Interpol - Ficha de Canje Internacional

All foreigners must present the "Ficha de Canje Internacional" to Migraciones when changing their immigration status, for example, from a temporary visa or temporary authorization (for example, tourist) to another temporary or residence visa or from one resident permit type to another. So, before you can even start any temporary or resident visa application process in Peru, you first have to get the Interpol clearance done.

Content overview

• What is the Ficha de Canje
• Interpol offices in Peru
• How to pay the fee for the Interpol clearance
• How to make an appointment at Interpol
• Required documents for your Interpol clearance
• Interpol Visit
• Additional record check for US, Canadian and Australian citizens

What is the Ficha de Canje

The Ficha de Canje Internacional is a document issued by Interpol (The International Criminal Police Organization) certifying that a person isn’t an internationally wanted fugitive, so hasn’t an international wanted persons notice (Red Notice).

Getting the Ficha de Canje Internacional is contrary to popular opinion an easy process, at least if you know how it’s done, can reach the website for the online appointments and are lucky enough that there are free appointments.

Please note: The Ficha de Canje issued by Interpol in Peru and the criminal background check (Antecedentes policiales, penales and judiciales in Peru) issued in your home country and proving the lack of any police, criminal or judicial record are two different documents. Both documents are required by Migraciones, for example, to apply for a residence visa in Peru. You find more information on how to fullfil the Antecedentes requirement in our article "International document corresponding to the Antecedentes policiales, penales and judiciales in Peru".

International document corresponding to the Antecedentes policiales, penales and judiciales in Peru

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One of the requirements to apply for a resident visa in Peru or to change your visa type, for example from a work visa to a permanent resident visa...

Interpol offices in Peru

While for years Interpol was only located in Lima, now there are offices in the provinces as well making it easier for those living far from Lima and giving those that can’t get an appointment in the capital in a timely manner the option to try it elsewhere.

• Interpol office in Lima: Av. Manuel Olguin block 6, Monterrico, Surco
• Interpol office in Arequipa: Seguridad de Estado, Calle San Francisco 214, Arequipa
• Interpol office in Chiclayo: Segunda Macro región Policial, Calle Manco Capac 205, Chiclayo
• Interpol office in Cusco: Complejo Policial 6 de Diciembre, Av. 28 de Julio, Wanchaq, Cusco
• Interpol office in Piura: Division de Investigación Criminal, Complejo Policial Carretera Panamericana Piura-Sullana km 2.5
• Interpol office in Trujillo: Com. Policial Cap, Calle Toribio Mogrovejo 370, Urb. San Andres, Trujillo

How to pay the fee for the Interpol clearance

As with all administrative procedures in Peru, before you can make an appointment and apply, you first have to pay the corresponding fee either in person at a Banco de la Nacion branch or on the pagalo.pe website from a computer or with the pagalo.pe app from a smartphone or tablet.

You can find detailed explanations on how to pay, what you have to do and be aware of, how to register on the online payment platform and how to find the correct fee you have to pay, in our article "Paying administration charges and processing fees in Peru".

Paying administration charges and processing fees in Peru

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All administration charges, processing fees and fines government agencies, public authorities and entities levy in Peru have to be paid at the Banc...

For paying the Ficha de Canje Internacional (Interpol) you need the code 08141 (on págalo.pe you can find it under Policia Nacional del Peru); costs are S/ 31.50 (2024).

Once the payment is done, keep the receipt safe. You will need it when making the appointment.

How to make an appointment at Interpol

Appointments can only be booked on the Interpol website not in person anymore. Be aware that the website quite regularly only seems to load and work properly on workdays (Mo-Sa) and before 09.00 pm.

If you have problems that the page won't load or "hangs", reload the page and try again. Helpful as well using another browser and/or clearing your cache. Be aware that the Interpol appointment page only seems to work if you are in Peru. So, if you are in Peru, but use a VPN set in the another country switch it off. If you are outside Peru and want to book your appointment before coming to the country, use a VPN and select Peru. And to avoid further system errors, we highly recommend to not using a translation program, which automatically translates the page from Spanish to your preferred language, and switching off any ad blockers or an incognito mode you might use.

Be aware that especially in Lima, it can be difficult to get an appointment. At the moment (January 2024) Interpol releases new appointments every Saturday between 08.00 am and 12.00 pm.

So, to make an appointment enter the Interpol website and you will get to this page.

Just click on Registre su cita and you are directed to this page.

