Want to come to Bali for 6 or 7 months... How to get the visa started?

[mattpease]

Hello -

I'm sorry if this has been asked before.

My girlfriend is Hungarian and I'm American. We'd like to visit Bali and Lombok for about 7 months. We'd like to visit India on the way back after our stay in Bali.

I'll be in the US (near New York City) until the 27th when I fly to London. She'll fly back to London on the 20th.

We are confused by the various types of visas & how to go about getting them. Might anyone here have suggestions of how to get started?

I've read that we should get a soc bud visa. But where do we find a sponsor?

Can we hire a firm to take care of all this and how much might that cost?

Thank you-
Matt

 

[Fred2]

You need to apply or go to you nearest Indonesian Embassy & apply for a 60 day tourist visa.
When you come to Indonesia you can find a local to sponsor you for a sobud visa.:icon_mrgreen:

 

[LATAH]

Hi Mattpease,

Per Fred2's advice, it would be best to arrive on a tourist visa and then make longer term arrangements once here. Loads of information on how to obtain a sobud visa on this forum when you need it. Also lots of agents who can help you after you have arrived on a tourist visa.

For more information on costs and visa options, you could try contacting Bali Good Services as they will also be able to help you with your visas for India (website below).

[url=http://www.visaindo.com/]Visa Indo - Our Company[/URL]

 

[mattpease]

OK. Now I'm understanding it better.

If we get a so bud visa after our tourist visa, does that mean we can plan on staying for 8 months?

Must we buy our tickets before we apply for the 2 month visa? If so, we stand to lose a bunch of money if the Visa is denied?

Thank you for the Visa Indo link. I'll contact them as well.

Thank you!
Matt

 

[Fred2]

1: when you apply for a tourist visa you are given 3 months to enter Indonesia, you will not be denied a tourist visa=60days.
2: you can just come to Bali, you will get a Visa On Arrival= 30days & then extend for another 30days =60days.
When you find a sponsor you will need to do a visa run to Singapore or were ever to get a sobud visa(you pick up a sobud visa outside of Indonesia with your sponsors letter) =60days plus 4/30day extension =180 days, you can then do another visa run & start all over again.

 

[mattpease]

Sounds OK-

So we will not be denied for the 60 day tourist visa or the VOA -- even if we do not have a return flight out in 60 days?

So, we'd get: 60 days + 180 more days?

Any idea of what all this should cost: do we need to find an actual sponsor -- or will the company handle everything?


Also, I have one red mark in my passport. I was denied entry to Belize once. (it was a hot day & I managed to P/O a Is there anyone here with a less than perfect passport record? How did it go with applying for your Indonesian visas?

Thank you-
Matt

 

[ronb]

So, we'd get: 60 days + 180 more days?

No, you get 180 days in total, then you must leave.

 

[Micbali]

When applying for the tourist visa in Australia the Indonesian consulate here require a copy of tickets/itinerary of flights including your return flight
If the return ticket date is more than 60 days they may well advise you that yes it is necessary to have a sponsor & you must apply for a Social Visa not a tourist visa
Best to check the Indonesian Embassy in London (if that's where you are applying) for clarification as it is possible they may deny the visa

You can:
Arrive on a VOA - return ticket needed
About a week before this is due to expire , you can extend it for another 30 days.
You can do this in person (which can be a bit time consuming , but cheaper) or you can employ an agent to do it
(Recently read someone paid 750000rp for this service with an agent)
After this 60 days you will be required to leave Indonesia


Arrive on a Tourist Visa (return ticket needed)
This will give you 60 days
You or an agent can extend this visa before the 60 days is up but it will now require a sponsor
An agent generally acts as that sponsor - if you employ an agent
or you can find your own sponsor
You will be told that the tourist visa is not able to be extended - including by some Indonesian consulates (as by an outdated law strictly speaking this is true)
However as the Visa is a 211 (same as Social Visa) it can and will be extended in Bali
This gives you a total of 180 days (including the initial 60 days)
After the first 60 days it is extended each month
After the 180 days you must leave Indonesia
Cost to apply is £ 35.00



Arrive on a Social Visa (return ticket neeeded)
This requires a sponsor when applying
It will give you 60 days
You can extend it a month at a time after this for a total of 180 days (including the first 60)
On extension it is better to stay with your original sponsor
Your sponsor must be from where you are extending eg Bali
You can use an agent for your sponsor
You will have to leave Indonesia after the 180 days
Cost to apply is £ 35.00


After the 180 days many do a visa run & apply again
If you want to stay 7 months you can leave after the 180 days & re-enter on a VOA which will give you 7 months


As for the 'red mark' on your passport, the application form only asks if you have been denied entry into Indonesia before


Tourist visa
This is also listed as a requirement..
4 Must be UK Resident (with at least one month exceeding the validity of the requested visa


All the information for the 3 types of visas & the forms to download are on the Indonesian Embassy London website
(sorry unable to link you directly as I don't have enough posts yet

 

[LATAH]

Thought I'd add that you won't need a "return" ticket to get a VOA or Tourist Visa from your nearest consulate, just a ticket for onward travel out of Indonesia. Your airline might insist on this before check-in too. The ticket could be to Sing or anywhere. Not sure what your travel plans are but you might want to combine this with your trip to India. BKK & KL on Air Asia are good launching pads for India and you could sort out your so bud visa at the same time.

Overall, I wouldn't worry too much and don't think you'll have any problems. If it was me, I'd simply look for the best one way airfare to Bali and grab a cheap airfare to a hub in Asia around the time of your required visa run. Unless of course a return ticket is cheaper and you know when you want / have to return. I never know what I'm doing or where I want to go...so always go for cheapest option that offers flexibility.

