Online School & Homeschool in Peru

Live online Cambridge IGCSE, A-Level, Pearson Edexcel, IB Diploma, and American AP for mining, corporate, agro-export, and Peruvian families across Lima, Arequipa, Cusco, Trujillo, and Piura. Educación básica regular is compulsory under Ley 28044, so we work alongside your school. We teach eight hours ahead, so our classes land in the Peruvian morning — the free half of the day for turno tarde students.

From USD 423/month. Small live classes 4-6 students, Cambridge / IB / American AP through to A-Level — morning teaching, Spanish kept alongside.

Where our Peru families are

Smartious Peru families concentrate across Lima (the corporate and financial capital with a long-established international tier and substantial IB presence), Arequipa and the southern mining belt (Cerro Verde and the Moquegua operations in one of the world's largest copper-producing countries), Cusco and the Sacred Valley (a tourism economy of global scale with an international resident community and no international schooling), Trujillo and the northern agro corridor (asparagus, blueberries and avocado for global supermarkets), and Piura and Talara (a refinery, offshore fields, and a fruit-export industry over a thousand kilometres from the capital). One compulsory framework, one morning teaching window, and a school system built around turnos that happens to fit it.

Homeschool laws and regulation in Peru

Peru's framework is administered on three levels — national, regional, and local — which shapes both what we can say and where families should confirm it. Here is the structure.

The governing statute and the administering bodies

The Ley General de Educación N° 28044 governs the Peruvian system, with MINEDU as the national authority. Delivery is administered through the regional Direcciones Regionales de Educación and the local Unidades de Gestión Educativa Local — the UGEL — which authorise and supervise institutions in their jurisdiction. That three-level structure matters practically: the body a family actually deals with is usually their UGEL, and it is the right place to confirm anything specific to their circumstances.

What is compulsory

Educación básica regular — comprising the inicial, primaria, and secundaria levels — is compulsory. We state it that way rather than quoting an age range, because the boundaries are the kind of detail that should be read from the current instruments rather than taken from a provider's article, and MINEDU or your UGEL will confirm them for your child's situation.

Two provisions families ask about

First, Ley 28044 recognises educación a distancia as a modality of the education system, applicable across levels. That is real, and it is not a homeschooling route: whether and how it applies to a particular child, and which providers are recognised within it, is a matter for MINEDU and the UGEL rather than for us, and Smartious does not claim to operate inside it. Second, Peru operates Educación Básica Alternativa for people who did not complete their studies at the corresponding age, with its own eligibility rules — it is not a parental-choice route for a school-age child. We mention both because families encounter them and reasonably wonder.

Home education: what we can and cannot say

We are not aware of an established parental-choice home-education route in Peruvian law, and we phrase it in exactly those terms rather than asserting a categorical prohibition we cannot fully evidence. A family whose plan turns on the point should confirm the current position with MINEDU and their UGEL. What is unrestricted is structured education alongside a school enrolment, and that is the configuration we build throughout.

What we are, and are not

Private institutions in Peru operate with authorisation through the UGEL and DRE structure. Smartious does not hold Peruvian authorisation, does not operate premises in Peru, and does not present itself as an alternative to an authorised institution. The qualifications we deliver carry Cambridge, Pearson Edexcel, IB, or AP validity; the Peruvian recognition belongs to your school. We state that as plainly here as we do in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Ghana, and the DRC.

The timezone, and the school day that rescues it

We teach from Nairobi at UTC+3 and Peru runs PET at UTC-5 with no daylight saving, so the gap is a fixed eight hours — the same as Colombia and one hour better than Mexico. That means our teaching lands in the Peruvian morning and Both after-school and morning blocks are available, since we run two teaching teams in different time zones. What makes it workable is the Peruvian school day itself: schools commonly run turno mañana and turno tarde, so a student on the afternoon shift has mornings entirely free, which is exactly our window. Families whose child is in turno mañana should talk to us before enrolling so we can be realistic about which subjects and days are possible.

Why Peru families choose Smartious

Morning teaching that fits the turno tarde

Eight hours ahead means our classes land in the Peruvian morning — the free half of the day for afternoon-shift students, and the natural slot for full-time ones.

The mining south served like the mining world

Arequipa and the southern belt sit in the same live classes as Antofagasta, the Copperbelt, Kolwezi, and Botswana's diamond towns — one cohort, one subject spine.

The regions reached at all

Cusco, Trujillo and Piura run global tourism, agro-export and refinery economies with close to no international schooling.

Cambridge A-Levels in an IB-weighted market

Lima is well served for the IB and thinner on A-Levels — which is what UCAS reads most directly.

Honest about the eight-hour gap

We lead with it, explain which patterns work, and tell turno mañana families to talk to us before enrolling.

Honest about authorisation

We are not an authorised Peruvian institution and do not claim Peruvian recognition. We work alongside a school that has it.

Fees and admission

From USD 423/month for Primary, payable termly; varies by curriculum and level. One-to-one tuition: USD 15/hour.

Frequently asked questions

Is homeschooling legal in Peru?

Educación básica regular — inicial, primaria and secundaria — is compulsory under the Ley General de Educación N° 28044, and we are not aware of an established parental-choice home-education route. We put it in those terms rather than asserting a flat prohibition — confirm with MINEDU and your UGEL. Structured study alongside a school enrolment is unrestricted.

What about educación a distancia under Ley 28044?

It is recognised as a modality of the education system across levels, and it is not a homeschooling route. Whether it applies to a particular child, and which providers are recognised within it, is a matter for MINEDU and the UGEL. We state it factually and do not claim to operate inside it.

Is Smartious an authorised Peruvian institution?

No, and we say so plainly. Private institutions operate with authorisation through the UGEL and DRE structure. We work alongside a Peruvian school that holds it, and teach Cambridge, Edexcel, IB and AP qualifications.

Eight hours behind — how does the timetable work?

Our classes land in the Peruvian morning, not the afternoon. For students in turno tarde that is the free half of the day and it works cleanly; for full-time learners mornings are natural anyway. It does not work after school, and turno mañana families should talk to us before enrolling.

Why Cambridge when Lima has a strong IB presence?

Because A-Levels are what UK admissions through UCAS reads most directly, and Peru's market is weighted toward the IB and the American curriculum. Families targeting Britain often find no local A-Level route.

We are posted at a mine in the south — what are the options?

Historically boarding in Lima. Live teaching reaches Arequipa, Moquegua, and the operations, and continues unchanged to the next posting — Chile, Canada, Australia, or elsewhere.

Where do Peruvian students sit Cambridge examinations?

At authorised provision confirmed per family per session — Lima first, with regional options in Arequipa and travel planned ahead from Cusco, Trujillo, and Piura.

Which parts of Peru does Smartious cover?

Lima, Arequipa and the southern mining belt, Cusco and the Sacred Valley, Trujillo and the northern agro corridor, and Piura and Talara have dedicated pages. Live online delivery works identically anywhere in the country.

Guides for families in this country

What parents say

Rated 4.9 out of 5 on Google from 130+ reviews. Read our Google reviews

“Smartious Homeschooling delivers genuinely effective one-on-one instruction. The teachers are patient, consistent, and skilled at identifying and addressing each learner's specific academic gaps. Since enrolling, our child has become more confident, enjoys lessons, and is now performing above grade level. For families in Nairobi seeking a dependable, academically rigorous homeschooling programme with personalised support, Smartious is a standout choice.” — Allan H., Google review