Now just fill in required fields:

• Nacionalidad (Nationality): In the drop-down list search for your home country. Be aware that the names are in Spanish, so you won't find US or United States, look for Estados Unidos (EEUU). Additionally, the countries aren't sorted alphabetically, so you might have to search a while until you find your home country.
• Tipo de documento (Type of document): Select the document with which you entered the country (most probably passport, so pasaporte).
• Numero de documento (Document number): Enter your passport number.
• Apellido paterno (Last name): Enter your last name.

Then click on Ingresar and you get to the Datos Personales page.

Fill in required fields:

• Nacionalidad (Nationality): already filled in
• Tipo de documento (Type of Document): already filled in
• Numero de documento (Document number): already filled in
• Calidad Migratoria (Immigration status): In the drop-down list select the immigration status you are applying for. So, if you want to apply for a family visa (cambio de calidad migratoria a familiar residente), choose Cambio a inmigrante por familiar residente or if you want to apply for a retirement visa select Cambio a rentista.
• Apellido paterno (Last name): already filled in
• Apellido materno (Second last name): This field is not obligatory. If you only have one last name, leave it blank. If you have a second last name enter it here.
• Nombre(s) (First name(s): Enter your first name(s) as in your passport.
• Sexo (Sex): Choose your sex; masculino (male) or feminino (female).
• Fecha de nacimiento (Birth date): Enter your birth date.
• Estado civil (Marital status): Choose your marital status; soltero (single), casado (married), divorciado (divorced) or viudo (widowed).
• Estatura (Height): Enter your height in meter.
• Peso (Weight): Enter your weight in full kg.
• Nombre de padre (Father's first name): Enter the first name of your father.
• Nombre de madre (Mother's first name): Enter the first name of your mother.
• Nombre de conyuge (Name of your spouse): This field is not obligatory, so you can leave it blank. If you want you can enter the name of your spouse.
• Nombre de empresa (Name of your company):This field is not obligatory, so you can leave it blank. If you want you can enter the company you are working for.

As soon as you have filled in all the required fields, check that your personal data is 100% correct. Then click on Siguiente and you get to this page.

Now enter your current address in Peru, best exactly as on the "recibo" (water or electricity bill) you should bring with you (see requirements below).

• Departmento (Department): Enter the department (region, state); for example: Lima, Cusco, La Libertad, Madre de Dios, ...)
• Provincia (Province): Enter the province; for example, Lima, Cusco, Trujillo, Tambopata, .....)
• Distrito (District): Enter the district; for example: Miraflores, Cusco, El Porvenir, Las Piedras, ...)
• Urbanizacion (Urbanization): This field isn't obligatory. You can enter here the area or housing development where you live.
• Direccion (address): Enter the street and house number where you live.

Below enter the last address in your home country.

• Estado o ciudad (State or city): Enter the state or city where you last lived in your home country.
• Direccion (address): Enter the street and house number where you last lived in your home country.

Once you are finished click on Siguiente and you get to the Programar Cita page.

Here first select where you paid the fee and then enter the required numbers

• Numero de secuencia
• Fecha de comprobante
• Numero de Cajero

from you pagalo.pe or Banco de la Nacion receipt.

Then choose where and when you want your appointment:

• Sede (Branch): Select the Interpol office; Lima, Arequipa, Cusco, Chiclayo, Trujillo or Piura.
• Fecha (Date): Choose a date.
• Horas (Time): Choose a time.

Then click on Generar cita. If you are lucky, everything goes smoothly, and you have your appointment. Download the appointment confirmation, print it (!) and keep it safe.

When choosing the Interpol office in Lima, it’s unfortunately not unheard of that no appointments are available at the moment. The only thing you can do is to try later, the next day, the day after that, … Interpol releases new appointments regularly, however with a changing schedule.

At the moment (January 2024) Interpol releases new appointments once a week on Saturdays between 08.00 am and 12.00 pm. So, try on Saturday morning. You might have to reload the page a few times (and clear your cache) until you are successful.

When time is an issue and you can't get an appointment in Lima, another option is to get your ficha at one of the Interpol offices in the provinces, where usually appointments are readily available.

