Any idea how I can get my things back to my home? as I´m a WNA now :(

[jamilab]

Hi all, I am really sad that my tanah air is so strict about this dual citizenship issue.
I was born in Germany from an Indonesian mother and Spanish father, spent my childhood until kelas 5 SD in Jakarta and moved to Europe and here and there. I go home=Jakarta few times every year but I basically live under my Spanish nationality. My last Indonesian passport expired in 2003.
The question is: I lived the last 3 years in Singapore, I wanted to move back to Jakarta but with all the Covid issues etc. I had to postpone. Now I am in Madrid but all my belongings are in a warehouse in Singapore waiting for a clearance to be sent to my mom´s house in Jakarta. The options are:
1. I´m WNI returning so that I can bring my things back home, NO
2. I get a KITAS - super hard, expensive and takes so long
And storage is also so expensive in Singapore.
I have been recommended that best if I can find somebody returning and do under their name - already posted in the general chat.
My other option is to somehowly re-activate my Indonesian passport and say I´m returning, risky fishy...
Please help! Any ideas....
Thank you!

 

[centurion]

If you are over 21 years and you had double citizenship and have not renounced the foreign one before that, your Indonesian citizenship has been void.

 

[jamilab]

Thank you, Centurion for the reminder. If I eventually live in Indonesia again, I definitely would not want to live as a foreigner (because I am not) and I will void in that case my other one. In my case, I truly believe none is foreign to me, I am half - half, of both countries.

 

[fastpitch17]

Thank you, Centurion for the reminder. If I eventually live in Indonesia again, I definitely would not want to live as a foreigner (because I am not) and I will void in that case my other one. In my case, I truly believe none is foreign to me, I am half - half, of both countries.

If over 21 Indonesia doesn't recognize half and half. Once you turned 21 and kept your Spanish citizenship, you are recognized as a Spanish Citizen, not Indoneisan. You will have to apply for any status as a foreigner. You can't step off a plane and announce you then renounce your Spanish Citizenship. You will then be without any citizenship. No half of anything to claim.

 

[jamilab]

Thank you, fastpitch17. I am aware of your concern and I appreciate it but everything is well studied and fortunately some countries are not as strict as Indonesia so the glass is half full! and Indonesia will get there too, eventually, let´s give our tanah air the chance to mature more happy weekend!

 

[macvert]

Thank you, fastpitch17. I am aware of your concern and I appreciate it but everything is well studied and fortunately some countries are not as strict as Indonesia so the glass is half full! and Indonesia will get there too, eventually, let´s give our tanah air the chance to mature more happy weekend!

Don't hold your breath ...

 

[Puspawarna]

I was born in Germany from an Indonesian mother and Spanish father, spent my childhood until kelas 5 SD in Jakarta

Sorry I can't assist with your question. I just can't help wondering if maybe you and my son were in the same playgroup in Jakarta when you were little, as your description matches one of the families in the playgroup, and the ages seem right.

If so, I remember you as an awesome little girl - very brave, at least compared to my son. One day, the moms and children (maybe around age 2 to 4, I can't remember exactly when this happened) stepped outside to a pool, and the Indonesian/Spanish girl gleefully leaped into the water, while my son whimpered in fear. It was hilarious to see the difference in personalities, even at such a young age. I admired, and was a little envious of, that little girl's fearlessness.

Anyway, Jakarta is a huge city and so that probably wasn't you ... but if your parents had involvement in the restaurant business, then it almost certainly was.

 

[mas_dam]

I have been recommended that best if I can find somebody returning and do under their name - already posted in the general chat.
My other option is to somehowly re-activate my Indonesian passport and say I´m returning, risky fishy...
Please help! Any ideas....

For shipping under someone else's name you will need a friend who blindly trusts you and is willing to take the severe legal risks of any illegal items found in your packages. The shipper will be 100% responsible. You would also need to make sure there are no indications on a 2nd owner of items remembering that there is a full customs inspection (red channel) at import.

