PET — Peru Time
PET is Peru Time, -05:00, used in South America. In code, use America/Lima rather than the abbreviation.
Peru Time · South America
19:26:03
Wednesday, 12 August 2026
- abbreviation denotes
- -05:00
- in force right now
- UTC-05:00 (UTC-05:00)
- use in code
- America/Lima
- next clock change
- none — fixed offset
Right now this zone is on UTC-05:00, not PET —
they are the same place at different times of year.
Use the IANA name, not the abbreviation
Python
from datetime import datetime
from zoneinfo import ZoneInfo
# right: an IANA zone carries the full history of rule changes
now = datetime.now(ZoneInfo("America/Lima"))
print(now.isoformat(), now.tzname())
# wrong: an abbreviation is not resolvable, and a hard-coded offset
# silently rots the next time the rules change
# now = datetime.now(timezone(timedelta(hours=...))) # don'tPET questions
What does PET stand for?
PET is Peru Time, -05:00, used in South America. The IANA zone to use in code is America/Lima.
What time is it in PET right now?
Peru Time: 19:26 on Wednesday (UTC-05:00).
Which IANA timezone should I use instead of PET?
America/Lima for Peru Time. Date libraries cannot resolve bare abbreviations, and an abbreviation carries no daylight-saving history, so a stored offset silently rots when a government changes the rules.
Why does my computer show UTC-05:00 instead of PET?
Because America/Lima is currently on UTC-05:00 (UTC-05:00), its daylight-saving variant. PET (-05:00) applies during the other half of the year. Both names refer to the same place, one hour apart.