How to Get KITAS E33G Digital Nomad Visa in Indonesia
Published 23 September 2026. Reading time: 9 minutes. By The Indonesian Lawyer.
The KITAS E33G is a remote worker stay permit that lets a foreigner live in Indonesia for up to one year while working for a company or clients based outside the country. To qualify you need a valid passport, proof of remote employment or client contracts abroad, and evidence of income, generally around USD 60,000 a year or held in a personal account, though the exact figure should be confirmed with a licensed agent before you apply since immigration adjusts thresholds without much notice. The visa does not permit work for an Indonesian employer or local income.
Table of contents
- What the KITAS E33G actually allows
- Requirements and income threshold
- Documents you need before you start
- The application process, step by step
- Applying from a city like Bandung
- Renewal, reporting and what ends your KITAS early
- FAQ
What the KITAS E33G actually allows
The E33G sits under Indonesia's remote worker visa category, introduced to give digital nomads a legal footing that the old tourist visa never provided. It is a limited stay permit, valid for up to one year, renewable for a further year, and in some cases issued as a two-year permit depending on the sponsoring pathway used. It does not require an Indonesian sponsor company and it does not authorise employment with a local business or payment from an Indonesian source. If any part of your income starts coming from Indonesia, you are outside the terms of the visa and risk cancellation.
People confuse this with a work permit for local employment, which is a different product entirely with different sponsorship rules. If your plan involves working for a Indonesian company or drawing a local salary, the E33G is the wrong visa and you should be looking at an employer-sponsored KITAS instead, not this one.
Requirements and income threshold
The core eligibility test is straightforward on paper and more particular in practice.
| Requirement | Typical standard |
|---|---|
| Passport validity | At least 12 to 18 months remaining, confirm the current rule at application |
| Employment or client base | Employer or clients located outside Indonesia, contract or employment letter required |
| Income proof | Personal income or savings, commonly cited around USD 60,000 a year, verify current threshold |
| Health insurance | Policy valid for the full stay in Indonesia, international coverage preferred |
| Visa validity | Up to 12 months, renewable |
| Dependents | Spouse and children can be added as dependents on separate applications |
The income figure is the part clients ask about most and the part most likely to change. Immigration has moved thresholds before without a long public notice period. Do not rely on a number you read on a forum from eighteen months ago. Ask a firm that files these applications regularly what the current requirement is before you gather bank statements, because a stale figure wastes weeks.
Documents you need before you start
Most delays on E33G applications come from documentation, not eligibility. Have these ready before you contact anyone:
- Passport bio page, scanned in colour, with the required months of remaining validity
- Signed employment letter or client contracts confirming remote work and foreign payment
- Bank statements for the last three to six months showing consistent income
- Health insurance policy document covering the intended stay
- Passport photographs meeting Indonesian visa photo specifications
- Completed application form, usually submitted through the online immigration portal
- Curriculum vitae or a short letter describing your role, which some sponsors now request
A document that is technically valid but poorly formatted, an employment letter without a company letterhead, a bank statement in a currency the reviewing officer cannot easily interpret, is a common cause of a request for revision. Each revision round adds one to three weeks.
The application process, step by step
The E33G is applied for from outside Indonesia in most cases, then converted into a physical card after arrival.
- Document preparation. Collect and format everything listed above. This stage takes most applicants one to two weeks if they are organised, longer if income proof needs to be gathered from multiple sources.
- Visa approval application. Your sponsor or appointed agent files for an electronic visa approval, sometimes called a VITAS or e-visa, through the immigration system. This is the stage where document quality matters most.
- Approval issued. Once granted, you receive an approval notification, usually electronic, that permits entry to Indonesia on this visa category.
- Entry into Indonesia. You enter on the approved visa. From here the clock starts on converting it into your physical KITAS card.
- Biometrics and card issuance. At the local immigration office you provide fingerprints and a photograph. The KITAS card is typically produced within a few working days to two weeks depending on office workload.
- Address and STM registration. Once you have an address, you register it with the local immigration office and, in most areas, with the neighbourhood administration. Skipping this step is a common oversight that surfaces later during renewal.
End to end, from first document collected to card in hand, four to eight weeks is realistic. Faster is possible with clean documents and a responsive sponsor. Slower is common when income proof needs supplementing or when an office has a backlog.
