Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Indonesia is about to revise its stay permit system as Southeast Asia's biggest economy searches for foreign investment.
Under the new regime, the Investment Ministry will issue temporary stay permits for foreign workers as companies often hire expatriates to narrow the skill gap. The immigration office has previously been in charge of the rollout that determines how long a foreigner gets to stay in the country.
Investment Minister Rosan Roeslani promised on Wednesday that the documents would be out "within just 5 days" once the changes take effect.
"We have [recently] inked the agreement with the manpower and immigration ministries. The Investment Ministry will take charge of the working stay permits," Rosan told Investor Daily Summit in Jakarta.
The government is set to reveal more details of the shake-up in the future.
However, Rosan recently signaled that the overhaul could take effect in about two months.
Foreign workers are expected to apply for the permit via the so-called "online single submission" (OSS) system, a statement on the cross-ministerial agreement showed.
Indonesia has been banking on the OSS – a government-run digital platform – to simplify business procedures. Jakarta has been trying to integrate all data scattered across dozens of its ministries with the OSS to cut bureaucratic red tape. It intends to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain technologies in the process.
"We hope this move will boost credibility and certainty. We know how [certainty] has been a hurdle for foreign and domestic investors in the past," Rosan said.
Government statistics showed Indonesia attracted around Rp 1 quadrillion ($56.5 billion) in the first half of 2026, up by 7.2% year-on-year. The figures already reached 49.5% of the full-year target of Rp 2 quadrillion (almost $111.8 billion). Some 50.2% of the recorded investments came from foreign investors. The top sources were Singapore ($8.8 billion), Hong Kong ($7.6 billion), and mainland China ($3.9 billion).
Indonesia is hungry for investments as President Prabowo Subianto aims to unlock an 8% economic expansion during his term, an ambitious goal given the country's natural 5% growth rate.
According to the government's estimate, Indonesia would need to garner around "Rp 13 quadrillion (or about $726 billion) within five years" if it wants to reach that goal. Rosan admitted that Indonesia had to "compete with the neighboring countries" for investors.
Source: https://jakartaglobe.id/business/indonesia-to-overhaul-stay-permit-system-to-attract-investmen