I finally got my Kitas today and as promised, I'll put my experiences here and all the process that I had to go through. Please bear in mind that I am from East Jawa so all provinces may differ. Total process took about 6 weeks and mine was a Spouse sponsored Itas. I came in on a Sosbud Visa (Ijin Tinggal Terbatas) Did everything by ourselves from A to Z. Here it goes :-
23-07-2018 - Together with my wife, we brought all my documents namely : My passport, wife's KTP, KK, Marriage Certificate, Surat Laporan Perkawinan (because we were married in Malaysia) and walked in to the immigration office. They had a counter especially for foreigners and we were the 1st one there that day so we were asked to walk straight to the counter without the need for a Nomor Antrian. Handed all the documents to the immigration officer and after a check, she told us that we would require a Surat Keterangan Domilisi (SKD)which was obtainable from out Pak Lurah. We thanked her and told her we would come back when we had that letter in hand. She also gave us 3 forms to fill in (Form 24,25 & 27). *Please take note you will need 3 sets of photocopies of all your documents in this process.
30-07-2018 - Went back to the immigration office today after getting the SKD. Pak Lurah was not in town last week so we had to wait. Went straight to the Foreigner counter again and after checking all our documents, the immigration officer took my passport and handed me a receipt which was the total amount I had to pay. This receipt however would also act as 'temporary passport' in case I got checked if there were any immigration raids. I was told to never ever lose it and guard it with my life by the officer. LOL. The total amount listed on the receipt was : 1 Year Kitas - RP1,000,000.00, 1 Year MREP (Multiple Re-Entry Permit) - RP1,000,000.00 and another RP55,000.00 for JASA PENGGUNAAN TEKNOLOGI SISTEM INFORMASI MANAJEMN KEIMIGRASIAN. Total Amount : RP2,055,000.00. We were then told to wait for a home visit by the Immigration Office.
01-08-2018 - Got a surprise visit by an officer from our local Kantor Desa together with 2 Immigration Officers. They came in, asked how long we were married, asked about how we were gonna sustain our living expenses here and thats it. After that, it was all very casual chit chat, we chatted about motorbikes and investment opportunities. My wife made them Mie Ayam. Chit chatted some more, 1 of them dozed off on my couch and after 3 hours, they asked to exchange phone numbers, they bid their farewell and told us to wait for a call from their office.
06-08-2018 - Got a call from the immigration office to come in. We got ready and drove there straightaway. It was 1.5 hours away. Went straight to the Foreigner's counter again and was told that everything was ok. Was told to pay at the Pos Indonesia next door and also to photocopy 2 more sets of all the documents together with the receipt of payment. Photograph and Fingerprints were taken after we paid. With everything done, we handed all 3 sets of photocopies to the Immigration officer and was told to wait a while. After 15mins, she called us and was handed 2 very thick envelopes (Photocopies of all our documents were in there and also a Letter of Recommendation to Alih Status from an ITK to ITAS). Was told we needed to hand in both envelopes in person to the Kantor Wilayah in Surabaya. On the way out, we were asked to help do a short interview for an educational documentary that they were recording.
07-08-2018 - Drove 2.5 Hours to Surabaya to hand in the documents. As usual, we were the 1st one there. Handed in both envelopes to the office there and was told that the letter would be ready by 2pm this afternoon and to come back by then. My wife and I decided to drive back home as it was still early and non of the malls were opened. While driving back, we got a text from the KanWil officer saying the letter was ready to be collected. We thanked him via SMS and told him we would collect tomorrow morning as we were already home.
08-08-2018 - Collected the 2nd envelope from the KanWil in Surabaya today. They kept a set for their own copy and issued a Letter of No Objection to the Main Immigration Office in Jakarta. They attached this letter together inside the 2nd envelope to be handed over to the DitJen in Jakarta. I asked if i could send by courier to save some costs (As I have read from some posts here in this forum) but was told that it was recommended to deliver it personally to Jakarta. (Thank god I took her advice as there was a form that had to be filled out personally in Jakarta Immigration Office).
13-08-2018 - Arrived in Jakarta last night and stayed at a hotel right across DitJen. (Hotel Citadines Rasuna) Walked across and was greeted by security personnel at the main entrance. Was told that the office that I need to submit the documents to were on the 10th floor but was told to only go up at 8.45am as the immigration officers were having a briefing. Went up at 8.45am and was greeted by 2 security-like personnel next to the lift lobby. Showed them the envelope, they opened it up, read the contents and then gave me a form to fill in. It was a form that had the same 3 parts of information to fill in. 1 was for myself and the other 2 for 2 other departments I guess. Well, filled up the form and brought it back to them. They double checked everything and tore off 1 part of the from and filled in a date of receipt, date of estimation for the Surat Keterangan ( This was the final letter to get before approval of the ITAS) and it also contained a Nomor Permohonan. Also gave me an email address to check the status after 7 days from the date of receipt but dont bother with the email. They will never reply.
03-09-2018 - Since I did not get any replies from the emails I sent to the DitJen, We decided to drop by to the local immigration office today. Went to the counter and showed the officer the receipt I got from DitJen Jakarta. She punched in the Nomor Permohonan on the receipt into her computer and told me that my case was still pending and I was asked to wait. She would call me when the letter was ready. We thanked her and went on our way.
05-09-2018 - Immigration lady called me today and asked me to check my email for the Surat Keterangan. I was to check my junk folder if it was not in my inbox. Was also told to forward her a copy if i have it. Checked my mail quickly and sure enough, it was in my junk folder. Quickly moved the email to my inbox and also forwarded a copy to the immigration lady. After confirming she had received the letter via whatsapp, she then said that she will call me again when my passport was stamped and ready to be collected.
06-09-2018 - Got a whatsapp message from the Immigration lady saying my passport was ready. We quickly drove there, collected, thanked the officer. Was also told to renew 2 months before expiry. Because we were married for 12 years, she advised me to apply for a ITAP instead as it was for 5 years and that passports need to have a validity of at least 3 years for the ITAP. But if i chose to use ITAS instead, it would be renewable for a total of 5 more times. She also told me the next step would be to go to our local Catatan Sipil office and get a SKTT (Surat Keterangan Tempat Tinggal) and the police station to get a SKLD (Surat Keterangan Lapor Diri). I told her I would think about the ITAP, thanked her again and we went home triumphantly. *Just called a Intel Police Officer friend with regards to this SKLD, he informed me that POLRI are not issuing SKLD anymore for WNA. In its place, They will be issuing a STM (Surat Tanda Melapor) instead.
*Besides the RP2,055,000.00, there was nothing else that needs to be paid officially for this process.
I spent around RP5 million for 2 return Garuda filghts to Jakarta-Surabaya (Last minute flights), RP1 million++ for a 1 night stay at Jakarta. Fuel & Food for this whole process around RP1 million++. So, total was close to RP10million.
Overall experience was very very pleasant. Everyone involved were very courteous,helpful and friendly and no one asked for any additional donations if you know what I mean.
Hope this post helps anyone out there who are thinking of going through the process by yourselves.
Cheers.
