Indonesia seeks investments and talent with ‘second-home visa’, but will red tape be a hurdle?

Visa scheme aimed at boosting investment in Indonesia, will allow those eligible to live in the country for five to 10 years

Foreign investors, high-skilled workers, the Indonesian diaspora and elderly foreign tourists also eligible for visa, whose details are still being formalised

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The central business district skyline is seen during dusk in Jakarta, Indonesia. Photo: AP

Published: 2:20pm, 24 Oct 2022

Indonesia is set to offer a “second-home visa” aimed at attracting billionaires and global talent, but analysts say red tape remains the biggest hurdle to investing in Southeast Asia’s largest economy.

Indonesian immigration acting director general Widodo Ekatjahjana unveiled the new visa on October 13, but said details were still being finalised by his office, the Interior Ministry and other state agencies.

“This special visa will be given to billionaires, the world’s wealthy people, and investors to encourage the growth of investment in Indonesia, those who intend to stay longer in Indonesia,” he said, according to media outlet Tempo.

Foreign tourists queue to board a boat in Sanur, Bali, Indonesia in September 2022. Photo: EPA-EFE

Aside from billionaires and high net-worth individuals, those who are eligible for the visa will include foreign investors, highly skilled workers, the Indonesian diaspora and elderly foreign tourists, according to Ekatjahjana.

The visa will allow them to live in the Southeast Asian nation for five to 10 years.

This year, Indonesia has targeted some US$76.7 billion in foreign investments, up from last year’s US$57.6 billion.

“The second-home visa is still in the finalisation stage, hopefully in the near future or maybe in the next few weeks, this programme will become a regulation that will be enacted,” he said.