Company Sponsorship

Company sponsorship is required as a FIRST STEP in order for a foreigner who wants to work in Indonesia to be issued a work permit/visa. This sponsorship is required BEFORE a semi-permanent visa and work permit can be processed.

Vitas or VBS - Limited Stay Visa or Semi-permanent Residence Visa

Once the TA01 recommendation has been approved, the VITAS must be applied for, for the working spouse and his dependent family, at the Indonesian Immigration office in the intended city of residence. Upon approval, the Indonesian Immigration office will send a telex approval to the Indonesian Embassy where the foreigner and his dependent family want to pick up the approval and to get the VITAS/VBS stamped into their passports.

This VBS visa stamp permits your entry into Indonesia. Within 3 days of your arrival in Indonesia, you and your dependent family members must go to the Immigration office to report your arrival "lapor diri" and complete the necessary paperwork. Failure to do this within 3 days will constitute a violation of your status, a legal hassle that can only be overcome through a visit to the courts and will incur large fines. So don't delay your initial trip to the Immigration office to report your arrival. At the immigration office, you will be called to take a full set of fingerprints and to sign various documents and provide at least four 2 x 3 cm color photographs.

TA01 Recommendation

After the RPTKA has been approved, the TA01 recommendation has to be applied for at the Department of Manpower in order to get a temporary residence visa. The original approval letter on the TA01 recommendation will be needed to apply for the VITAS or VBS (Visa Tinggal Terbatas).

The RPTKA & TA01 recommendation are only necessary for foreigners working in Indonesia. Dependent family members; accompany spouse and children up to 17 years old will be under the sponsorship of the working spouse. Dependent family members are only entitled to stay with the working spouse/parent - this visa does NOT entitle them to work. If a spouse is also working in Indonesia he/she will have to apply for a separate Work Permit and independent Stay Permit from their sponsoring company.

Indonesian Visas

To read the Indonesian government's description of the various visas, see Consular and Visa Services on the Foreign Ministry web site. http://www.deplu.go.id/

List of Most Common Immigration Fees (9/2008as per Peraturan Pemerintah nomor 19 tahun 2007

Visas

- Visa Kunjungan (SosBud, Business...etcvalid for 60 days: USD 45
- Visa Kunjungan Beberapa kali Perjalanan (SosBud 12 months): USD 100
- Visa Tinggal Terbatas 6 months: USD50
- Visa Tinggal Terbatas 12 months: USD100
- Visa Tinggal Terbatas 24 months: USD175

2.Izin Keimigrasian

- Sosbud Visa/business visa extension: IDR 250,000 per extension, 30 days.
- Izin Tinggal Terbatas or extension:
6 months: IDR 350,000
1 year: IDR 700,000
2 years: IDR 1,200,000

3.Izin Masuk Kembali (for KITAS/KITAP holder)

Single exit: IDR 200,000
Multiple exit for 6 months: IDR 600,000
Multiple exit for 1 year: IDR 1,000,000
Multiple exit for 2 years: IDR 1,750,000

4.Overstay: IDR 200,000 per day

Source: Peraturan Pemerintah nomor 19 tahun 2007 - see article IV to IX for immigrations related fees

The above fees are the official ones as of 9/2008. If you keep all your papers in order and are up to date with all necessary document renewals and taxes/fees, and follow the proper procedures, then that it is what you will pay if you do the paperwork yourself (in person). Service companies may charge you in between 3 to 10 times the official fees to cover their services. Considering the hassle of dealing with a new bureaucracy in a foreign language, this fee may be worth it. Long-timers who speak fluent Bahasa Indonesia may be able to (and choose tohandle the bureacracy themselves.

Vitas or VBS - Limited Stay Visa or Semi-permanent Residence Visa

Once the TA01 recommendation has been approved, the VITAS must be applied for, for the working spouse and his dependent family, at the Indonesian Immigration office in the intended city of residence. Upon approval, the Indonesian Immigration office will send a telex approval to the Indonesian Embassy where the foreigner and his dependent family want to pick up the approval and to get the VITAS/VBS stamped into their passports.

