The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy (Kemenparekraf) revealed that the proposal for visa-free visits to 20 countries has entered the final stage.
“The process has reached the finalization stage and there is a flexibility list from the 20 countries that we proposed, which we are proposing for tourists with the largest economic impact,” said Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno in a weekly press conference monitored online in Jakarta on Monday.
In its implementation process, Sandiaga mentioned that the application of visa-free visits will be evaluated within six months.
Previously, Kemenparekraf in December 2023 proposed 20 countries to receive visa-free visits to Indonesia in order to increase foreign tourist visits and provide an economic multiplier effect.
The 20 countries are Australia, China, India, South Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, the Netherlands, Japan, Russia, Taiwan, New Zealand, Italy, and Spain. The other two countries, Sandi mentioned, are from the Middle East.
“These are the top 20 contributors of foreign tourists to Indonesia, including some Middle Eastern countries, related to investments,” said Sandi.
According to him, with the addition of 20 visa-free countries, it will increase foreign tourist visits, which will boost domestic consumption, attract investment, and open up the development of the digital economy.
If the final decision of the authorities is positive, this relaxation of the visa regime will be the second after the pandemic. The first time Indonesia simplified the process of obtaining an entry stamp was in July last year. But then the geography did not expand much. Until now, the 30-day free entry stamp is only available to citizens of ASEAN countries.
