Indonesia halts automatic stay permit extensions for foreigners, announces ‘new normal’ immigration policy
The Indonesian government updated its immigration policy for foreigners effective today, bringing an end to the automatic extension of stay permits that were introduced due to travel restrictions at the onset of the coronavirus outbreak.
The Directorate General of Immigration announced the “new normal” update yesterday across its social media channels, all of which come with at least a 30-day grace period for various stay permit holders in Indonesia, including temporary stay permits (ITAS), permanent stay permits (ITAP), visas on arrival, and free visas.
For foreign visitors, here is the latest updates on visa, stay permits, emergency stay permits, entering and leaving Indonesia in the new normal.#visa#visaupdates#staypermit#newnormal#indonesiaimmigration#foreignvisitorspic.twitter.com/pK240c00PU
— DitJen Imigrasi (@ditjen_imigrasi) July 12, 2020
For foreigners who entered Indonesia with a visa on arrival and were granted an emergency stay permit, you can extend your visas under a 30-day grace period starting today. In response to several commenters on Instagram, the Directorate General said that holders of visas on arrival “can extend several times until the pandemic is over.”
Meanwhile, holders of free visas, which cannot be extended, who were granted emergency stay permits, are instructed to leave the country before Aug. 12.
In addition, foreigners holding ITAS and ITAP residing in Indonesia can now renew their stay permits at local immigration offices should their current permits be eligible for extensions. Those whose stay permits are ineligible for any further extension must also leave the country before Aug. 12.
Holders of visitor permits (ITK) such as social visas, who were granted emergency stay permits, can request extension within the 30-day grace period starting from July 13 or change it to stay permits.
As for ITK and ITAS holders who have a telex (pre-approval) notification and are already in Indonesia, they will be granted their new permits without having to exit the country after making a payment at local immigration offices.
The new policy also covers holders of expired ITAS or ITAP who are currently abroad, who can now return to Indonesia as long as they have been granted an approval letter from relevant Indonesian authorities or were granted for the stay permits to reunite with family. This group is expected to immediately extend their stay permits at local immigration offices once they return, within the 60-day grace period starting from July 13.
The Directorate General stated that foreigners who fail to comply with these latest provisions will be subject to administrative sanctions, noting that they are effective starting today onwards until further notice. There is also an official WhatsApp chat service for foreign nationals who may have further questions about the new provisions, as seen in the Instagram post below:
The new policy effectively erases previous emergency measures introduced in late March in response to travel restrictions amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which granted automatic extensions of stay permits for eligible foreigners who are unable to return to their home countries and had entered Indonesia after Feb. 5, 2020.
Indonesia still places temporary entry restrictions for foreign nationals, with the exception of ITAS/ITAP holders, diplomats, medical services and humanitarian assistance, airline or maritime crews as well as those working with National Strategic Projects.
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