This study seeks to gauge the extent to which temporary contracts function as stepping stones to permanent contracts and to distinguish intrafirm from interfirm contract conversions. Using 2012–2016 data from a Peruvian matched employer–employee database, the authors propose several measures of contract conversion and estimate duration models. Their findings show that only 7 per cent of fixed‐term contracts are converted and that about half of the conversions occur in the same firm.