Using the Spanish present perfect subjunctive after esperar que to express a completed action in the future

"Esperar que..." (to hope that...) can be followed by El Pretérito Perfecto Subjuntivo to express the hope that something will have happened, as a completed action in the future.

Read and listen to these examples:

Espero que hayas tomado tu decisión antes de la fecha acordada.I hope you will have made your decision by/before the agreed date.

Esperamos que hayáis encontrado lo que buscáis para entonces.We hope you will have found what you're looking for by then.

Ella espera que yo ya haya cobrado el lunes próximo.She hopes I will have been paid by next Monday.

You will generally find a future reference in these sentences (unless it has been mentioned before and it is omitted.)

Future references in the examples above:

  • "para entonces(by then)
  • "antes de la fecha acordada(before the agreed date)
  • "el lunes próximo" (next Monday)

The action that is hoped to have been finished/achieved is an action completed within that future reference.

For other uses of "esperar que..." see also:

 

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Examples and resources

Espero que hayas tomado tu decisión antes de la fecha acordada.I hope you will have made your decision by/before the agreed date.
Esperamos que hayáis encontrado lo que buscáis para entonces.We hope you will have found what you're looking for by then.
Ella espera que yo ya haya cobrado el lunes próximo.She hopes I will have been paid by next Monday.
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