Mark wrote
Actually, all foreigners staying in Indonesia, other than tourists on the 30 day entry pass or VOA, require a sponsor. In the case of a spouse-sponsored Kitas or Kitap, the sponsor is obviously the Indonesian spouse. For retirement visa holders, my understanding is that an agent is required to act as the sponsor for the duration of the foreigners stay. However, once you hold a five year KItap, there is no reporting requirement. You only have to get a re-entry permit (MERP) every two years. Upon the expiry of your first five year Kitap, you are then eligible for an 'unlimited duration' Kitap, during which you only have to report to immigration every five years thereafter (with no fee payable to the Indonesian government).
My point in the earlier post questioned if a sponsor/agent had to do the reporting every five years or could it be done by the individual visa holder themselves? Based on what I have read in this thread, it seems that agents are keenly interested in a consistent cash flow even if they don't have to do much work (other than act as the sponsor, which to be fair does in fact carry some potential financial responsibility). In any event, the admin fee of Rp. 5 million quoted in post #6 for reporting every five years during the unlimited Kitap doesn't seem like a lot given that the sponsor/agent is still 'on the hook' financially regarding the sponsorship so long as the retiree resides in Indonesia. What I find appalling, however, is the agent price of Rp. 70 million for the unlimited Kitap where the official government fee is around Rp. 10 million. In the UK they would say that this is taking the piss.
Totally agree concerning the high price and impossible inability to have an opportunity to choose another agent and lower fee without being penalized by having to start the entire process anew.
