Half of the Venezuelans in Peru have advanced degrees

A dangerous stereotype involving migrant populations is that they come from poorer backgrounds without education. The relative suddenness of the crisis in once-prosperous Venezuela, however, has turned that viewpoint on its head.

According to numbers recently released by Peru’s Immigration Office, half of the 368,000 Venezuelans that have migrated in recent years to Peru have advanced degrees like Master’s or a doctorate. Immigration boss Eduardo Sevilla told state-run news agency Andina that this provides a boost to Peru’s workforce since such a large percentage of the Venezuelans fleeing from their collapsing homeland clearly have high skills in an assortment of areas.

“The story has shown us that the migrant has contributed, does contribute and will continue to contribute to the development of the country,” Sevilla told Andina. “That’s why there must first exist a flexible, dynamic and realistic rule that gives them easy ways to regulate themselves.

With temporary permits, Venezuelans have been allowed to receive temporary work visas in Peru that last anywhere from two months to one year. So far, more than 60,000 Venezuelans have received temporary work visas in their adopted country.

The other 50 percent of Venezuelans in Peru that do not have advanced degrees are students still in college, career workers with an expertise, entrepreneurs and children, Sevilla added.

In 2017, he said that 70 percent of Venezuelans aged 25 to 50 had a professional title.

A quarter of newly nationalized Peruvian citizens are of Venezuelan origin, the immigration director noted. Because many Peruvians immigrated to Venezuela in the 1970s and 1980s when Peru had economic troubles of its own, there are a sizable amount of citizens who hold dual-nationality between both Peru and Venezuela.

“Now those kids have returned to Peru exercising their right and opting for the nationality of their father or mother,” Sevilla noted. “That is very important to consider because it’s not a cold statistic of chosen nationality but a matter of Peruvian blood that gives these young people the right to opt for the nationality of their parents.”