The most expensive mistake: earning Indonesian income while holding an E33G. Freelancers who pick up a local client, rent out a property, or take casual local payment while on this visa put their permit at risk of cancellation and can face fines or a re-entry ban. If any part of your income is going to shift to an Indonesian source, tell your legal adviser before it happens, not after immigration notices it during a renewal check.
Applying from a city like Bandung
Most guidance on this visa online is written around Bali because that is where the remote work crowd is largest. But the E33G is a national visa category and the process runs the same way in Bandung, Surabaya, Medan or Jakarta. The difference is practical, not legal.
In Bandung, applicants commonly settle in areas like Dago, Setiabudi or the Buah Batu district near the toll access to Jakarta, largely for the cooler climate and the concentration of co-working spaces around Jalan Riau and the university district. The immigration office serving Bandung processes E33G conversions on a similar timeline to Jakarta's regional offices, typically within one to two weeks of biometrics, though card production can slow around national holidays.
Rental costs, insurance premiums and notary fees for a rental agreement are generally lower in Bandung than in Jakarta or the more visited parts of Bali, which matters if your income sits close to the threshold and you want your local cost of living documented for insurance or bank purposes. The legal steps do not change city to city. What changes is which immigration office holds your file and how quickly its queue moves.
Renewal, reporting and what ends your KITAS early
Start your renewal application at least one month before the current KITAS expires. Immigration offices do not process same-day renewals for this category and a lapsed permit puts you in overstay territory, which carries daily fines and can affect future visa applications.
Renewal documentation mirrors the original application: updated bank statements, a current employment letter or contracts, and proof your insurance is still active. If your income source or employer has changed since the first application, expect the officer to ask more questions, not fewer.
A few things end an E33G before its expiry date: taking local employment or local income, an address that does not match what is registered with immigration, or a passport that expires below the required remaining validity while the KITAS is still active. None of these are exotic edge cases. They are the three reasons most E33G holders end up needing an emergency fix rather than a routine renewal.
If your plans in Indonesia are shifting toward setting up a business rather than remote employment, the E33G is not the long-term answer. At that point it is worth talking to a lawyer about PT PMA company registration in Indonesia and the different visa pathway that comes with owning a local company, or about a work permit and residence visa tied to formal local employment.
FAQ
How long does the KITAS E33G application take?
Most applications take four to eight weeks from the first document submitted to the card being issued in hand. The range depends on how complete your bank and employment documentation is at the start and how busy the specific immigration office is. Applications with clean, correctly formatted documents on the first submission tend to sit at the shorter end.
Can I bring my family on the KITAS E33G?
Yes. A spouse and children can be added as dependents, each requiring their own application and supporting documents such as a marriage certificate or birth certificate, translated and legalised where required. Dependents receive their own KITAS cards tied to the primary holder's visa and generally cannot work locally under this category.
What is the income requirement for the KITAS E33G?
Immigration commonly cites a figure around USD 60,000 a year in personal income or equivalent savings, but this threshold has changed before and should be confirmed at the time you apply. Do not budget your application around a number found in an old article or forum post. Ask a firm currently filing these visas what the active requirement is.
Can I convert a tourist visa to KITAS E33G while already in Indonesia?
In most cases the E33G is applied for from outside Indonesia and then converted into the physical card after entry on the approved visa, rather than switched from an existing tourist visa while inside the country. Conversion rules do change, so confirm your specific situation with a licensed adviser before assuming a tourist visa can simply be upgraded on the spot.
Is health insurance mandatory for this visa?
Yes. A valid health insurance policy covering the full intended stay in Indonesia is a standard requirement for the application. International coverage is generally preferred over a purely domestic Indonesian policy, and the policy document is checked at both the visa approval stage and, in some cases, again at renewal.
What happens if my KITAS E33G expires while I am still in Indonesia?
An expired KITAS puts you in overstay, which accrues a daily fine and can complicate any future Indonesian visa application. You are expected to have started renewal at least a month before expiry. If it has already lapsed, speak to an immigration lawyer immediately rather than waiting, since the fix gets more complicated the longer the overstay runs.
If you are weighing up the E33G against setting up a company, a work permit, or buying property while you are here, it helps to talk it through with someone who files these applications regularly. Send your question to The Indonesian Lawyer on WhatsApp at +62 877-9626-0478 or through our contact page. The first consultation is free, and we can tell you quickly whether the E33G fits your situation or whether you need a different pathway.