They signed in Lima — but enforcement is not in Lima. Why?
Where an agreement was signed does not determine where it is enforced — what matters is where the child lives
📌 This is Part 2 of a three-part series on international family law:
Where a family agreement was signed does not determine where it is enforced. What determines the enforcement forum when minors are involved is the child's habitual residence — the country where the child lives. A Peruvian agreement has full legal value in Peru. If there are enforceable assets there, enforcement can be attempted in Peru. But if what is sought is compliance with measures directly affecting a child living in another country, that is the jurisdiction where action must be taken.
This is difficult for many people to understand — and completely understandably so. If they signed here, if the process took place here, if the notary is here — why isn't the non-compliance resolved here? The answer relates to a principle that international law establishes clearly and that most people only discover when they need it.
The principle that separates the place of signing from the place of enforcement
Where it was signed ≠ where it is enforced
In international family law, the place where the agreement was born — where the document was signed, where the notary intervened, where the conciliation was registered — does not determine where the obligations contained in that agreement must be enforced.
What determines the enforcement forum when minors are involved is the child's habitual residence.
This principle has a concrete logic: measures that directly affect a child — who has them, how visits are organized, who can see them and when — must be enforced and supervised by the authorities of the country where that child lives. Not by the authorities of the country where their parents signed a document years ago.
When can the agreement be enforced in Peru and when not?
When there are assets or enforceable connections in Peru — real estate, bank accounts, income, registrable assets that can be subject to precautionary or enforcement measures in Peruvian territory.
Example: claiming child support from someone who has income in Peru even if the child lives abroad.
If what is sought is compliance with measures directly affecting the child — custody, visitation regime, contact — and the child lives in another country, that agreement does not automatically apply there. It requires recognition in the country where enforcement is needed.
What does it mean that a Peruvian agreement requires recognition abroad?
It means that a court in the country where enforcement is needed must validate the Peruvian agreement for it to produce legal effects in its territory. This process is equivalent to exequatur in some systems.
The Peruvian agreement does not lose its legal value. It remains a valid and relevant document. But for it to generate enforceable obligations in another country — for a foreign court to be able to compel compliance — that other country needs to recognize it.
Enforcing child support is not the same as enforcing a visitation regime. Each may require a different route depending on the country where the other party and the child live. Strategy must be defined based on what needs to be enforced and where — not just who is legally right.
What routes exist to enforce a Peruvian agreement abroad?
Request that the court of the country where the other party or the child lives validates the Peruvian agreement for it to produce effects in its territory. Equivalent to exequatur in some systems. Requires an attorney in that country.
Initiate proceedings before the competent court of the country where the other party lives, using the Peruvian agreement as evidence and background of the prior agreement between the parties. This route may be more practical in countries that do not have recognition treaties with Peru.
The choice between routes depends on the country involved, applicable treaties, and the type of obligation to be enforced. There is no single answer.
For international law firms with cross-border enforcement cases
Dr. Miranda provides expert opinions on Peruvian law and coordinates with correspondent attorneys abroad for cases involving enforcement of Peruvian agreements outside Peru.
B2B inquiries: counsel@albertomiranda.org
Do you have an agreement signed in Peru and need to understand how to enforce it abroad?
Write to us. We will review your case and advise on how to correctly structure the process from where you are — before any commitment.
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Does where a family agreement was signed determine where it is enforced?
No. The place of signing does not determine the enforcement forum. What determines where measures affecting a minor are enforced is their habitual residence — the country where the child lives.
Does a conciliation agreement signed in Lima have legal value abroad?
It has full legal value in Peru. To produce effects abroad it requires judicial recognition in the country where enforcement is needed — equivalent to exequatur in some systems.
When can a Lima family agreement be enforced in Peru?
When there are assets or enforceable connections in Peru — property, bank accounts, income. If what is sought is compliance with measures affecting a minor living abroad, action must be taken in that State.
Is enforcing child support the same as enforcing a visitation regime?
No. Each may require a different route depending on the country and circumstances. Strategy must be defined based on what needs to be enforced and where.
Dr. Alberto Miranda, abogado peruano con oficina física en Lima, Perú, y más de 20 años de experiencia exclusiva en asesoría legal internacional. Especializado en representar a peruanos residentes en Estados Unidos, España, Italia, México, Canadá y otros países, resolviendo sus trámites legales en Perú sin que necesiten viajar. Su enfoque se centra en divorcios por mutuo acuerdo, matrimonios por poder, herencias y testamentos desde el extranjero, poderes consulares y exequátur de sentencias extranjeras. Miembro del Ilustre Colegio de Abogados de Lima y Miembro Honorario de la Asociación Europea de Abogados. Sus casos de éxito están documentados en cientos de reseñas 5 estrellas en Google, donde clientes reales confirman su profesionalismo, claridad y eficacia.