Speaking at his weekly press conference in Jakarta on Wednesday (3/1/24,) Indonesia’s Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Sandiaga Uno said Indonesia’s tourism sector could potentially generate up to USD 25-billion in additional revenue through the implementation of a visa-free entry policy, according to reporting from Jakarta Globe.
The government intends to extend this policy to visitors from 20-countries with the objective of boosting tourist arrivals and driving economic growth via the tourism sector. This policy excludes nine fellow members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) who already benefit from similar provisions under regional economic integration, report Jakarta Globe.
While Indonesia targets revenue of IDR 200-trillion (USD 12.9-billion) from the tourism industry in 2024, Sandiaga said this amount could significantly increase once the visa-free entry policy takes effect.
Jakarta Globe report that this projection assumes that tourists from eligible countries will spend at least USD 5,000 each during their stay in Indonesia. However, Sandiaga noted that it may take up to a decade following policy implementation to witness a substantial increase in tourists’ spending to reach this level.
The policy primarily targets countries whose tourists tend to spend more time and money in Indonesia.
Among the 20 countries under consideration, 18 have already been earmarked, including 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 remaining two slots are likely to be allocated to Middle Eastern countries.
In September, the Justice Ministry initiated the implementation of the “golden visa” for international visitors, offering stay permits of up to 10-years based on their investment amounts in the country, say Jakarta Globe.
Corporations investing a minimum of USD 2.5-million are granted a five-year stay permit, while a ten-year permit requires a minimum investment of USD 5-million. For individual investors, the set caps are USD 350,000 and USD 700,000, respectively, say Jakarta Globe.
Source: Jakarta Globe
Stock image by Sandy Griffin from Pixabay
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