This VBS visa stamp permits your entry into Indonesia. Within 3 days of your arrival in Indonesia, you and your dependent family members must go to the Immigration office to report your arrival "lapor diri" and complete the necessary paperwork. Failure to do this within 3 days will constitute a violation of your status, a legal hassle that can only be overcome through a visit to the courts and will incur large fines. So don't delay your initial trip to the Immigration office to report your arrival. At the immigration office, you will be called to take a full set of fingerprints and to sign various documents and provide at least four 2 x 3 cm color photographs.

KITAS Card or Limited Stay Permit Card and Blue book/POA or Foreigner Registration

When all the paperwork on your Vitas visa is done, you will be issued a Limited Stay Permit - Kartu Izin Tinggal Terbatas, better known as a KITAS card for the working expatriate and each dependent for a one year period. The predecessor to the KITAS was the KIM/S. People still erroneously refer to the limited stay permit as a KIM/S.

In order to avoid the risk of losing the original KITAS card and the resulting hassle, many expatriates keep the original at home in a safe place and carry only a photocopy.

With your KITAS you will also receive a blue Foreigner's Registration and Change book, commonly referred to as the Buku Mutasi. It's a similar size as a passport. The blue book tracks changes in your immigration status. All changes of address, marital status, new children, etc. need to be notified to the Immigration Office and recorded in this book within a timely period.

This is a valuable document and should be kept safely. The KITAS card and blue book allow you to live in Indonesia for one year and may be renewed annually, up to two extensions without having to leave the country.

The cost of the KITAS issuance is Rp 350.000 for a 6 months KITAS, Rp 700.000 for a 1 year KITAS, and Rp 1.200.000 rupiah for a 2 years KITAS (9/08).

Advice from one applicant on documents needed to apply for a KITAS without paying any bribes:

1. Fotocopy of RPTKA and IMTA (2x each)
2. Fill out the three forms obtained at the immigration office (if I remember correctly form 22, 23 and 26). I got the forms for a fee of Rp. 10000 One of the forms is the “surat permintaan dan jaminan” and has to have a meterai tax stamp on it
3. Surat permohonan (sponsor letter) (2x)
4. Fotocopy of the KTP of the sponsor (2x)
5. Fotocopy of all nonempty pages of the blue book (2x) and original blue book
6. Fotocopy of *all* pages of the passport (2x) and original
7. Fotocopy of KITAS (2x) and original
8. When receiving the new KITAS, paying the fee of Rp. 700,000 for which you will get a receipt. This is actually the only fee to be paid (except for the file and the forms). When I was asked to pay additional “administrative fees”, I always asked for a receipt, and if there was none, I did not pay and that did work very well.

Permanent Stay Visa (KITAP)

Who can apply for a KITAP?

Indonesian Law is, in fact, quite clear. But as in many cases in Indonesia, this is more a problem of getting the right text of law with all of its amendments to clearly understand who can apply for to a KITAP. Once you get the right context, everything becomes very clear and the only remaining difficulty is to explain the law to the ones who are supposed to know it: the Immigration officials, who in many cases seem to ignore the law. Once you get past the lower escelons, things are much smoother, because at the higher levels (ie KanWil or DitJen), they know the law regarding KITAP issuance.

Concerning KITAP, here are the two main sources that you need to keep in mind:

1. Pasal 49, Peraturan Pemerintah nomor 32 tahun 1994 corrected by its second amendment as stated in the Peraturan Pemerintah nomor 38 tahun 2005:

(1) Izin Tinggal Terbatas dapat dialihkan statusnya menjadi Izin Tinggal Tetap.
(2) Pengalihan status sebagaimana dimaksud pada ayat (1) dapat diberikan atas dasar permintaan orang asing yang bersangkutan, dengan syarat telah berada di wilayah Negara Republik Indonesia sekurang-kurangnya 2 (dua) tahun berturut-turut sejak tanggal diberikannya Izin Tinggal Terbatas.

Basically, it means that (1) an ITAS can be transformed in an ITAP and that (2) this transformation of status can be given after a demand of the foreigner with the condition that he/she has already stayed a minimum of two full successive years in Indonesia since the date that his/her ITAS has been issued.

