Blog · Schools
Peru's School Phone Ban: What Schools Need to Know in 2026
Yes. Ley 32385, published in June 2025, restricts students' phone use during classes and school activities in public and private primary and secondary schools. Its regulation, Decreto Supremo 018-2026-MINEDU, was published in October 2026 and sets the details.
Ley 32385 covers primary and secondary education in public and private schools, including special and alternative basic education. Phones are restricted during classes and school activities, including those off campus or outside normal hours. Exceptions need the head teacher's or teacher's authorisation: curriculum-linked learning, removing learning barriers, documented health needs or disability, and emergencies.
The law was published in El Peruano on 13 June 2025. Its reglamento, Decreto Supremo 018-2026-MINEDU, was published in early October 2026. Schools must add the rules to their internal regulations at their first annual update of management documents, and put signs at entrances. UGELs supervise compliance and regional education directorates oversee them.
Schools may set up custody areas if they have the means. Staff must protect devices and not access personal content. Phones go back at the end of the school day; for serious or repeated breaches they are returned to parents. Each school sets corrective measures, which must be formative, proportionate and gradual. The aims include better attention and protecting mental health.
Whatever Ley 32385 and its reglamento require, lockable pouches let students keep their own phone, locked, from the first bell to the last, so colegios do not collect, store or answer for devices. Before The Internet ships lockable phone pouches and unlocking bases worldwide, including to Peru, and can print the school's name or crest on them. Schools buy them outright: one price, no subscription, lease or per-student annual licence. Send us your student numbers and any written quote you already have, and we will beat it.
Frequently asked questions
Does the rule apply to private colegios?
Yes. Ley 32385 and its reglamento apply to public and private schools offering primary and secondary education across the country.
Can a school keep a confiscated phone?
Only for the school day. Phones are returned at the end of the day, or to parents for serious or repeated breaches, and staff must not access their content.
What exemptions are allowed?
Authorised teaching use, removing learning barriers, documented health conditions or disability, and emergencies that put a student's safety at risk.
Related reading
School phone bans by country · Phone-free schools toolkit · How to roll out phone pouches in a school
Written by the team at Before The Internet, a Toronto-based phone-free company that rents lockable phone pouches for events across North America and sells them to schools and venues worldwide, shipping purchases to any country.
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