23 Comments on “Long Stay Visas for over 55’s”

1. Rosa says:

   January 19, 2011 at 9:04 am

   How about the fiscal charges when the holder of this kind visa need to fly abroad?

2. kepalacrot says:

   January 19, 2011 at 11:27 am

   I think 10 photos is not enough. As for 100.

   “It will be possible to eventually convert the one year visa into a more permanent KITAP visa, probably after holding it for two years.”

   What a joke, all they have done since 10 years is making things more and more difficult for foreigners to stay in Indonesia and more juicy for the immigration. Nothing is gonna change any time soon. Just a new tool for them to get money illegally from bules.

3. madrotter says:

   January 19, 2011 at 1:45 pm

   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinder_Surprise

4. Oigal says:

   January 19, 2011 at 2:05 pm

   Well, I would not disagree with the about but it is a start if one is not so jaded..

   Actually, while I am not there…..yet…I do take offence at David’s term of “advanced years” ..Indeed what’s wrong with “life experienced” “age challenged” or my favourite as old as the “woman he is with”

   Or in our friend at the the bent angle site…”Bitter and twisted strawberry muncher” 🙂

5. Lairedion says:

   January 19, 2011 at 4:50 pm

   Well Oigal, at least we are superior beings as a guy who also goes by the name of lomboksurfer has put it….

6. madrotter says:

   January 19, 2011 at 6:21 pm

   i for one can still not believe they really did away with that crazy exit-tax, saves me 2,5jt every time i go out:)

7. ET says:

   January 20, 2011 at 8:27 am

   This is to allow us to take advantage of an important, growing market.

   Watch out for the catch. Anyone staying longer than 183 days in Indonesia in a period of 12 months is considered a resident taxpayer and is liable to pay taxes on his/her entire income, also from abroad. This could mean that a retiree who already pays taxes on his/her pension in the country of origin will be taxed twice.

   The term “resident Taxpayer” means:
   a. individual who resides in Indonesia, an individual who has been present in Indonesia for more than 183 (one hundred and eighty-three) days within any 12 (twelve) months period, or an individual who has been residing in Indonesia within a particular taxable year and intends to reside in Indonesia;

   According to the regulations, failure to secure an NPWP (individual tax number) could mean imprisonment for a maximum of six years and a maximum fine of four times the total amount of tax due. Audits could be conducted on past years and would rely on local and overseas tax statements and bank records.

   Before making any decisions check out these links and ask the advice of a trustworthy (sic) tax consultant.

   http://www.expat.or.id/info/individualincometaxes.html

   http://www.expat.or.id/info/2008-IncomeTaxSDSN.pdf

8. ET says:

   January 20, 2011 at 9:10 am

   BTW, Belize has a similar program to attract retirees but with a lot more benefits. Those who are granted this kind of visa are allowed to buy property and import taxfree personal belongings like furniture, cars and boats.

9. Q says:

   January 20, 2011 at 12:53 pm

   On a tangent:

   “… proof that they will employ, or have employed, someone, like domestic help.”

   Domestic TKW plans in the work :)? Think about it, why send TKW overseas when we can import their employers here.

10. Arie Brand says:

    January 22, 2011 at 9:01 am

    “Indeed what’s wrong with “life experienced” “age challenged” or my favourite as old as the “woman he is with”

    Oigal, the funnier version is to me “as old as the woman he feels”.

    I don’t know whether Indonesia has any other program on offer for retirees but with the present scheme they seem to remain behind the competition (especially Thailand, and to a lesser extent Malaysia – which requires a higher monthly income but has a visa of longer duration – and the Philippines). The Philippines doesn’t require a certain monthly income but you have to deposit 50,000 dollars (this amount changes from time to time) which can be used for business investment or the purchase of an apartment.

    Also the visa remains permanently valid and there is no tax on the foreign income of retirees.

    For the spouses of Filipino nationals there is the non-quota visa 13A which offers approximately the same advantages and does not require the deposit of that rather hefty sum of money. It has to be renewed every five years.

    I don’t think that the retirement visa is an overwhelming success there and I can hardly imagine that what Indonesia is offering now will be one either.

11. Oigal says:

    January 22, 2011 at 9:14 am

    Ari..hehe…I went for the less provocative version but with worse grammar and spelling (sorry in a rush) but yours it probably more accurate.

    Still I see the concept as “money for jam”. Let’s be honest due to the culture, the ‘West’ can be awfully lonely life for the older person or worse the single older person.

    In most cases, the older guy for instance would come to these countries with sizable super and income, create a relationship/family. Some time there after become fertilizer and the host country ends up with a significant amount of foreign earned income at no cost.
    How is this not good for all involved?

12. ET says:

    January 22, 2011 at 12:59 pm

    Let’s be honest due to the culture, the ‘West’ can be awfully lonely life for the older person or worse the single older person.

    You hit the nail on the head. On top of that comes that living a life of leisure in the West has become virtually unaffordable once your income is reduced, which is mostly the case for retirees, especially in colder climates where the costs for energy and heating take up a large chunk of what otherwise could be spent on quality of living.

13. Ernesto says:

    January 22, 2011 at 7:55 pm

    Come here, give us your money mister. You’ll get nothing, will lost your rights, and die quickly but your money will be in our pockets!

14. Arie Brand says:

    January 24, 2011 at 12:50 pm

    Does one gain by moving to one of these host countries in his old age? It depends on where you are from. If from a country without decent health insurance one can only gain on that score by moving to Southeast Asia (with cheaper hospital rates and other medical costs). But most western countries have, unlike the US, reasonable provisions for medical care.