For the import of a removal shipment (used household goods and personal effects) as WNI, you would need to provide proof of living >12 months at the origin country. In Practice this means registration with the Indonesian embassy abroad during the stay, and reference letter by the embassy + stamped packing list etc. So even if you become Indonesian citizen again (which seems to be better motiviated by other reasons than a one-time shipment of used goods), you would not be able to provide these required documents as you are not living in Singapore anymore.

If you get a KITAS, only work KITAS (>12 months validity) grants you duty free import. Other KITAS, i.e. family KITAS sponsored by your mother, falls under a grey area and will allow you importing the used goods subject to customs duties. The amounts are bearable though.

 

[jamilab]

Dear Puspawarna, the story made my day! thank you! I was in a local playgroup in Jakarta and I grew up thinking I was (am) a mermaid so it could have been me hahaha....but no restaurant industry though Are you all now living in Indonesia? my heart breaks seeing how my tanah air makes it soo hard for us to pulang kampung but I guess that´s part of bureaucracy, unfortunately.

Dear mas-dam, this is info is soooo relevant and useful, THANK YOU so much, I really appreciate it. I actually have requested several times a quote from my agent to know the import duties, just curiosity as it might be worth paying but it´s just seems an impossible task. 3 months I have been dealing back and forth (with the cost of storage in Singapore, though I must say my forwarder are really kind and helpful). I will check out this option of family Kitas.

Happy Sunday dear ones

 

[jamilab]

And btw, any recommended agent to help me deal with the KITAS please, thank you!

 

[mas_dam]

What's the volume of your goods?

Import duties depend on the port of entry and mode of shipment.

• For Air shipments, duties are horrendous, absolutely to avoid!
• Only for Sea shipments they are fair as they are calculated based on volume/weight/container type (depending on the port), not on actual value of goods. It also means that you pay the same duties for (used) designer furniture and high class electronics as you would for old plasticware and cheap clothes.

All of the above refers to removal goods (used household goods and personal effects), not commercial or new goods.

 

[jamilab]

Thanks again, Mas_dam! It´d a 20" container (not full) from Sing port to Tg Priok, it´s all sued household goods and personal effects from my 3 years living in Sing.
Do you know what documents I need to have ready so the container can depart?
Terima kasih

 

[jamilab]

Do you have any idea what´s the approx cost for a 20" container? it is cheap stuff as you said so might be a pity but....thx mas_dam

 

[stt_cibubur]

For moving your household stuff to different country, you better talk to International Relocation services". If you gonna ship it with normal freight forwarder, you will need lot of paperworks including Import license to receive it.

 

[jamilab]

Thank you, sst_cibubur, it´s already being handled by an international relocation service (as part had successfully been sent/imported/currently being used in Spain) but the other half that must go to Indonesia is still pending, that´s why I´m seeking for help in this forum....maybe any other ideas?

 

[Wisnu]

Jamilab, you can't - unless you can find some who you trust and s/he agree to import all all your stuff to indonesia under his/her name; apart from the import duty issues.

End of 2020, I'd like to ship some of my stuff back from Egypt to Indonesia while I moved to new country (Nigeria). The plan was, one container to Indonesia and one container to Nigeria.
I was entitled for import duty exemption in Indonesia and my company taking care import duty exemption in Nigeria.. No problem to get the packing list stamped by the embassy.
The problem was - I have to be present in Indonesia during clearance process which was not possible at that time since I should be in the new country.
So, we shipped all my stuff in 40ft container to Nigeria.

 

[mas_dam]

Do you have any idea what´s the approx cost for a 20" container?

Estimate is around 1,000 USD of import duties if the container is half or 2/3 full and comes from Singapore. The exact amount depends on further variables.

Do you know what documents I need to have ready so the container can depart?

A removal should be always booked door-to-door with clear T&C and Service Descriptions ("Including"and "Excluding") in the removal contract. This way the responsibilities are clear, and you receive full and reliable information about the destination requirements without incurring any risks in the process. Your Singapore moving company should be able to provide this information reliably (they should cross-check on your specific case with their Indonesian partners in the process and not just throw a PDF file at you).

