Visa, working and kids schooling..

joanna

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Jan 11, 2004
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Our family is planning to move to Bali in august/september 2004. We are planning to continue exporting Balinese products and also we have a longtime dream of having a restaurant/bar somewhere near Sanur.

1. What kind on visa should we have? KITAS or something else?

2. How to start the restaurant?
We were planning to lease the property. We also have a good local friend, who is willing to be somehow a part of the business. He will be taking care of the staff and orders, since he and his wife have a long experience working in restaurants. But what about the licences and permits, or should the restaurant be in our friends name just on paper although we are the owners? Or what?

3. How much should we expect to pay / month or year if we lease a house somewhere around Sanur? Nothing too luxurious, but a nice place to live in, also a pool for the kids. We've got 3 kids so at least 4-5 bedrooms... How much can we expect to pay for electricity, water ect.?

4. The international school is far too expensive and we were thinking of a private school for the kids. Do you have any experience on how good the schools are, can foreign children manage there (they dont even speak english very well), how much are the school fees and so on....?

5. I am interested in studying more reiki- and pranic healing, meditation, regression therapy and everything related. Any ideas where to study these?

6. Also... is it worth paying for services like this: http://www.bali-expat-business.com/ -just to make sure everything is done as it should? At least it should be easy if we have someone to take care of everything, but really.. is it worth the money?

Yes I know..a lot of questions..

For some information about us: we have several years of experience living abroad, many years of experience in having our own business, we have been in Bali only twice and we know some locals and I have been already studying Balinese and Bahasa.

All information you think would be helpful is welcome! Thanks! :)
 
G

Guest

Guest
seems you alread got what it takes to move to bali? :p

" we have several years of experience living abroad, many years of experience in having our own business, we have been in Bali only twice and we know some locals and I have been already studying Balinese and Bahasa. "
 
G

Guest

Guest
btw, i like the saying at the end on your post...

"If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay at home"

personally at first i embraced everything that had to do with the balinese culture.. religion.. customs.. food, but after a few years the "born and raised swede" began to protest. the food didn't taste as good, the praying got annoying coz ppl stared all the time, the customs seemed more and more like a waste of time. After the bombing i got even more cynical about living in bali....but i'm slowly taking myself back on the right track and finding out what it was that initially brought me there. It's not as easy as one might think though... to embrace a different culture with senserity and put your soul into it. One can as easily get hurt as one can feel happiness. well... that's my experience anyhow.. didn't mean anything with this really. :roll: :wink:
 

Bert Vierstra

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Nov 5, 2002
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DrIvEr said:
btw, i like the saying at the end on your post...

"If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay at home"

personally at first i embraced everything that had to do with the balinese culture.. religion.. customs.. food, but after a few years

Know what you mean. We cannot become Balinese. If you end up here, for whatever reason, you have got to face the truth someday :).

Its just living in harmony, with yourself and Bali. If this means eating beef, and being a hindu, running naked in your house and dress up balinese for a ceremony and a healthy suspicion for anything that has something to do with business, its fine I think ;)


joanna said:
Also... is it worth paying for services like this: http://www.bali-expat-business.com/ -

I made the website, and they do my visa, and they are nice people, so I may not be the right one to ask, but I think its worth it. It saves you a lot of trouble, they know their way around. If you want to do it yourself you may run into hazards that may cost you more in one or another way then they (or other agencies) ever asked.
 

Roy

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Nov 5, 2002
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WOW! This is the BEST string I’ve read on any forum about Bali…ever! DrIvEr, you really hit home for me with your admitted cynical outlook…and your quest to get back on track. Every expat I know, regardless of their nationality has experienced this over the last few years. It is so true, and so dead on. All I can do is salute you for your honesty and courage in discussing this openly.

