Who Can Use the Immigration Autogates at Bali Airport?

The immigration autogates at Bali's I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport can be used by all Indonesian citizens, and by foreigners holding an electronic passport plus one of these: an e-VOA paid online, an e-Visa, an ITAS/ITAP stay permit, or visa-free status already registered at evisa.imigrasi.go.id. Children from age 6 may use the gates. Foreigners with non-electronic passports and those buying a VOA at the airport counter go through manual counters.

This summary was checked in October 2026 against Directorate General of Immigration press releases (2024), the Ngurah Rai Immigration Office website, and detikTravel reporting (August 2025). We found no new autogate regulation issued in 2026.

Who gets through, and who goes to the manual counter?

• Autogate: Indonesians with electronic or non-electronic passports; foreigners with an e-passport and an e-VOA or e-Visa; ITAS or ITAP holders; visa-free nationals registered at evisa.imigrasi.go.id.
• Manual counter: foreigners with ordinary (non-chip) passports; VOA buyers at the airport counter; children under 6; anyone whose gate turns red.

On children's age, older and newer sources differ. A 2024 Immigration press release set the limit at 14, while detikTravel reported in August 2025 that the gates now accept children from age 6. We use the newer figure, but if your child is 6-13 and the gate refuses, simply go to a manual counter.

How do I know my passport is electronic?

Check the front cover. An e-passport has a small chip logo (a rectangle with a circle in the middle) below the country name. Almost all Australian, British, US, EU, Japanese, Korean, Singaporean and Malaysian passports issued in the past ten years are electronic. If there is no logo, plan for the manual queue.

Before you go: six things that make the autogate say no

1. VOA not paid yet. The gate reads an e-VOA linked to your passport number. Paying for a VOA at the airport counter puts you in the manual lane. Apply for the e-VOA at evisa.imigrasi.go.id a few days before flying; steps are in our Bali e-VOA 2026 article.

2. Visa-free but not registered. ASEAN and other visa-free nationals pay nothing, but still need to register at evisa.imigrasi.go.id so the gate recognises them.

3. Passport replaced after applying. The e-VOA is tied to the passport number used in the application. Renew or replace your passport afterwards and the numbers won't match, so the gate stays shut. Reapply with the passport you will actually carry.

4. Face not readable. Remove hat, glasses and mask. Take the passport out of its cover before placing the photo page on the scanner, stand on the yellow footprints, and look at the camera until the second gate opens.

5. Arrival card not done. The autogate only handles immigration. After it, officers scan your All Indonesia Arrival Card QR before the exit, and every passenger needs one, autogate users included. How to fill it in is in our All Indonesia Arrival Card article.

6. Travelling with small children. A child under 6 must use a manual counter. It is usually easier for one parent to go with them through the manual lane while the other uses the autogate and waits at baggage claim.

How long does it take, and how long is the queue?

At the gate, the check takes 15-25 seconds per person according to Immigration. Manual checks with photo and fingerprints used to take about 35-60 seconds per passenger (Immigration's 2019 figure). When the Director General of Immigration inaugurated them in October 2024, Ngurah Rai had 90 autogates: 60 in international arrivals and 30 in departures. Some media quote higher numbers, but we have not found official 2026 confirmation.

Actual queue times are not published by Immigration or the airport operator. What can honestly be said: queues build when several wide-body flights land together, especially around midday and towards midnight, and in July-August and the year-end holidays. Peak hours and the full terminal flow are in our Ngurah Rai Airport 2026 article.

Are autogates used on departure too?

Yes. Since October 2024 there have been 30 gates in international departures. The criteria are similar: Indonesians, or foreigners with an e-passport whose entry was recorded electronically. Manual VOA holders who entered at a counter may still be directed to a counter on the way out.

The gate turned red. Now what?

Don't keep retrying. The gate refuses when visa data can't be read, your face doesn't match the passport photo, or there is a travel-ban flag. The officer at the end of the autogate row will send you to a manual counter, where the check runs as normal. Keep your e-VOA or visa-free registration saved offline on your phone so you can show it straight away.

One habit that saves time: have your passport out of its cover and the arrival card QR on your phone's lock screen before the plane stops. The line in front of the gates moves fast; what slows it down is almost always the passenger digging for documents at the scanner.