Indonesia Targets Five-Day Foreign Worker Permit Process

Indonesia is slashing foreign worker permit processing times to just five days under a new joint agreement signed on September 9, 2026. The reform integrates three ministerial platforms to provide investors with greater predictability while maintaining strict worker requirements and mandatory local skills-transfer obligations.

Three Ministries Sign Joint Decree to Unify Foreign Worker Licensing

The Indonesian government has formally overhauled its immigration and employment pipeline. Investment and Downstreaming Minister and Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Chair Rosan Roeslani, Manpower Minister Yassierli, and Immigration and Corrections Minister Agus Adrianto signed two joint decrees on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, at the BKPM office in Jakarta. The accord establishes a unified technical team and binds together three previously separate digital systems.

The reform connects the Online Single Submission system managed by the Investment and Downstreaming Ministry with the Manpower Ministry’s SIAPkerja platform and the Immigration and Corrections Ministry’s All Indonesia application. Under the new framework, the OSS system functions as a single entry point and gateway, routing multi-agency documentation through an integrated digital environment.

Manpower Minister Yassierli emphasized that the administrative union preserves the distinct statutory responsibilities of each agency while eliminating bureaucratic friction. Jadi dalam banyak sisi, integrasi data di tiga kementerian ini sangat-sangat kita tunggu sebelumnya, dan ini adalah suatu bukti bahwa berbagai kementerian kita bersinergi, berkolaborasi, dan ini tentu sesuai dengan arahan Pak Presiden tentunya, Yassierli noted regarding the long-awaited data fusion.

Targeting a Five-Day Turnaround and Fictitious Positive Mechanism

With the digital architecture aligned, officials are enforcing a strict Service Level Agreement capped at roughly four to five days. The timeline directly reflects benchmarks outlined in Government Regulation No. 28 of 2025 on risk-based business licensing.

Photo: investinasia.id

If government agencies fail to process applications within the designated window, approvals will automatically issue through the integrated OSS system. Dengan adanya kolaborasi ini, ini sangat-sangat memberikan kepastian karena mereka bisa mengetahui secara pasti kapan mereka bisa mendapatkan izin yang dibutuhkan, Rosan stated, highlighting the transparency delivered to investors.

Implementation of the integrated workflows is slated to roll out by the end of September 2026. The policy is designed to spur foreign direct investment by removing delays that plagued multinational expansion projects.

Safeguarding Local Employment and Enforcing Mandatory Levies

Despite the expedited timelines, authorities stressed that the streamlined channels do not lower standards or create backdoors for unskilled labor. Foreign nationals remain necessary in several industrial sectors.

Photo: liputan6.com

• RPTKA Approval: Sponsoring companies must secure a Foreign Worker Utilization Plan from the Ministry of Manpower, justifying the technical necessity of the hire.
• DKP-TKA Levy: Employers must pay a mandatory Development Fund for Foreign Workers levy of USD 100 per month per foreign worker.
• Counterpart Training: Most designated roles require companies to pair the foreign hire with an Indonesian employee to facilitate local knowledge and technology transfer.
• Professional Experience: Individual applicants must demonstrate a minimum of five years of relevant professional experience to qualify for an E23 Work KITAS.

Rosan reassured business leaders that while the application process routes through the investment portal, tetap akan dilakukan prosesnya oleh kementerian terkait, termasuk Kementerian Tenaga Kerja dan juga Kementerian Imigrasi dan Pemasyarakatan, ensuring strict multi-agency compliance checks remain intact.

Enhanced Data Tracking Across Ministries

Beyond accelerating visa issuance—which spans from the initial RPTKA approval to Limited Stay Visas (VITAS), Limited Stay Permits (ITAS), and Permanent Stay Permits (ITAP)—the cross-ministry architecture grants regulators oversight.

Minister Yassierli noted that tracking projected investments alongside the distribution of approved RPTKAs allows the state to monitor labor developments. We have been waiting for this integration of data across the three ministries. It demonstrates that different ministries can work together and collaborate, Yassierli said during the signing conference, framing the collaboration as a milestone for bureaucratic efficiency.

“Through this agreement, the government continues to simplify and integrate services to provide businesses with greater convenience, certainty over processing times, and transparency.”

Rosan Roeslani, Investment and Downstreaming Minister and BKPM Chair