For Joanna, all I can offer is a VERY strong word of caution regarding the restaurant business (or any other public business for that matter), in Bali. Unless you are married to an Indonesian who would assumably be your business partner, you are almost certainly venturing down a path of sorrows. While it is easy to find a willing and eager Indonesian partner, it is a totally different matter to maintain that relationship without eventually getting completely ripped off.

There are countless stories of pie eyed expats coming to Bali and starting businesses with a Balinese they really believed they could trust, only to be shot off their saddle, their business ruined.

The sole reason that Indonesia languishes behind its Asean neighbors is it lack of commitment to protect foreign investment with solid laws, adjudicated honestly within its legal system.

Joanna, my best advice would be to come to Bali, and talk to other expat operators or owners of restaurants here. A little “appetizer” of their reality check may more than satisfy your hunger.

Bert’s words were far more subtle, but I think his real message was the last line:

"...and a healthy suspicion for anything that has something to do with business, its fine I think.”
 

joanna

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Jan 11, 2004
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ok....

Thanks for all your warnings! :)
I realize every country is different, every culture is different. Especially when you compare European countries to Asian countries. There is a big difference even living in a western European country and an eastern European country, we've done business in both. So I'm not expecting it to be easy at all living and having a business in Bali. But we are willing to take the risk and give it a try. Anyway it helps a great deal to know what to expect.

Is it possible for a foreigner to have the restaurant without a balinese partner, just on your own, or will it be just too hard and expensive? Of course, having it just on our own would be the ideal situation, since I personally have a hard time trusting anyone, when it comes down to doing business.. :?
Would there be anyone who would have experience in this?

And what about the other parts of my previous message: about the schools, costs of living and so on..?
 

Bert Vierstra

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It may be possible to own your own restaurant when you hava a PMA, a foreign investment company, since a PMA can hold property, and this PMA can be foreign owned. For the details you better check http://www.bali-expat-business.com and ask them.

Roy has kids, I am just planning...

Cost of living? You can rent a room for 300.000 a month or less, and eat for the same. Its up to you....
 
(does anyone read these subjects?)

I'll try to address your subjects in your original numbered order:
1.Visa
2.Business
3.Rent
4.School
5.New Age stuff
6.Advice

1.Visa - that would depend on how you structure your business.
If you are just a partner that contributes capital then I think a business visa would be appropriate. See topics 2 and 6 for more detail.

2.Business - I think Bert's and Roy's warnings about this are appropriate, but not very encoouraging. Running a business in Bali is a tricky situation. To get a visa you need a certain amount of success, implied or real, else no visa. On the community level you want to keep a low profile. You don't want to appear too successful.
This leads to envy, which is always a problem here in this communal culture.

3.Rent - I think Bert's estimate of $300 is a bit low for the Sanur area, especially with 4 bedrooms and a pool. I'd say $400+ per month. (4 million rupiah+ per month)

4.School - There is a school of almost international standards north of Sanur. I don't know the name, but it's worth researching.

5. New Age stuff - It's all over Bali, but the true center of this appears to be in the Ubud area. You can find anything New Age you want here in Bali.

6.Advice - You need all the advice you can get if you want to start a business in Bali. Paying for advice is probably worth it.

Ken
 

joanna

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Jan 11, 2004
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Thank you for your answers! :)

I'll contact the agency once more for further advise.

Can anyone remember the name of the school pongken mentioned somewhere north of Sanur? I know there is an international school somewhere in Sanur, but as I said, they are far too expensive, unfortunately... :(
Anyway I understood that this school pongken mentioned was not the international school but a good private school..?
 
G

Guest

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hmm harvard and yale ey? they must be pretty darn smart!! :shock: :roll: :wink:
 

Roy

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Nov 5, 2002
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Ubud, Bali
Oh well, I can always dream can't I? :? Can't help out regarding the schooling issue as my bunch aren't quite ready. Our plan though is to maybe hire a full time tutor. Likely this will be cheaper then paying for tuition. Plus I'm not real keen on a daily two hour commute, Ubud to Sanur and back again.