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Investment arbitration with Peru: constitutional basis, ICSID, contract law stability agreements and the State's coordination system

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Last verified: 2026-10-28 · Status: Stable

Peru's Constitution protects contract terms from later legislation, lets the State give guarantees through contract laws, and allows it to submit contract disputes to treaty tribunals and to national or international arbitration. Peru has been an ICSID Contracting State since 8 September 1993, so investors covered by an investment treaty or a contract with ICSID consent can bring claims whose awards bind Peru like final local judgments. Ley Nº 28933 centralises the State's response: the Ministry of Economy and Finance coordinates, a special commission handles direct negotiations and defence, and every public body that receives a notice of dispute must alert it.

USD figures use S/ 3.452 per US dollar, the banking system selling rate published by the Superintendencia de Banca, Seguros y AFP for 27 October 2026, from the Banco Central de Reserva del Perú statistics series PD04640PD. UIT amounts use the 2026 UIT of S/ 5,500 set by Decreto Supremo Nº 301-2025-EF, as cited in SUNAT Resolución de Superintendencia Nº 000016-2026/SUNAT. Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

ICSID Contracting State	Yes, in force since 8 September 1993 textICSID/3 (17 July 2026), as of 2026-10-28 · in force
ICSID Convention signature	1991-09-04 dateICSID/3 (17 July 2026), as of 2026-10-28 · in force
ICSID Convention ratification deposited	1993-08-09 dateICSID/3 (17 July 2026), as of 2026-10-28 · in force
ICSID Convention entry into force	1993-09-08 dateICSID/3 (17 July 2026), as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Deadline to request annulment of an ICSID award	120 daysICSID Convention art. 52(2), as of 2026-10-28 · in force
State coordinator for international investment disputes	Ministerio de Economía y Finanzas textLey Nº 28933 art. 6, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Constitution allows the State to arbitrate contract disputes	Yes, before treaty tribunals or national or international arbitration textConstitution art. 63, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Unidad Impositiva Tributaria 2026	5,500 PENDS Nº 301-2025-EF, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
SBS banking system selling rate, 27 October 2026	3.452 PEN per USDBCRP series PD04640PD, as of 2026-10-28 · in force

The rule

1. Freedom of contract guarantees that parties can validly agree under the rules in force when the contract is made, and contract terms cannot be modified by laws or other provisions of any kind. Conflicts arising from the contractual relationship are resolved only through arbitration or the courts, as the contract or the law provides. Through contracts law (contratos ley), the State can establish guarantees and grant assurances, which cannot be changed by legislation.
Cost to do it: No cost in itself; legal stability agreements under the investment framework have their own requirements, covered in the investing pages.
Example: A concession contract signed in 2026 keeps its agreed terms even if a later law changes the sector rules; disputes over it go to the forum the contract chooses. / An investor with a US$50 million legal stability agreement can rely on art. 62 against later legislative changes to the stabilised terms.Constitución Política del Perú de 1993, Art. 62, 1993-12-30 official text · verified 2026-10-28

2. National and foreign investment are subject to the same conditions. The State and other public law persons may submit disputes arising from contractual relationships to tribunals set up under treaties in force, and to national or international arbitration in the manner provided by law. Contracts of the State with domiciled foreigners must contain submission to Peruvian laws and courts and a waiver of diplomatic claims, but financial contracts can be exempted from national jurisdiction.
Cost to do it: No cost in itself; it is the authority that makes ICSID and treaty arbitration clauses in State contracts valid.
Example: A Peruvian subsidiary of a foreign group signing a public private partnership contract can agree on international arbitration rather than the domestic courts. / A US$200 million sovereign loan agreement can be placed under foreign courts because financial contracts may be exempted from national jurisdiction.Constitución Política del Perú de 1993, Art. 63, 1993-12-30 official text · verified 2026-10-28

3. Peru signed the ICSID Convention on 4 September 1991 and deposited its ratification on 9 August 1993; it entered into force for Peru on 8 September 1993. ICSID jurisdiction covers legal disputes arising directly out of an investment between a Contracting State and a national of another Contracting State that both have consented in writing to submit to the Centre; once given, consent cannot be withdrawn unilaterally. The investor's home State may not give diplomatic protection while the case is pending, unless Peru fails to comply with the award.
Cost to do it: ICSID lodging fee, administrative charges and tribunal fees in US dollars under the ICSID schedule of fees in force at filing.
Example: A Lima subsidiary owned by a company from a treaty partner can benefit from its parent's ICSID claim over measures affecting the investment. / A US$100 million claim under a treaty with ICSID consent proceeds before ICSID, and the investor's home State must refrain from diplomatic protection meanwhile.Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States (Washington, 18 March 1965); ICSID/3 list of Contracting States as of 17 July 2026, Convention art. 25 and 27; ICSID/3 entry for Peru, 1993-09-08 official text · verified 2026-10-28

4. ICSID awards are binding, are not subject to appeal or any remedy other than those in the Convention, and each Contracting State must recognise them and enforce their pecuniary obligations as if they were final judgments of its courts, on presentation of a copy certified by the ICSID Secretary General. The only remedy is annulment before an ad hoc committee on listed grounds (improper constitution, manifest excess of powers, corruption, serious departure from a fundamental rule of procedure, failure to state reasons), requested within 120 days of the award (corruption: 120 days from discovery and within three years). Enforcement does not override rules on State immunity from execution.
Cost to do it: Annulment applications carry their own ICSID lodging fee and committee costs; enforcement abroad requires local counsel where assets are located.
Example: If Peru loses an ICSID case, it cannot appeal to Peruvian courts; it can only request annulment within 120 days. / A US$30 million ICSID award against Peru can be enforced in any Contracting State as a final judgment, subject to that State's immunity rules on execution.Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States (Washington, 18 March 1965), Art. 52, 53, 54 and 55, 1965-03-18 official text · verified 2026-10-28