When choosing a moving company, it is always good to consider who they are working with at destination. Do they have an international network and a "sister branch" at destination, are they working with a quality international company, or are they just choosing the cheapest local partner they can find?

Answering all your questions and guiding through the process while always keeping your objectives and timeline in mind should be at the core of a removal company's service. That's the different to a simple freight forwarders as @stt_cibubur has already pointed out. Freight forwarders know nothing about moving... ;-)

I have to be present in Indonesia during clearance process which was not possible at that time since I should be in the new country.

This is actually not correct.

• For Sea shipments you do not need to be present. You will require travel proof from Origin country to Indonesia incl. arrival stamp, but this can be also months before the arrival of the container (and you can have left the country again afterwards). If your arrival stamp is older than 3 months before the container arrival, the shipment is subject to import duties (if it wasn't already anyways).
  
  
• Only for the import customs clearance of Air shipments the original passport is required. You don't need to be physically present at customs, but due to the passport requirement you need to be in the country.

If you feel these insights are useful, you are invited to consider the French removal company AGS Worldwide Movers for your next removal from/to Indonesia or elsewhere.

Contact: https://www.agsmovers.com/moving-quote/
With 148 locations in 97 countries, and more than 25 years’ experience in the local market certainly a reliable choice. @Wisnu - By the way, AGS has also branches in Nigeria and Egypt ;-) ...actually the first private company to be present in all 54 African countries.

As you can see from my other posts I am not for Sales on this forum (I haven't posted any marketing thread yet! ), but I am happy to help. If someone has an individual removal question feel free to drop me a message.
Or you ask publicly and others might benefit from the discussion, i.e.:

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** It should be noted though that regulations are changing constantly, and none of this can replace the advise of your actual removal company. A bit like small print on legal and tax questions - and just as true! **

Cheers

 

[Wisnu]

@mas_dam
I meant, present in the country with valid passport so if needed I will be available. Even, my wife can not represent me. Although in 4x shipment to Indonesia in almost 20 years, I never present at custom site but I always in Indonesia during the process. Sending the passport only is not accepted, apart from risk of loss.
Similarly, I have to be In Nigeria when they proceeded clearance of our container.
We had lot of discussion regarding our shipment to Indonesia and Nigeria with my company HR and with the relocation & moving company (one of the largest relocation company in the world appointed by our company - one of the big 5 energy company)
I've asked our HR to check and they agree with that not possible to send my stuff to Indonesia while I'm in the other country but they can store my stuff in Rotterdam if I wish.

quoted from their e-mail:

Assignee must return to Indonesia since customs will need to see the arrival stamp on his passport, as a proof that he is returning to Indonesia and bring used HHG & PE back to the country.

 

[mas_dam]

I meant, present in the country with valid passport so if needed I will be available. Even, my wife can not represent me. Although in 4x shipment to Indonesia in almost 20 years, I never present at custom site but I always in Indonesia during the process. Sending the passport only is not accepted, apart from risk of loss.

There were times when it was different (original passport required like for Air shipments),
but I reconfirm that for Sea shipments you don't need to be in the country and no original passport is required anymore. The removal company is representing you towards customs with Surat Kuasa.
Of course it's always good to be present during a move, but no problem if a business trip etc. comes in the way.

For import to Nigeria this is indeed different as original passport and CERPAC are required, but that's a different story.

 

[Wisnu]

There were times when it was different (original passport required like for Air shipments),
but I reconfirm that for Sea shipments you don't need to be in the country and no original passport is required anymore. The removal company is representing you towards customs with Surat Kuasa.
Of course it's always good to be present during a move, but no problem if a business trip etc. comes in the way.

For import to Nigeria this is indeed different as original passport and CERPAC are required, but that's a different story.

this quoted from their e-mail:

Assignee must return to Indonesia since customs will need to see the arrival stamp on his passport, as a proof that he is returning to Indonesia and bring used HHG & PE back to the country.