Family
Código Civil marriage, de facto unions and notarial separation
The Código Civil regulates marriage and the unión de hecho, which after two years of cohabitation between a man and a woman free to marry creates a community of property. Peru has not legalised same-sex marriage, though courts have ordered registration of some marriages celebrated abroad. Uncontested separation and subsequent divorce may proceed before a notary or municipality.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — National substantive law applied by family courts, notaries and municipalities
- Deadline — De facto union: property community after two years of cohabitation
- Deadline — Notarial route: divorce petition two months after the separation decree
Governing law
- Código Civil Peruano, Book IIIfamily law
- Ley 29227 - separación convencional y divorcio ulterior
- Ley 30364violence against women and family members
In practice
Ley 29227 created a genuinely administrative route out of marriage: where the couple agrees and there are no unresolved issues about children or assets, a notary or municipal authority can decree separation and then divorce without a judge. Ley 30364 established protective measures for domestic violence that family judges must issue within 72 hours of a report.