Required documents for your Interpol clearance

• Application form (you get it at the office)
• Appointment confirmation (printed copy)
• Passport
• Photocopy of the passport page with the personal information and photo (*)
• (Entry stamp) / Printout of the TAM virtual (**)
• Passport photos (they are taken at the Interpol office for free)
• Payment receipt for the Interpol clearance (code 08141; fee S/ 31.50 as of 2024) and printed photocopy
• Even though not on the official requirement list some Interpol offices ask for a recibo, so a water or electricity bill, and printed photocopy proving your address (doesn't have to be in your name)
• Even though not on the official requirement list, a few of our readers reported that the Interpol office in Arequipa asks for a second identity document and copy (can be an ID card, driver's licence or similar from your home country)
• Black pen (a remnant from Covid times, most offices now provide pens, but in Peru it's always good to have your own on you)
• If you are applying for a family visa: official document that proves the family tie. For example:
  • If you are married to a Peruvian: photocopy of your Peruvian marriage certificate and photocopy of the spouse’s DNI (best have the originals with you as well)
  • If you are married to a foreigner with Peruvian residency: photocopy of your marriage certificate (with Apostille and translated into Spanish by a certified translator) and copy of the spouse’s carné (best have the originals with you as well)
• If you apply for other temporary or resident visas: even though not on the official requirements list, sometimes Interpol, especially in the provinces, seemingly randomly asks to see the document proving the basis for your visa application. For example: if you apply for a work visa, Interpol may ask for a photocopy of the work contract; or if you apply for a retirement visa, they may ask for a photocopy of the letter from your pension fund; or if you apply for a student visa, they may ask for a photocopy of the enrollment certificate or the official letter from the Peruvian host university, etc.
• If you are already a resident, Carné de extranjería and photocopy of it
• If you are a US American national: an international money order, a so called “Giro sobre el exterior” or at BCP branches known as "Giro Miami" for the amount of US$ 18.00, made out to "The Treasury of the USA" (you are supposed to get it at any BCP branch) and photocopy of it (***)
• If you are a Canadian national: an international money order, a so called "Giro sobre el exterior" for the amount of CAD$ 26,75, made out to "The Receiver General for Canada" (you are supposed to get it at any BCP branch) and photocopy of it  (***)
• If you are an Australian national: an international money order, a so called "Giro sobre el exterior" for the amount of AU$ 99.00, made out to "The Australian Federal Police"  (you are supposed to get it at any BCP branch) and photocopy of it (***)

Explanatory notes

(*)

Usually Interpol asks you to write your address and phone number on the photocopy of your passport and sign it.

(**)

Since May 2023, you don't get an entry stamp anymore when entering Peru. As a copy of the page with your entry stamp was and officially still is a requirement Interpol sometimes asks for a proof that you are legally in the country and when you entered. So, just download your TAM virtual on the Migraciones website to fullfil the requirement. For more information about the TAM (virtual) check out our article How many days did I get when entering Peru?. Under subpoint "Option 1: Migraciones website" you find a detailed explanation on how to download the TAM virtual.

(***)

Please note: Starting July 2024, we got comments from a few of our US American and Canadian readers, who applied for the Ficha de Canje at the Interpol office in Lima and Arequipa, informing us that they didn't need the money order anymore. They just presented the original and a copy of their "FBI Criminal Record Check" / "RCPM Certified Criminal Record Check” with Apostille and official translation (needed for the visa application) and were fine. As the money order is still on the requirement list for US Americans, Canadians and Australians, we are not sure if this requirement hopefully is finally a thing of the past or if the experiences of the readers, who contacted us, were just isolated cases where an Interpol official forgot to ask for it.

Getting the money order is and always has been a mission. In Peru it is officially called "Giro sobre el exterior”, but at BCP branches commenly known as "Giro Miami". Here an example on how it looks.

According to official sources you should be able to get the money order at any (!) BCP branch; unfortunately that isn't true, some BCP branches doesn't even seem to not know about it or are only willing to issue it to BCP clients. However, according to reader reports the BCP branch on Av. Larco 611 in Miraflores, the one on Av. Pardo y Aliaga 1203-1207 in Lima and the one next to the La Rambla Mall in San Borja are familiar with issuing the money order and you shouldn't have any problem getting it done there, while at the BCP branch in La Molina it's a hit and miss.

In Cusco, one reader was able to get the money order at the BCP office on Avenida del Sol.

As regulations may change quickly without prior notice and depend on your nationality, procedures in your home country and the visa type you are applying for in Peru, we highly recommend confirming the above requirements and amounts with the Interpol office or online shortly before your visit.

Interpol Visit

On the day of your Interpol appointment, arrive at the office 15 to 30 minutes early with all required documents and without accompanying persons (only handicapped persons are allowed to enter the office with one adult for support).

Especially in Lima, the situation in front of the office sometimes seems chaotic. However, the staff is usually friendly and helpful; some English is spoken; the process is quite organized.

So, when you arrive at the Interpol office just proceed to the gate, where a guard checks your appointment confirmation and hands you the form you have to fill in. You are then directed to the waiting area. In Lima (the process in the provinces may be different) just sit down on the first free seat and move one seat forward each time the first person gets up to proceed to an officer. Once it's your turn, hand in your documents.

The officer quickly checks your documents and then sends you to get a photo taken. After that, you are sent to have your teeth visually examined. And then your fingerprints are taken. That's it.

