Peru & Australia

Our Story

The Australian Embassy is Australia’s diplomatic and consular mission to Peru and Bolivia.

The year 2023 marks 60 years since the Australian Embassy in Peru opened in 1963. We have always been committed to expanding Australia’s presence in Peru, doing so through a range of economic and productive activities, but also through people and relationships, mainly through the large number of young Peruvians who have studied in Australia.

In all these years, we formed a great bilateral relationship between both countries, full of stories and experiences that allowed both countries to grow and advance as nations. On this 60th anniversary of working together, we want to tell these stories that show that both societies share a lot of culture and passion for our countries.

611

million (AUD)

in bilateral trade 2021-2022.

90

companies

in Peru today.

1700

Peruvians

in Australian programmes by 2022.

40000

Australians

Viajan al Perú al año.

5000

Peruvians

travel to Australia annually.

Key Agreements

1

WORKING HOLIDAY VISAS

Working Holiday Visas: Work and Holiday Visas: 469 young people travelled to Australia on Work and Holiday visas in 2019.

2

PAFTA

Free Trade Agreement. This agreement came into force in 2020.

3

Educational
MoU

Surfing our history

This year marks 60 years of diplomatic history between Peru and Australia. This journey has taken us through historic moments that strengthen our relationship and augur well for the future.

1963 Diplomatic relations first began in March, during the democratic government of Fernando Belaunde.
1968 The first Australian Embassy in Peru opened and we operated for 23 consecutive years.
1975 This was the first visit by an Australian Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam, en route to the third Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in the Caribbean.
1986 The embassy in Peru was temporarily closed but diplomatic relations continued.
1999 The Australian Consulate General's office opens in Peru and Austrade is headed by a Consul General. Since that year, Austrade's work and validity remain uninterrupted.
2008 Lima hosts APEC for the first time and Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd visits Peru, announcing the reopening of the embassy a few years later.
2010 Re-opening of the Australian Embassy in Peru and correspondingly in Bolivia, after 24 years of absence.
2018 Diana Nelson is appointed as Australia's third ambassador to Peru, Australia's first female ambassador to Peru, with a focus on fostering Australian collaboration on women's empowerment..
2020 PAFTA. The Peru-Australia Free Trade Agreement enters into force, involving SMEs in the trade agreement for the first time in history.
2022 The first bilateral visit since 2016 was conducted by Tim Watts, Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism.
2023 Australia and Peru commemorate 60 years of diplomatic relations.