Peruvians in Chile

A large number of immigrants to Chile in general have been Peruvian. The proximity of the two countries lowers travel costs and enables immigrants to maintain ties with family members in Peru. The common language also encourages migration to Chile, rather than to the United States or Japan.

Countries of destination for Peruvian emigration^[2]

Destination	Percentage of total emigrants
United States	31.5
Spain	16.0
Argentina	14.3
Italy	10.1
Chile	8.8
Japan	4.1
Venezuela	3.8

Many Peruvian immigrants of the 1990s are the second or third generation descendants of indigenous peoples who moved from the countryside to Peru’s urban centers during the agricultural crisis of the 1960s.^[3] Throughout the decade of the nineties, the Peruvian government under Alberto Fujimori saw an increase in poverty, with 54% of Peru’s population below the poverty line. During the period of 1980-1993, terrorist violence in the country had also resulted in about half a million displaced persons.^[4]