Government Considers Dual Citizenship for the Diaspora

The government continues to explore various possibilities surrounding the discourse on dual citizenship for Indonesian citizens (“ WNI ”) who have long resided and settled abroad.

The Coordinating Minister for Law, Human Rights, and Immigration, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, stated that the push to revise Law No. 12 of 2006 on the Citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia (“ Law 12/2006 ”) comes from members of the Indonesian diaspora who wish to retain their WNI status despite having lived overseas for an extended period.

“It is still under review to accommodate the aspirations of the diaspora. Is it time for us to implement the dual citizenship system, or perhaps we should take examples from other countries,” Yusril told Hukumonline.

According to a Draft Bill on Citizenship (“ Draft Bill ”) obtained by Hukumonline, other issues are also addressed, such as the loss of citizenship and the status of stateless children. The Directorate General of General Legal Administration (“ Ditjen AHU ”) has also proposed the inclusion of provisions regarding oversight by Civil Servant Investigators (Penyidik Pegawai Negeri Sipil– “ PPNS ”) as part of efforts to strengthen the implementation of Law 12/2006.

“As for the details of the proposed amendment, we are not yet certain whether it has been included in the current Priority National Legislation Program (Prolegnas) or not. However, this revision has indeed become an urgent matter for discussion,” he explained.