My advice would be to plan on it taking longer and being more expensive than you're told. I was told signing, sending, and registering the POA would take about 2-3 weeks. The post-nup (the separation of communal property and the custody agreement) would be 2-3 weeks. Then the divorce itself would be 2-3 months. I figured it would take about 3-5 months for the whole thing, but of course there are always some missing documents that you are told to get or other factors that make it take longer. I would double the time you're told it will take. Doubling the time gives me 6-10 months so I'll be happy if the divorce is done by then.
We got divorced in Korea in January 2014, but decided to get divorced again in Peru because it was easier than registering our divorce (exequatur). I live in Korea and he lives in Peru. We have communal property (which I will be signing over to him) and a daughter (I will get full custody and no child support or alimony).
Since we had an amicable divorce and fulfilled all the requirements we were able to do divorcio rapido. Before we were able to start the divorce we had to do a post-nup (the separation of communal property and the custody agreement).
*I did not have to go to Peru to do any of this since I hired a lawyer and gave him power of attorney.*
January 2015
- 4th week: Signed the POA (power of attorney) at the Peruvian embassy in Seoul and sent it to my lawyer.
- 4th week: My lawyer received the POA.
- 4th week: The POA was apostillised at RREE in Lima.
- 1st week: The POA was registered in Peru.
- 3rd week: My ex couldn't figure out how to get our daughter's birth certificate so I had to send it to him. FYI here is how to get a Peruvian birth certificate for a Peruvian born abroad. Our daughter had already been registered at the Peruvian Embassy in Seoul. This was needed for the concilicion (custody agreement).
- 3rd week: Birth certificates arrived in Peru.
- 5th week: The concilacion (custody agreement) and separaciones de bienes (separation of communal property (aka the post-nup) were signed. We were told we would have to wait 3 weeks until it was registered and then sign the divorce papers.
- 2nd week: The concilacion (custody agreement) was registered.
- 4th week: The separaciones de bienes (separation of communal property (aka the post-nup) was rejected. The registration for the apartment is still pending since I was a foreigner when we bought it but now I'm a Peruvian citizen (I got Peruvian citizenship in January 2009. I have dual citizenship with the USA and Peru, but in Peru's eyes I'm Peruvian.). They are requesting documentation that connects my CE, my American name, and my American nationality with my DNI, my Peruvian name, and my Peruvian nationality.
- 4th week: A copy of my POA (power of attorney) was issues from the Public Record Office. This will be taken to immigration to get the paper to prove I am the same person I was when I got married.
- 5th week: Immigration issued a paper proving that I am the same person I was when I got married. It shows the connection between my CE, American passport, DNI, and Peruvian passport.
- 3rd week: My ex's lawyer said that they need a paper proving that my current DNI is connected to my old DNI. In December 2014 I put in the paperwork to change my DNI in order to avoid running up more fines for not voting. In March 2015 I got my new DNI from the Peruvian embassy in Seoul.
- 4th week: The separaciones de bienes (separation of communal property (aka the post-nup) got approved.
- 4th week: Divorce papers were signed. Supposedly we should only have to wait 2-3 months until the final decree comes through.
