Staying Long in Bali: When Do Foreigners Have to Pay Tax?

You become an Indonesian tax resident if you are in Indonesia for more than 183 days within 12 months, or if you intend to reside here, which under Director General of Taxes Regulation PER-23/PJ/2025 (in force 9 December 2025) is shown by, among other things, an ITAS or VITAS valid for more than 183 days. So a tourist on a 30-60 day VOA is not affected, while a one-year E33G digital nomad visa holder can qualify from day one, unless a double tax agreement (tax treaty) makes you a resident of your home country. The rules below were checked on 27 October 2026 against the Directorate General of Taxes (pajak.go.id) and the Finance Ministry legal database; this is not personal tax advice.

Three ways to become an Indonesian tax resident

Article 2(3) of the Income Tax Law, last amended by Law No. 7 of 2021 on Harmonisation of Tax Regulations (HPP), treats an individual as a domestic tax subject (SPDN) if any one of these applies:

• You reside in Indonesia. PER-23/PJ/2025 spells it out: a place you control and can use at any time (owned or rented, not merely a stopover), a centre of personal, social or economic activity in Indonesia, or daily routines here.
• You are in Indonesia for more than 183 days in 12 months. Counted cumulatively, continuous or broken. A part day counts as a full day, including transit days or short meetings.
• You are in Indonesia during a tax year and intend to reside. Evidence of intent under PER-23/PJ/2025: a KITAP, a VITAS or ITAS valid over 183 days, a work or business contract over 183 days, a home lease over 183 days, or proof of moving your family.

A tax resident only has to pay if income exceeds the non-taxable threshold (PTKP), Rp54 million a year for a single individual. Residents are taxed on worldwide income.

Five scenarios: who is caught and who isn't

• Three-week holiday on a VOA. None of the tests is met. The only tax you pay is the consumption tax on hotel and restaurant bills.
• Back and forth on visit visas, 190 days in 12 months. The 183-day test is met even if each visit is short, because the count is cumulative and rolling. Visit visas also don't allow work for Indonesian parties; see our article on remote work on a tourist visa.
• One-year E33G, salary from an Australian company. An ITAS valid over 183 days is evidence of intent to reside, so you can be a tax resident from entry. The foreign-income requirement is a visa condition, not a tax exemption. Some visa agents market the E33G as "tax-free", but we found no official DJP statement exempting E33G holders' foreign income. Visa requirements are in our E33G article.
• Retiree on a retirement ITAS. Same logic: a one-year ITAS is evidence of intent. The pensions article of your home country's treaty decides who taxes your pension. Visa details are in our retirement visa article.
• Russian working remotely for a Russian company from Bali. On the Russian side, Interfax reported in 2023 on the reform under which Russian employers withhold 13-15% income tax from remote employees' salaries even when the employee is no longer a Russian tax resident. On the Indonesian side, if you are a tax resident, that income is reported too, and tax already withheld in Russia can be credited under the Indonesia-Russia treaty and Article 24 of the Income Tax Law.

How the Australia, Russia, Japan and Korea treaties matter

Indonesia has tax treaties with all four countries (treaty list on pajak.go.id). PER-23/PJ/2025 confirms that if you are resident in both countries, the treaty decides. The tie-breaker goes in order: where you have a permanent home, then where your personal and economic interests are centred, then habitual abode, then nationality.

• Someone who keeps a home, family and job in Australia while renting a villa in Bali often stays an Australian resident under the treaty. The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) also applies its own residency tests.
• To rely on a treaty, you need a certificate of residence from your home tax authority.
• Watch the employment article: treaties generally give the right to tax a salary to the country where the work is physically done if you are there more than 183 days. Working on a laptop in Canggu still counts as working in Indonesia. Check your treaty text on pajak.go.id.

PP 55/2022: the facility people misread

Article 3 of Government Regulation No. 55 of 2022 gives foreign tax residents a facility: tax only on Indonesian-source income for four tax years. The conditions are narrow: a foreign worker in certain designated positions or a foreign researcher, with expertise in science, technology or mathematics (certificate, degree or at least five years' experience), and an obligation to transfer knowledge. It does not apply to anyone using a treaty on their foreign income. E33G or visit-visa holders generally don't qualify, because they don't work for an Indonesian employer.

If you are a tax resident, what do you have to do?

• Register for an NPWP tax number and file an annual return by 31 March of the following year through the DJP Coretax system.
• Progressive rates under Article 17 as amended by the HPP Law: 5% up to Rp60 million, 15% above Rp60-250 million, 25% above Rp250-500 million, 30% above Rp500 million-5 billion, 35% above Rp5 billion.
• Tax paid abroad can be credited (Article 24 of the Income Tax Law), within limits.

We found no reported 2025-2026 case of tax being collected from digital nomads in Bali; the rules above apply even if enforcement isn't visible yet. Immigration and other rules for long stays are collected on our Bali rules page.

FAQ

Do transit days at Ngurah Rai airport count? Yes. According to DDTC's summary of PER-23/PJ/2025, short presence such as transit still counts, and a part day counts as a full day.

If I leave Indonesia on day 180, am I safe? Only for the day test. If you hold an ITAS valid over 183 days or rent a villa for a year, the intent-to-reside test can still be met.

Is the 10% tax on my hotel bill related? No. That is a regional consumption tax paid by every guest, not income tax.