The rest will sort itself out and make more sense after you arrive and meet with some people or an agent.

Cheers

 

[Micbali]

Yes sorry Latah, I should have been more specific re wording
As long as you have a flight 'out' of Indonesia
Force of habit as many 'return' to where they have come from, myself included

 

[Fred2]

I was just thinking the only time I have been asked for a return ticket was leaving Australia, I had to explain that I had a ticket back to Australia in 9 months, but I did not have a visa for that length of stay, after a little talk they let me board. I'm sure when I was on a sobud I entered Indonesia with no ticket out. Maybe just lucky:icon_mrgreen:

 

[alphonso]

A ticket out of Bali is not required by Bali customs when entering. I have been in and out a few times and they have never asked. But the airline on your way in may require it - depends on the airline. Jetstar and AirAsia do, Cathay don't. As Fred said, the ticket out can be for a time way beyond the visa expiry date. Doesn't make much sense but they will let you board anyway.

Another thing, if doing a visa extension inside Bali then the agent will want a copy of your inbound ticket. This is so immigration can see you actually came in legally, and didn't get your initial visa through some dodgy under-the-table-kuta-bar method.

 

[LATAH]

Hi Fred. I'd never had any problems either... until the last time (a few months ago).

In the past, the Indonesian consulate in Sydney had given me a so bud without a return ticket but insisted on it the last time. I realised I didn't want to be doing a visa run at Christmas anyway, so decided to come in on a VOA and do a run in a couple of months.

Bloody Jetstar absolutely refused to let us board without an onward ticket - I've done it many times in the past and never had a problem. They said they had been given instruction by Indonesian immigration to crack-down. I was forced to buy expensive flights that they stuffed up, booking us out of JKT. I didn't have time to sort it out as we were about to miss their check-in deadline and they weren't going to cut us any slack even though I was trying to buy a ticket with them that they had routed wrong!

Can't be sure if they really have received instruction from Indonesian Immigration to crack-down but it might explain my very different experience with the consulate in Syd.

Naturally, I wasn't asked for the onward ticket at immigration in Bali.

 

[odez999]

onwart ticket for australia .. :icon_mrgreen:

"received instruction from Indonesian Immigration to crack-down" .. crack down exactly what .. hahahahha

What an joke ...

I think what is more obvios .. since Australia is well settled state . .and cares more or less for their citizens ... they have done some obligations to flight. comp. from aust. that they have to be responsible for people who are going anywhere with them ! meaning .. if you are traveling with JetStar t osomewhere .. and you get stuck somewhere in some airport or in some immigration office .. Australian Embassy obligatory (not just teoreticly) is to provide any help neccesary for their citizens ! and what comes next is they migh spend some nice pile of $ to return you safe and sound home ... But they probobly decided that airliners (at least those Australia based) should take little more risk (and get involved in VISa check etc .. little more .. not just transport) since type of those cases are constantly rising ...

Or some scheme like that !

Why Singapore Airlines or Cathay Pacific do not check VISAS in your Passport .. well .. If you can affort that airliner ... logicly you should be able to afford yourself a decent visa in your passport ! heheh

Wich is not case with other airliners .. especially today when they got so cheap !

I doubt that Indo. Imm. gave "ultimatum" to JetStar ...
What ultimatum should sound like? Something like: " .. if not we will have no way but cut dow your business in here ..bla bla " And directly-indirectly cut dow $ flow to Indo. in a sec ?
I dont think so hehehe !

It is more likley that Aus. Gov. is the one who at the end pays for their citizens "egzibitions" so they decided to "spread" the "risk" to those involved directly into business (airliners) !!!

 

[remoteplanet]

Really useful thread - thanks!

Two questions for clarification.

Scenario: I am applying for my SosBud from the Indonesian consulate in my country before I leave. I have a Balinese sponsor who will write a letter for me.

Q1. Do I, as the applicant, submit the sponsor's letter with my SosBud application? Or does the sponsor have to send the letter directly to the consulate?

Q2. So any ticket out of Indonesia issued within six months of stay is considered valid with this application?

Thanks for any clarification on these two points! I will, of course, clarify with the consulate myself just to make sure, but any insights from those of you who made a first-time SosBud application from your home country before leaving would be great.

 

[spicyayam]

@odez999 I believe that if you are refused entry into a country for any reason it is the airline's responsibility to 'send you back where you came from'. I don't think it has anything to do with the Australian government. At least that is what I read in "Air Babylon", which is a funny look into the airline industry.

Q1. Do I, as the applicant, submit the sponsor's letter with my SosBud application? Or does the sponsor have to send the letter directly to the consulate?

You as the applicant take the sponor's letter to the embassy/consulate.

Q2. So any ticket out of Indonesia issued within six months of stay is considered valid with this application?

Yes, I think. Just confirm with the embassy/consulate when you apply. I have never been asked for this in Malaysia or Singapore, but it seems more of a requirement if you are applying in Australia.

 

[remoteplanet]

Thanks spicyayam! I will check to make sure.

 

[matsaleh]

Q1. Do I, as the applicant, submit the sponsor's letter with my SosBud application? Or does the sponsor have to send the letter directly to the consulate?

Q2. So any ticket out of Indonesia issued within six months of stay is considered valid with this application?

You must submit the sponsor's letter with a copy of their KTP (ID card) with your application.

You must have an outbound ticket to any other country. It must be within 180 days of your arrival date to Indonesia.

 

[remoteplanet]

And thank you too, matsaleh!

 

[matsaleh]

Sorry Spicy, I didn't see your response before I posted mine (got sidetracked in the middle of writing it) :icon_redface: