Cost of Living in Peru

Peru operates on a heavily cash-based economy outside of the wealthy districts in Lima.

• The Carné de Extranjería (CE): This is the foreigner ID card you receive upon getting a residence visa. You cannot open a real bank account without it.
• The Tourist Bank Bypass: Some banks (like Interbank) occasionally allow tourists to open a basic savings account using just a passport and a letter of permission from the Migraciones office, but this depends entirely on the mood of the bank teller that day.
• Yape: The Peruvian equivalent of Venmo. It is universally used, from paying for taxis to buying street food. However, you need a local bank account (or at least a DNI/CE) to use it, locking most tourists out of the primary local payment system.