While for many months the check Interpol does before issuing the Ficha de Canje Internacional took an hour or so and you could pick up the document later on the same day, the Ficha is now issued immediately. So no waiting and returning later anymore.

US, Canadian and Austrialian passport holders be aware that especially in some Interpol offices in the provinces you might be sent to the postal office nearby during the appointment to send the documentation for an additional check to the US, Canada, Australia and then return with the receipt before getting their Ficha.

With the Ficha in hand, you now can start your temporary or resident visa application process.

Additional record check for US, Canadian and Australian citizens

Please note: Starting July 2024, we got comments from a few of our US American and Canadian readers, who applied for the Ficha de Canje at the Interpol office in Lima and Arequipa, informing us that they didn't need the money order anymore. They just presented the original and a copy of their "FBI Criminal Record Check" / "RCPM Certified Criminal Record Check” with Apostille and official translation (needed for the visa application anyway) and were fine. As the money order is still on the requirement list for US Americans, Canadians and Australians, we are not sure if this requirement hopefully is finally a thing of the past or if the experiences of the readers, who contacted us, were just isolated cases where an Interpol official forgot to ask for it. So, until we get official information if the requirements really change, we leave the explanation for the additional criminal record check below:

If you are a citizen of the US, Canada or Australia, an additional criminal record check from the federal police body of your home country (for example, the FBI) is required. For this, the above-mentioned international money order is needed. This check has nothing to do with issuing the ficha de canje necessary for your visa application at Migraciones and the approval of your visa; if something serious comes up, your record is tagged, and you might be detained as soon as you leave the country.

Be aware, that Interpol asks you to send an envelope with your documents to the FBI (for US citizens), the RCMP (for Canadian citizens) or the AFP (for Australian citizens). A few of our readers, who applied for the Ficha at an Interpol office in the provinces, were sent to the postal office nearby during the appointment and had to return with the receipt before getting their Ficha.

Additionally, getting the results back may take many weeks or even months and the criminal record check you get does not meet the criminal record check requirements from Migraciones and does not have an Apostille on it. So, waiting to get this check back and use it for the "Antecedentes" requirement to apply for a residence visa is not recommended and additionally counterproductive as you most probably will run out of time on your stay as a tourist before you get the document and have it sent abroad and returned with Apostille.

So, better come prepared to Peru bringing your criminal record check already with you (you still will need the money order and the additional check for Interpol) or, if you are already in Peru, apply for it on your own. You can find more information about the necessary criminal record check and how to get it in our article "International document corresponding to the Antecedentes policiales, penales and judiciales in Peru".

International document corresponding to the Antecedentes policiales, penales and judiciales in Peru

Legal Stuff

One of the requirements to apply for a resident visa in Peru or to change your visa type, for example from a work visa to a permanent resident visa...

And one of our readers, who is Australian, shared his experience, which might be useful for other Australians (and probably US Americans and Canadians as well):

"Hi again Eva.

Australian citizens.

Interpol clearance - Ficha de canje internacional additional finger print check by Australian Federal Police.

(Not to be confused with the Antecedentes policiales, penales y judiciales Police clearance certificate issued by the Australian Federal Police.)

When conducting the 'Ficha de canje internacional' interview, Interpol Peru will finger print Australians twice. Once for Peru and once for the Australian Federal Police. Interpol will ask Australians to fill out the second finger print form in English.

Interpol will instruct you to send this form with the AUD$99.00 international money order to the Australian Federal Police.

As Eva from Lima Easy kindly points out, this specific step is unrelated and not necessary for your residence application. Peru Migracciones only requires the Peruvian 'Ficha de canje internacional' and the criminal record check, not this additional check.

If you do as Interpol requests and send the additional finger print form and AUD$99.00 money order to the Australian Federal Police you will receive an email from the Australian Federal Police stating:

> To be able to process your application we require you to complete the attached application form and email back to us along with additional identification to make a minimum of 100 points. We also require credit card details as the fee is $99.00 Australian dollars and we cannot accept the cheque you have supplied. We also require an official English translation of the fingerprints you have supplied (attached) as all the labels must be in English. (Some of the labels are in Spanish and some labels are in misspelt English.) You can email these documents back to us together so we can process your application. AFP

So in conclusion, this specific step is not necessary for the Peru residence application and the data provided by Interpol Peru and the Peruvian bank check in it's raw state, is not satisfactory for the Australian Federal Police.

So I guess use your own discretion if you bother proceeding with this step. One assumes Peru Interpol and Australian Federal Police need to coordinate on their requirements if this step is it be successful.

Good luck."