There have been recent changes to the visa regulations for Indonesia. These changes will affect everyone who will stay in Indonesia this summer a period of more than 30 days. It is very important that you are aware of these changes and follow our recommendations closely.
More information can also be found here
The new regulations relate to International airlines flying into Indonesia. Airlines flying to Indonesia may no longer allow passengers to board their flight unless they can show a travel ticket out of Indonesia within 30 days of their arrival, (or within 60 days if holding a Social Visa).
Many Operation Wallacea staff and volunteers will stay in Indonesia for 31-60 days. As already advised in our webinars, for a stay of this length you will need to purchase a Visa On Arrival (VOA) upon landing in Indonesia. This visa is valid initially for 30 days and can be extended when you are on site for a further 30 days, so allowing a total stay of up to 60 days. Please see the London Embassy website for further information and a list of nationalities eligible for this visa: http://indonesianembassy.org.uk/en/consular/visa-info/short-visit-tourist-visa-issued-on-arrival/
Some airlines are now requesting that passengers show an onward travel ticket departing Indonesia within 30 days of their arrival even if they plan to purchase a VOA in Indonesia and have it extended once in-country. This onward ticket may be requested at time of check-in for your international flight to Indonesia. To assist with this dilemma, we will provide you with 2 documents that should enable you to overcome this obstacle. Firstly, we will provide you with a letter from the London Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia explaining that a Visa On Arrival can be extended and so enable a stay in Indonesia of up to 60 days (making the request for an onward ticket within 30 days redundant). Should this not be sufficient to convince the airline official, we will also provide you with a temporary ticket from Indonesia within 30 days of your arrival. Please be aware this ticket is not technically valid (has not been paid for) so should only be used as a ‘last resort’ to enable you to board your flight.
What you need to do before your expedition commences will depend upon your length of stay in Indonesia. All participants must be travelling on a passport that has at least 6 months validity (period before expiry) from the date of your arrival into Indonesia. Failure to have at least 6 months validity on your passport will cause denial of entry into Indonesia. All participants are also required to check that their nationality is eligible for the type of Visa they intend to acquire. You can do this by visiting the London Embassy website (http://indonesianembassy.org.uk/en/consular/visa-info/). Please also note when calculating your number of days in country that the day you land in Indonesia is calculated as day 1.
If staying in Indonesia for 30 days or less, most nationalities do not need to obtain a visa to enter Indonesia. A Visa Exemption stamp in your passport can be obtained free of charge from the immigration counter upon arrival into Indonesia. Therefore, the only thing you need to do before your expedition is to check that your nationality is eligible under the visa waiver scheme for Indonesia.
If you are staying in Indonesia for 31-60 days, and you have not already applied for a Social Visa, then you will need to receive from Operation Wallacea both a temporary flight ticket and letter from the London Embassy. Please present these documents to the airline upon checking-in for your international flight ONLY if the airline asks to see an onward ticket within 30 days of you arriving in Indonesia. The temporary ticket will be sent to you from our Indonesia office approximately 72hrs before your scheduled international flight. Please make sure you check your email account for this ticket a couple of days before you fly. If you have not received the temporary ticket within 48 hours of you departing to Indonesia please contact our Indonesia office urgently (indonesia@opwall.com). The letter from the Embassy will be sent to you well before your expedition commences. Please ensure you print both of these documents and take them with you to the airport. If it is not possible to print the documents then please take a screen shot of them on your phone for presentation at the airport.
If you plan to stay In Indonesia for more than 60 days (you must have a Social Visa for such a stay length), then you will also need to receive from Operation Wallacea both the temporary flight ticket and the letter from the Indonesian Embassy. Please present these documents to the airline upon checking-in for your international flight ONLY if the airline asks to see an onward ticket within 30 days of you arriving in Indonesia. The tempoary ticket will be sent to you from our Indonesia office approximately 72hrs before your scheduled international flight. Please make sure you check your email account for this ticket a couple of days before you fly. If you have not received the temporary ticket within 48 hours of you departing to Indonesia please contact our Indonesia office urgently (indonesia@opwall.com). The letter from the Embassy will be sent to you well before your expedition commences. Please ensure you print both of these documents and take them with you to the airport. If it is not possible to print the documents then please take a screen shot of them on your phone for presentation at the airport.
