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Exa: letsmoveindonesia.com
Exa: letsmoveindonesia.com
Bali Zero handles visas, company setup, tax and property compliance in Indonesia. Ask us directly on WhatsApp.
Chat with Bali Zero on WhatsApp**Indonesia's Working KITAS — the stay permit issued to foreign nationals employed by Indonesian legal entities — has undergone a systematic regulatory **
Indonesia's Working KITAS — the stay permit issued to foreign nationals employed by Indonesian legal entities — has undergone a systematic regulatory overhaul over the past several years, culminating in new obligations that took effect as recently as early 2026.
The foundational shift came with PP No. 34 Tahun 2021 and its companion Permenaker No. 8 Tahun 2021, which together abolished the physical IMTA (work permit document) that had long served as the tangible proof of work authorization. In its place, the approved Foreign Worker Utilization Plan — known by its Indonesian acronym RPTKA — now functions as the primary legal instrument authorizing a foreigner to work. The same regulation codified the DKP-TKA compensation fee, fixed at USD 100 per worker per month, payable by the employing company.
On the immigration side, Permenkumham No. 22 Tahun 2023 modernized the national visa index system, formally retiring the legacy C312 classification and replacing it with the E23 index for the Working KITAS. This change, while largely administrative, affects all documentation, system filings, and compliance references made by sponsors and immigration consultants.
The scope of roles accessible to foreign workers is strictly bounded by two ministerial decrees. Kepmenaker No. 228 Tahun 2019 enumerates the specific job titles permitted across 20 KBLI business sectors, while Kepmenaker No. 349 Tahun 2019 maintains an absolute prohibition list of 19 positions — predominantly in Human Resources — which foreigners may not hold regardless of employer or sector.
A significant procedural change arrived with UU No. 63 Tahun 2024, which amended the core Immigration Law (UU No. 6 Tahun 2011). The amendment automatically integrates the Multiple Exit Re-Entry Permit (MERP) into the KITAS document at the point of issuance. Foreign workers no longer need to apply separately for a MERP before each international departure — a practical convenience that eliminates a historically common compliance oversight.
Sponsor obligations were recodified under Permenimipas No. 5 Tahun 2025, issued by the newly established Ministry of Immigration and Penal Correction (Kemenimipas), replacing the earlier Permenkumham No. 36 Tahun 2021. This regulation defines the mandatory responsibilities of the guarantor company — the Indonesian legal entity sponsoring the foreign worker's stay permit.
Most recently, SE Kemnaker No. 3/836/PK.04/I/2026 introduced the so-called One Sponsor Policy, a national circular that mandates exact alignment between the entity named as ITK (stay permit) sponsor and the entity holding the approved RPTKA. For workers seeking to convert their immigration status (Alih Status), this policy imposes cross-verification against BPJS, WLKP, and NIB databases, closing a gap that had previously allowed mismatched sponsorship arrangements to proceed.
The regulatory trajectory is unambiguous: Indonesia is tightening the administrative corset around foreign worker employment, and the 2026 One Sponsor Policy is the most consequential recent developme
nt for our clients. Companies that have historically used intermediary structures — where the RPTKA holder and the ITK sponsor were different entities — are now directly exposed. The cross-verificatio
n against BPJS, WLKP, and NIB databases means that discrepancies which once slipped through manual review are now surfaced automatically.
The MERP integration under UU 63/2024 is genuinely positive news and removes a routine friction point for mobile executives and senior hires. However, the elimination of the physical IMTA card continues to confuse clients who expect a tangible work permit document. The RPTKA approval is the work authorization — companies and their foreign employees need to treat it accordingly in their internal HR records and any interactions with third parties who request proof of authorization.
The sector-specific jabatan restrictions under Kepmenaker 228/2019 remain an underestimated risk. We regularly encounter companies attempting to assign titles to foreign hires that technically fall outside permitted classifications for their KBLI code. A mismatch at this level invalidates the entire RPTKA — and by extension, the Working KITAS built upon it.
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