You may know what a border run is — a quick crossing of the international border to reset a visa. However, what happens if you overstay your visa in Indonesia? Or your visa is about to expire when you have no time to renew it?
Since not all visas can be done with a simple border run, the answer depends greatly on numerous key factors, for instances, the country of passport you are holding and how long you have overstayed your visa.
For foreigners visiting Indonesia or working in the country, it can be easy to overstay a visa without realising it until the very last minute. Especially for frequent business travellers, it is even easier to be confused and lose track of the expiry date.
In this article, we have compiled some details on what happens and what you can do when you have overstayed your visa in Indonesia. We will also provide information on different types of visa that you should know.
DIFFERENT TYPES OF VISAS IN INDONESIA
First and foremost, you ought to know the different types of visas available in Indonesia that fit your purpose. Besides, you must take note of the validity and if they can be extended to prevent any overstaying issues.
1. Free Visa on Arrival (Visa Bebas Kunjungan)
- Purpose: Leisure, tourism, social-cultural exchange, family visit, governmental visit, educational purpose, and transit
- Validity: 30 days starting from the day of entry into Indonesia
- Extendability: Not extendable
2. Visit Visa on Arrival (Visa Kunjungan Saat Kedatangan)
- Purpose: Holiday, family visit, social-cultural exchange, governmental visit, non-commercial sports activity, short course or training, urgent matters, business meeting, attending seminars, educational purpose, and transit
- Validity: 30 days starting from the day of entry into Indonesia
- Extendability: Extendable once for an additional 30 days
3. Visit Visa on Arrival in Special Economy Zone (Visa Kunjungan Saat Kedatangan – Kawasan Ekonomi Khusus)
- Purpose: Holiday, attending a seminar, fair or conference, and governmental purpose
- Validity:7 days starting from the day of entry into Indonesia
- Extendability: Not extendable
4. Single-Entry Social-Cultural/Business Visa (Visa Kunjungan Satu Kali Perjalanan)
- Purpose: Holiday, family visit, social-cultural exchange, governmental visit, non-commercial sports activity, short course or training, urgent matters, business meeting, attending seminars, educational purpose, and transit
- Validity: 60 days starting from the day of entry into Indonesia
- Extendability: Extendable four times (an additional 30 days for each renewal)
5. Multiple-Entry Business Visa (Visa Kunjungan Beberapa Kali Perjalanan)
- Purpose: Short course or training, urgent matters, business meeting, attending seminars, educational purpose
- Validity: For multiple entries. Valid for 1 year and each visit grants 60 days of stay in Indonesia starting from the day of entry into Indonesia
- Extendability: No
6. Temporary Residency Permit (Izin Tinggal Terbatas – ITAS)
- Purpose: For work; relocating with an Indonesian spouse to Indonesia; retirement visa; or for Indonesians regaining the Indonesian citizenship
- Validity: Depends on the specific kind of ITAS
- Extendability: Extendable every 12 months
7. Permanent Residency Permit (Izin Tinggal Tetap – ITAP)
- Purpose: For settling down in Indonesia due to marriage or retirement
- Validity: total of 25 years. Each extension allows a 5-year stay
- Extendability: Extendable four times every five years
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU OVERSTAY YOUR VISA IN INDONESIA
Like most countries in the world, there are always serious consequences when you overstay your visa in Indonesia. The punishment can be more severe when you have overstayed for more than 60 days.
Importantly, keep in mind that the day you enter Indonesia and the day you are leaving the country count as full days. For example, if you arrive in Indonesia on 1st January 2019 and your visa is valid for 30 days, you must leave on 30th January 2019 at the latest.
The 60-Day Rule
- Overstaying for less than 60 days: a daily fine of US$25
- Overstaying for more than 60 days: may face fines, deportation and may be blacklisted
Once deported, you may not be able to enter Indonesia anymore for a specified period of time depending on the decisions by the authorities.
What You Can Do
When this unfortunate event does happen, the first thing you need to do is to show remorse about what happened. You will also need to be humble and co-operate with officers during the investigation and interview.
Secondly, make sure that your passport is valid. Overstaying your visa in Indonesia and staying on an expired passport is a subject to more severe fines.
If you overstay less than 60 days, buy a flight ticket outside Indonesia and pay the fine at the airport. Come to the airport well in advance to have enough time for solving your overstaying while not missing your flight.
Overstaying For More than 60 Days
It is recommended not to postpone visit of the Immigration office as longer you overstay, fewer sympathies you can expect. The worst thing you can do when overstaying is trying to hide your crime and staying in Indonesia illegally.
Immigration officers have a good overview of foreigners staying in the country, and the situation gets much worse when they discover you instead of you reporting yourself.
Buy a one-way flight ticket from one of the big international airports in Indonesia such as Soekarno-Hatta airport in Jakarta or Ngurah Rai in Bali. These airports have full immigration facilities and are more likely to process your immediate departure from the country.
On the contrary, smaller airports or immigration offices might detain you as they are not provided authority to solve such issues.
Prepare yourself for inspection and answer honestly about the reasons of your overstay and how you managed to finance your stay in Indonesia. These questions are asked to make sure that you have not worked in Indonesia without a work permit as this is a criminal offence.
If you are staying on a spouse-visa, ask your Indonesian spouse to accompany you to the airport. Make it clear that this overstay was unintentional, and none of you planned to commit any crime.
The following process depends on the officers you will be dealing with. However, with a flight ticket in hand and humble attitude, you are more likely to be allowed to leave Indonesia as scheduled.
OVERSTAYING VISA IN INDONESIA DUE TO EMERGENCY
In case you are aware of overstaying your visa due to emergency reasons such as humanitarian reasons or natural disasters, you should apply for an Emergency Stay Permit known as Izin Tinggal Keadaan Terpaksa.
The permit is valid for 30 days and can be extended for an additional 30 days.
HOW NOT TO OVERSTAY A VISA AND GET DEPORTED FROM INDONESIA
We are all against using visa overstay to stay longer in Indonesia — no matter what your purpose is. As once the officials find out about it, you may never be able to step into this beautiful land again.
There are many visas for you to choose from to stay longer in Indonesia, catering to your circumstances. The most common and most convenient type of visa for foreigners to stay in Indonesia for more than 30 days is a business visa with a validity of 60 days. For longer duration, you may consider securing an ITAS or ITAP.
IN CONCLUSION
To overstay a visa in Indonesia is something you can prevent. Over the years, Cekindo has helped thousands of applicants to apply for the right visa to stay in Indonesia. Apply for your business visa online today.