Peru Social Contributions Guide

ONP — Sistema Nacional de Pensiones (Public Pension)

• Employee contribution — 13%: The employee contributes 13% of the monthly salary to the ONP (the "Oficina de Normalización Previsional" — the public pension fund). The annual contribution is capped at the maximum of 1 UIT (Unidad Impositiva Tributaria) per year — approximately S/ 5,150 for the tax year 2026. The contribution is deducted directly from the employee's salary by the employer.
• Employer contribution — none: The employer does NOT make the separate contribution to the ONP. The 13% employee contribution is the only funding source for the ONP from the employed individuals. The employer is responsible for the withholding and the remittance to the SUNAT (the "Superintendencia Nacional de Aduanas y de Administración Tributaria").
• Defined benefit structure: The ONP is the "defined benefit" (the "prestación definida") system — the pension amount is calculated based on the "average salary" and the "years of contributions" rather than the individual account balance. The maximum pension is approximately 1 UIT (S/ 5,150) per month for 2026.
• Eligibility: The ONP requires the minimum of 20 years (240 months) of contributions to qualify for the "full pension" (the "pensión completa"). The reduced pension is available with 10 to 19 years of contributions. The pension age is 65 years for both men and women.

AFP — Sistema Privado de Pensiones (Private Pension)

• Employee contribution — 10% to individual account: The employee contributes 10% of the monthly salary to the individual account (the "Cuenta Individual de Capitalización" — the "CIC") at the chosen AFP. The contribution is capitalised in the individual account and invested in the "multifund" (the "Multifondo") — the investment fund with the risk profile selected by the member (the "Fondo 0" — the most conservative, the "Fondo 3" — the most aggressive).
• Insurance premium — 1.5%: The AFP member pays the "insurance premium" (the "prima de seguros") of approximately 1.5% of the monthly salary for the "disability and survivorship insurance" (the "Seguro de Invalidez y Sobrevivencia" — the "SIS"). The premium covers the disability pension and the survivor pension for the beneficiaries in the case of the death of the member.
• AFP commission — 1% to 2%: The AFP charges the "management commission" (the "comisión de administración") for the administration of the individual account. The commission varies by the AFP — typically between 1% and 2% of the monthly salary. The commission is calculated as the percentage of the "remuneración asegurable" (the "insurable salary") and is deducted from the AFP account.
• Total employee contribution — ~12.5% to 13%: The total employee contribution to the AFP system is approximately 12.5% to 13% of the monthly salary — 10% to the individual account + 1.5% insurance premium + 1% to 2% AFP commission. The employer does NOT contribute to the AFP.

ESSALUD — Seguro Social de Salud (Health Insurance)

• Employer contribution — 9%: The employer contributes 9% of the employee's monthly salary to the ESSALUD (the "Seguro Social de Salud" — the "Social Health Insurance"). The contribution is paid entirely by the employer with NO employee contribution for the health insurance. The ESSALUD provides the comprehensive health coverage including the medical consultations, the hospitalisation, the surgery, the maternity care, and the dental care.
• No employee health contribution: Unlike many countries where the employee shares the health insurance cost, Peru does NOT require the employee health contribution. The employee receives the full ESSALUD coverage without the salary deduction for the health insurance.
• Coverage for dependents: The ESSALUD coverage extends to the "beneficiaries" (the "derechohabientes") — the spouse or the domestic partner, the children under 18 (or up to 24 if in the full-time education), and the parents if they are the dependents. The employer's 9% contribution covers the employee and all the registered dependents.
• SIS (Seguro Integral de Salud): The individuals who are NOT covered by the ESSALUD (the self-employed, the unemployed, the informal workers) may enrol in the "SIS" (the "Seguro Integral de Salud" — the "Comprehensive Health Insurance") — the government-subsidised health insurance program. The SIS premiums range from the free coverage (the "SIS Gratuito" for the low-income individuals) to the S/ 50 to S/ 150 per month for the "SIS Independiente" (the "independent SIS").

FAQs

Can the employee choose between the ONP and the AFP?

Yes. The employee may choose between the ONP (the public pension system) and the AFP (the private pension system) at the start of the employment. The choice is irrevocable for the ONP members — the ONP members CANNOT switch to the AFP. The AFP members may switch to the ONP only under the limited circumstances (the "retorno" — the "return" option) subject to the specific conditions.

What is the contribution ceiling?

The ONP contribution is capped at the maximum of 1 UIT per year (approximately S/ 5,150 for 2026). The AFP contributions do NOT have the statutory cap — the 10% + 1.5% + commission apply to the full salary. However, the "insurable salary" (the "remuneración asegurable") for the AFP insurance premium is capped at approximately 85 UIT per year.

Are the contributions tax-deductible?

The ONP and AFP employee contributions are deductible from the "annual income tax" (the "Impuesto a la Renta" — the "IIT" at 8% to 30%). The ESSALUD employer contribution is deductible as the "business expense" for the employer's corporate income tax (the "Impuesto a la Renta Empresarial" at 29.5%).