For a stay of more than 60 days you will need to obtain a Social Visa. This visa needs to be obtained from an Indonesian embassy or consulate prior to your planned travel to Indonesia. Please visit the website of the Indonesian embassy of the country where you will apply in order to understand the application process including processing time and cost. A Social Visa initially provides you with a period of 60 days in-country and is extendable for a further 30 days once you arrive on expedition.
Anyone wishing to apply for a Social Visa will need to contact the Indonesia office (indonesia@opwall.com) in order to request a sponsorship letter. Please email a scanned copy of your passport (main page only), indicate the embassy/consulate at which you will apply and let us know if you are visiting the forest site, Hoga or both. Please do this as soon as possible, as it can take time for the embassy to process your visa.
We advise that you get to the airport well in advance of your flight, in order that you have plenty of time to check in. If you are staying in Indonesia for more than 30 days then you should be holding the temporary travel ticket and Embassy letter. Please note that you may not be required to show these documents, but it is very important that you take them with you to the airport.
You will not be affected by the new regulations, and will be able to check-in for your flight as normal.
At check-in for your flight to Indonesia, if questioned by airline staff about your length of stay, you should explain that you intend to obtain a Visa On Arrival in Indonesia and have this extended once in country in order to cover the entirety of your planned stay. If this is queried by airline staff then you should present the letter from the Embassy stating that a VOA is indeed extendable. If this is still not accepted then you should present your temporary travel ticket and explain that you have purchased this ticket as a ‘back-up’ option in case your VOA is not able to be extended in Indonesia, and therefore you will be able to leave Indonesia within 30 days of your arrival. Do not explain this is a only a temporary ticket that will soon expire.
If in the unlikely situation you are still not allowed to board your flight after presenting these documents, we recommend that you go online at the airport and purchase a $25 one way ferry ticket from Batam Center (Indonesian Island) to HarborFront (Singapore) before trying to check-in again. This is the cheapest way to purchase a ticket out of Indonesia and can be done on-line via the website https://www.batamfast.com
At check-in for your flight to Indonesia, if questioned by airline staff about your length of stay, you should explain that you intend to have your social visa extended once in country in order to cover the entirety of your planned stay. If this is queried by airline staff then you should present the letter from the Embassy stating that a VOA is extendable, as are Social Visas. If this is still not accepted by airline staff then you should present your temporary travel ticket and explain that you have purchased this ticket as a ‘back-up’ option in case your Social Visa is not extended for any reason in Indonesia, and therefore you will still be able to leave Indonesia within 60 days on this flight.
If you are still not allowed to board your flight after presenting these documents then we suggest that you go online at the airport and purchase a $25 one way ferry ticket from Batam Center (Indonesian Island) to HarborFront (Singapore) before trying to check-in again. This is the cheapest way to purchase a ticket out of Indonesia and can be done on-line via the website https://www.batamfast.com/home/index.ashx. If you prefer to purchase this ticket prior to going to the airport then this is of course up to you.
The information below relating to ensuring you get the correct visa in Indonesia is also contained within your travel documents that will be sent to you by our internal travel team ahead of the expedition.
Provided your nationality is eligible under the visa waiver scheme you will be able to go straight through to the immigration counter and have your passport stamped with a ‘Visa Exemption’ stamp.
Upon landing in Indonesia you will need to purchase a Visa On Arrival (VOA) if you have not already received a Social Visa. The cost of this visa is USD$35 and is purchased (cash only) at the VOA counter located immediately PRIOR to the airport immigration counter upon arrival in Indonesia. Importantly, DO NOT go straight to the immigration counter, as your passport will be stamped with a visa exemption stamp which is only valid for 30 days and cannot be extended. Once you have purchased your VOA, keep your VOA receipt (ensure it is date stamped) and show the receipt to the immigration official when you get to the Immigration counter. BEFORE leaving the immigration counter it is important that you check your passport and ensure it is correctly stamped with the term ‘Visa On Arrival’. We have received cases of a VOA being purchased but immigration officials incorrectly stamping passports with Visa Exemption. Such an error will require you to leave the country before 30 days and re-enter Indonesia at your own cost.
All expeditioners planning to stay in Indonesia for more than 60 days should have applied for and received a Social Visa at an Indonesian embassy prior to arriving in Indonesia. Upon arrival in Indonesia go straight to the Immigration counter and show them the page in your passport with the Social Visa entry. Please ensure you check the stamp entered in your passport by the Immigration official to ensure they have provided you with 60 days BEFORE leaving the immigration counter. This visa can be extended for a further 30 days once you arrive on site.
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