Provision on Visitor Visas and Residency Permits for Foreigners Amended

The government has issued Regulation No. 26 of 2016 (“Amendment”),whichamends Government Regulation No. 31 of 2013 [1] (“2013 Regulation”)on the Implementation of Law No. 6 of 2011 on Immigration. The Amendment redefines several provisions on the validity period for visitor visas and visiting residency permits for former Indonesian citizens.The Amendment is of relevance to foreign nationals who are intending to enter and/or stay within Indonesian territory.New Validity Period for Visitor VisasSimilar to the 2013 Regulation, the Amendment states that diplomatic visas [2] and official service visas [3] will be valid for a year after their date of issue. [4] However, the Amendment now extends the validity period of multiple-entry visitor visas to five years after the date of issue. [5] Previously, the validity period for multiple-entry visitor visas was set at a maximum of one year, identical to that for diplomatic visas and official service visas. [6] It should be noted that multiple-entry visitor visas can only be granted to individuals who are visiting Indonesia for governmental, business and family purposes. Meanwhile, individuals who are entering Indonesia for other purposes, such as educational, social and cultural, tourism, business, journalistic, or transit purposes, are only entitled to receive single-entry visitor visas.Visiting Residency Permits for Ex-Indonesian CitizensVisiting residency permits can be granted to foreign citizens who hold visitor visas or to children born in Indonesia and whose parent(s) hold a visitor visa. [7] Visiting residency permits for holders of single-entry or multiple-entry visitor visas are valid for a period of 60 days. [8] Note that visiting residency permits for holders of single-entry visitor visas can be extended up to four times, with each extension being valid for 30 days. [9] Meanwhile, visiting residency permits for holders of multiple-entry visitor visas cannot be extended, with the exception of those held by ex-Indonesian citizens and their families. [10] Visiting residency permits for the ex-Indonesian citizens can be extended twice, with each extension being valid for a maximum of 60 days. [11] Previously, the 2013 Regulation did not set out any such privileges for ex-Indonesian citizens and/or their families.Ongoing ApplicationsIt is also important to note that any applications to secure visitor visas/visiting residency permits which have already been submitted but the visa not yet issued, will be processed using the provisions set out under the Amendment. Furthermore, visitor visas and residency permits for former Indonesian citizens that have already been issued will remain valid until their date of expiration. [12] The 2016 Regulation has been in force since 28 June 2016._AP