5. Ley Nº 28933 creates the State's coordination and response system for international investment disputes, meaning disputes between Peru and national or foreign investors submitted to international dispute settlement. It covers disputes arising from agreements that grant rights or guarantees to investors (privatisation contracts, concession contracts, legal stability agreements, hydrocarbon licences and others listed in its regulation) and from treaties with investor State dispute settlement. Every public body that signs such an agreement must inform the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), and every body notified by an investor of its intention to submit a dispute to an international mechanism must alert the MEF; both duties are mandatory.
Cost to do it: No cost to the investor; it determines who negotiates on the State side during the direct negotiation period that treaties usually require.
Example: A provincial municipality notified by a foreign concessionaire of an intent to arbitrate must alert the MEF at once, so the national system takes over the response. / For a US$75 million dispute under a concession contract, the investor will face the State's special commission, not just the contracting agency.Ley Nº 28933, Ley que establece el Sistema de Coordinación y Respuesta del Estado en Controversias Internacionales de Inversión (El Peruano, 16 December 2006), Art. 1, 2, 3 and 5, 2006-12-16 official text · verified 2026-10-28

6. The MEF is the coordinator: it centralises information, keeps a public register of investment agreements and treaties with dispute clauses, and notifies the special commission. The special commission, attached to the MEF, represents the State in direct negotiation and in arbitration or conciliation. Its permanent members are representatives of the MEF (chair), Foreign Affairs, Justice and ProInversión, joined by Foreign Trade and Tourism for treaty disputes and by each public body involved. It evaluates settlement options in the direct negotiation phase, requests reports from entities, proposes hiring counsel, appoints arbitrators where the mechanism requires and decides the involved entity's responsibility.
Cost to do it: No cost to the investor; the State's defence costs are internalised by the entity found responsible under the law.
Example: Settlement talks with the State over a contested tax stability guarantee are led by the special commission chaired by the MEF. / In a treaty dispute over a US$20 million mining permit, the commission includes Foreign Trade and Tourism and the ministry that issued the measure.Ley Nº 28933, Ley que establece el Sistema de Coordinación y Respuesta del Estado en Controversias Internacionales de Inversión (El Peruano, 16 December 2006), Art. 6, 7 and 8, 2006-12-16 official text · verified 2026-10-28

Instrument	Peru	Argentina	Source
ICSID Convention	Signed 4 Sep 1991; ratified 9 Aug 1993; in force 8 Sep 1993	Signed 21 May 1991; ratified 19 Oct 1994; in force 18 Nov 1994	ICSID/3, 17 July 2026
New York Convention	Accession 7 Jul 1988; in force 5 Oct 1988; no reservations	Ratified 14 Mar 1989; in force 12 Jun 1989; reciprocity and commercial reservations	UNCITRAL status table

Peru and Argentina in the multilateral enforcement treaties (high level)

Worked example

A Chilean infrastructure group holds a Peruvian concession through a Lima subsidiary. After a regulator imposes a measure it considers expropriatory, it sends a notice of intent under the applicable treaty. The regulator must alert the MEF under Ley Nº 28933, and the special commission leads the direct negotiation period. If no settlement is reached and the treaty gives ICSID consent, the claim proceeds at ICSID; the award can only be challenged by ICSID annulment within 120 days and is enforceable in Peru as a final judgment.
Where the investor instead relies on a contract clause providing for arbitration under DL Nº 1071 in Lima, the special State rules apply: institutional arbitration, public award after the case, no fines, and a bank bond at least equal to the performance guarantee if it seeks interim measures against the State.

Step by step

Map every layer of protection: contract clause (DL Nº 1071 or ICSID), legal stability agreement, and any investment treaty or trade agreement chapter with investor State dispute settlement.
Structure the investment through an entity of a treaty partner if treaty protection is a goal, and document the holding before any dispute arises.
On a dispute, send the treaty notice to the contracting entity and copy the MEF as coordinator, since the law makes the MEF the State's central point.
Respect cooling off and notice periods in the specific treaty before filing.
After an award, enforce under ICSID art. 54 or, for non ICSID awards, through recognition under DL Nº 1071 art. 74 to 78 and the New York Convention.

Common traps

ICSID only hears disputes where both sides consented in writing; Peru's membership alone is not consent, so check the treaty or contract.
Under Constitution art. 63, State contracts with domiciled foreigners default to Peruvian courts and a waiver of diplomatic claims unless an arbitration or treaty route is agreed.
ICSID enforcement does not override State immunity from execution (art. 55), so plan collection against commercial assets.
Argentina applies the New York Convention only on a reciprocity and commercial basis, so cross border awards between Peruvian and Argentine parties should come from a seat in a Convention State and concern commercial matters.

Sources

← Claims against the State in Peru: administrative litigation, public procurement arbitration and dispute boards, and collecting judgmentsInsolvency and creditor claims in Peru: the INDECOPI concursal procedure, filing thresholds, the stay, creditor meetings and ranking →

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