soles.FX rate as of2026-10-12: US$ 1 = S/ 3.457.
The exact law
Ley N.º 29571Article 44read
Consumer Protection and Defence Code — price rounding
«Se encuentra prohibido que los proveedores redondeen los precios en perjuicio del consumidor, salvo que este manifieste expresamente su aceptación al momento de efectuar el pago.»
↳Article 4.2read
Consumer Protection and Defence Code — no surcharges on top of the fixed price
«Los consumidores no pueden ser obligados al pago de sumas o recargos adicionales al precio fijado, salvo que se trate de servicios distintos o adicionales.»
↳Article 110read
Consumer Protection and Defence Code — administrative penalties
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