    One can, of course, operate in these SE Asian host countries with travel insurance but most insurance companies don’t want to know you after a certain age. Moreover, if one gets it at all (often at a hefty premium) it has to be renewed after a year in the country of origin which forces you to go back there.

    There are other objections to moving there but to me this seems to be the main one.

15. dianwulan says:

    January 27, 2011 at 4:57 am

    Arie, yes of course one gains by it (and I haven’t come across any insurance company that requires one to return to country of origin for renewal. Everything can be done over the internet, they only care about the money after all)

    And guys, let’s keep things in context, this is no funny business. *hehe*

    I think this is gerrreat news, my ‘elderly’ husband can finally come into Indonesia without the business visa thing, and he can actually say that he would employ me to push his wheelchair around. -not that he needs that, he uses roller blade-

16. Arie Brand says:

    January 27, 2011 at 11:05 am

    Dianwulan, I am not the wheelchair type either though I would need a great deal of persuasion to risk life and limb on rollerblades.

    However, you can be as healthy as a fish but once you have passed 65 (let alone 75 as in my case) many insurance companies don’t want to know you. And those who are willing to insure you charge extravagant premiums – especially if they have to insure you for ‘pre-existing conditions’ (which can be as innocuous as a mild case of controlled hypertension). That whole business about pre-existing conditions can lead to all kinds of chicanes (and ultimately non-payment).

    Also, after a certain age you have to be medically assessed to get insurance. The requirement to return home for renewal is probably linked to that.

    One can of course try local insurance (such as Blue Cross in the Philippines) but they are not all that much cheaper and more given to chicanes. You don’t, however, have to leave the place for renewal.

17. Thierry says:

    January 27, 2011 at 7:07 pm

    If you pay 6 million rupiah, you don’t have to show proof of a medical check-up and you don’t have to show your income, nor anything else. Your passport and two photos, that’s all you have to show.

    The next year, again 6 million rupiah, no problem !

18. dianwulan says:

    January 27, 2011 at 8:08 pm

    Arie, pheeewww……
    Did you try Health Care International? We’re with them and basically hassle free. 7000 usd per anum for 3 adults and 1 child, worldwide coverage excluding USA, including extensive dental treatment, child birth, and repatriation.
    I was born with spinal defect and they accepted me with no issue. They even cover child birth even though a condition like me has a high risk of permanent paralysis following labour.
    Husband went to a shabby clinic in Ghana for check up and HCI still took it (and we got a premium reduction).
    We referred an Iranian friend with ‘leaky heart’ to HCI, and she was accepted (after being rejected by practically every other insurance company).

    And… regarding living in SEAsia for retirees… Well, let’s see it this way:
    60 pounds can buy you a month worth of groceries in SEAsia -unbeatable by any other region in the world (not even South Africa). On top of that, they don’t need to deal with winter that can be so tough on the ‘life experienced’.

    blah.

19. shorty says:

    January 27, 2011 at 8:54 pm

    what’s so new about this ‘news’?

    the requirements were announced by law No. F. 492-UM.01.10, April 18, 2002.

    the changes reported by Antara are an extension to the eligible country list…..

    ..’Originally these rules apply only to nationals in Europe, America, Asia Pacific, ASEAN, and Australia. But then expanded to other countries like South Africa, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Suriname, and others’..

20. Arie Brand says:

    January 28, 2011 at 7:12 am

    Dianwulan, thanks for the information. I checked up on health care international and found this:

    “6. Who is eligible to apply for cover?
    Almost anyone can purchase a HealthCare International medical policy. Our plans are tailored for expatriates and are annually renewable for whole of life; the only proviso being that you must be aged under 75 when first applying.”

    So that rules me out.

    As to the cheapness of food: our experience in the Philippines (and I don’t think things will be very different in Indonesia) was that things are indeed cheaper as long as you stick to local products. Imported products are often at least as expensive, and sometimes even more so, than in Australia (where groceries are among the dearest in the world). For a good Australian steak you pay two or three times more than in Australia. Decent bread (that is to say wholemeal bread without the 15% sugar you find in Filipino bread) costs often more than in Australia. A notable exception is alcoholic spirits but when you are not a drinker that is not a great consolation.

    Not having to deal with winter is, indeed, a boon for many foreigners – except those that come from most places in Australia. Where we live the winters are very mild and often quite sunny.

21. ET says:

    January 28, 2011 at 7:44 am

    Arie Brand

    A notable exception is alcoholic spirits but when you are not a drinker that is not a great consolation.

    Cheap spirits in Indonesia are also a thing of the past. Even prices for local stuff like arak have skyrocketed during the last year, up to 500% if you buy them through official outlets like supermarkets. This can only lead to more moonlighting with all the risks involved for substandard quality, even poisoning like what happened a few times during the last couple of years.

    I wonder what’s behind these exorbitant price hikes for haram products.

22. Charlie says:

    February 6, 2011 at 6:20 pm

    What about this news about being taxed for bringing in items from overseas (even if used) valued at over $250 US?

    Does that mean we cannot enter Indonesia with our laptops?

23. rainbird says:

    March 15, 2011 at 10:23 pm

    This isn’t new. I’ve been on this for years.
    And the tax thing is not an issue (for Australians and any other country with a tax treaty with Indonesia). It’s a quick flick form with a row of zeros (for income) and a letter stating I already paid tax on my Oz income.