Damaged or Torn Passport: Can You Be Refused Entry to Bali?

Yes. Immigration officers at Bali's Ngurah Rai Airport can refuse you entry if your passport is torn, water-damaged or has smudged ink, and your airline may refuse to board you before you even leave home. The legal basis is Article 13(1)(b) of Law 6/2011 on Immigration: immigration officers refuse entry to a foreigner who does not hold a valid travel document. A damaged passport can be judged as failing that test, and the call is made by the officer at the counter.

How small does the damage have to be?

Smaller than most people expect. Some cases reported in the media:

• June 2023: Australian traveller Matt Vandenberg was sent home from Bali over a tear of about 1 cm on one passport page. He said it only became visible when the officer bent the page back (reported by AeroTime).
• Australian Jetstar passenger Madelaine Cownie was refused check-in because her passport was ripped and said she was more than AU$2,000 out of pocket.
• Emma Doherty was denied boarding in Sydney over water damage at the bottom of the photo page that she had not noticed.
• January 2019: SBS reported that a 16-year-old Australian was refused entry to Bali over a small tear and spent about 11 hours at the airport before being sent home.

Speaking to SBS, Indonesia's Directorate General of Immigration listed tears, blurred ink and water damage among the criteria for a damaged passport. The Indonesian Consulate General in Sydney added the general yardstick: whether the passport data can still be read by the system. The final decision rests with the officer inspecting the passport's physical condition.

Which damage is riskiest?

• The data (photo) page: tears, peeling laminate, a lifted photo, water stains or blurred printing. This is the page that gets scanned, so it causes the most trouble.
• Torn pages or pages coming loose from the binding, including blank visa pages. The Australian government (DFAT) reminds passport holders not to tear out or remove pages.
• Water damage that leaves pages wavy or ink spread.
• Pet bites and scribbles, including handwritten notes on passport pages.
• A sharply bent e-passport cover. The chip inside may fail to read; ask your passport office to assess it if in doubt.

Normal wear, such as a curled cover or faded colour, is generally not an issue. DFAT says normal wear and tear will not affect usability, but serious damage could stop you travelling.

Before you fly

• Open every page under bright light, gently flex it near the binding and look for even the smallest tear.
• If you find damage, ask your country's passport office. Many countries require a damaged passport to be replaced. Do not patch it with tape or glue.
• Sort out a replacement before buying tickets if there is time. Your fare may be lost if you are turned away at check-in.
• Make sure enough validity remains. The rule is covered in passport valid for less than 6 months.
• Keep the passport in a waterproof cover or zip-lock bag, especially at the beach, on fast boats or in the rainy season.
• Keep it away from small children and pets while packing.
• Check your children's passports too. Kids' passports get damaged more often from handling and being stuffed into small bags, and the same rules apply.
• If the damage is only spotted at your departure airport, there is no way to fix it on the spot. The only option is to rebook once a new passport is issued.
• Photograph the data page and keep copies on your phone and in your email. They speed things up if the passport goes missing; see what to do about a lost passport in Bali.

What if the passport gets damaged while you are in Bali?

Contact your embassy or consulate well before your departure date. They decide whether you need a replacement passport or an emergency travel document. The airline flying you home and any transit country can be just as strict as Indonesian immigration.

Check-in staff at your departure airport are often more thorough than you would expect, because an airline that carries a passenger who is refused entry usually has to fly them back. So the first inspection of your passport may happen long before you land in Bali.