2. Pasal 72, Keputusan Menteri Kehakiman nomor M.02-IZ.01.10 tahun 1995 corrected by its second amendment as stated in the Peraturan Menteri Hukum dan Hak Asasi Manusia nomor M.01-IZ.01.10 tahun 2007:

(1) Izin Tinggal Terbatas dapat dialihstatuskan menjadi Izin Tinggal Tetap, kecuali Izin Tinggal Terbatas Kemudahan Khusus Keimigrasian;
(2) Alih status Izin Tinggal Terbatas menjadi Izin Tinggal Tetap sebagaimana dimaksud
dalam ayat (1) dapat diberikan kepada orang asing dalam rangka:

a. menanamkan modal;
b. bekerja sebagai tenaga ahli langka;
c. bekerja sebagai pimpinan tertinggi perusahaan;
d. melaksanakan tugas sebagai rohaniwan;
e. menggabungkan diri dengan suami atau istri warga negara Indonesia;
f. menggabungkan diri dengan orang tua bagi anak sah pemegang paspor asing dari seorang warga negara Indonesia;
g. menggabungkan diri dengan suami atau istri pemegang Izin Tinggal Tetap;
h. menggabungkan diri dengan orang tua pemegang Izin Tinggal Tetap bagi anak yang berumur di bawah 18 (delapan belas) tahun dan belum kawin;
i. memperoleh kembali kewarganegaraan Republik Indonesia berdasarkan Undang-Undang Nomor 12 Tahun 2006 tentang Kewarganegaraan Republik Indonesia; atau
j. wisatawan lanjut usia mancanegara.

(3) Alih status Izin Tinggal Terbatas menjadi Izin Tinggal Tetap harus memperhatikan aspek kemanfaatan orang asing tersebut bagi pembangunan nasional dan aspek kemanusiaan.

This is the article of law which lists the category of KITAS holder that could be entitled to be issued a KITAP. They are:

a.) investors
b.) rare foreign experts
c.) top foreign manager of a company
d.) foreign churchmen with religious duties
e.) foreign spouse joining an Indonesian husband or wife
f.) legitimate child who holds a foreign passport joining an Indonesian parent
g.) foreign spouse of a foreigner holding a KITAP
h.) legitimate unmarried foreign child (under 18 y.o) joining a foreign father/mother who is a KITAP holder.
i.) Former Indonesian willing to regain Indonesian citizenship as per Citizenship law number 12/2006
j.) Retired foreigner*

If your KITAS doesn't fall under any of these categories, then you can not apply for a KITAP. Being a foreign expert is not enough as you can see. For foreigner men married to Indonesian women, if you are not part of the top management, you will have to wait until you stop working and then your Indonesian wife can sponsor you for a KITAS (without having the right to work then). Then after two years, you will be able to apply for a KITAP.

However, belonging to one of the above categories is not enough. If you read point (3), it says that the change of status (from ITAS to ITAP) must consider the benefits that this foreigner brings to the nation in terms of national development and must consider the human aspects. This is for the very least highly subjective, and apart for the one belonging to the category e.), f.), g.), h.) and i.) it may well remain a demand without automatic approbation.

If your change of status is accepted, you will receive a KITAP which allows you to remain in indonesia for five years - which may be worth all the paperwork hassles.

Business Visa

All persons coming to Indonesia for business purposes (as opposed to just as a tourist or to studyare required to obtain a business visa.

A business visa does not allow a foreigner to work or be gainfully employed in Indonesia, but only to conduct business negotiations, short term work assignments, or training assignments. If you plan to work in Indonesia for a period of time, you must have a KITAS and a proper IMTA.

A single entry business visa can be extended two times after a one-month stay (one month for each extension). If you have a multiple entry business visa (MBV), after a 60-day stay the visa can be extended four times (one month for each extension). You can enter Indonesia as many times as you want in a one year period on the multiple entry business visa, as long as you don't stay more than 60 days on each visit.

If you enter on a multiple-entry business visa, you are not required to pay the Rp 1 million fiscal tax upon departure, nor are you required to get an exit permit each time you leave.

Please be aware, however, that there may be Indonesian income tax obligations if you are in Indonesia on a business visa for more than 6 months in one year.

If you plan to temporarily work in Indonesia for a few months, you must apply for a temporary working visa index 457. Your sponsoring/employing company can apply for it at the Indonesian Immigration office in Jakarta. Upon entry into Indonesia with a temporary working visa index 457, you will get a 60-day visa stamped in your passport at the Indonesian Immigration airport. Within a few days after your arrival, you will have to apply for a temporary working permit at the Manpower Department, but you must first pay the DPKK fee or Skill and Development Fund fee of USD200 to cover your 60 day working period (USD100/month).