Vitas - Kitas . The pilgrim's progress.

[harryopal1]

Two months from when we completed all the necessary paper work to move from Sosbud to Vitas we received an SMS yesterday afternoon saying my Vitas visa processing is now completed and we should call to the Jimbaran office to pay for the visa this morning between 8 and 11 am. Whoopee! Or so we thought. We went to the Jimbaran office where we were to pay for the visa except that an innovation to hinder corruption is that the office can no longer take cash. We were told we would have to go to a bank and make payment and then take the dossier, which we were given, to another Immigration office at Renon. We stopped at a bank and it took about 30 minutes to pay $250 for the visa. It then took about an hour to negotiate our way through the traffic, park, get a ticket and then wait. When we responded to our call number we were told we had to go to another Renon Immigration office a few miles away. Then at that office after the documents were checked we were told that the Jimbaran office had left out two documents from the folder; a copy of our marriage certificate and a certificate of residence for me. My wife had a copy of the marriage certificate on her pad and was able to make that available immediately. When we got home we then tried to send a copy of my residential certificate but the email address given my wife by the officer at Renon was not valid. By then it was 4 pm so we will have to try again on Monday.

When finally completed we were told we have two options. We can take the dossier ourselves to Jakarta with a supposed turn around time of 3 days. Frankly I can't believe that they would process this in 3 days. It would also cost upwards of $500 for return air fares and accomodation. We had previously been told we would have to go to Singapore or Penang to confirm the visa validity once we get it. Not sure about that. Anyway, the second option was to leave the dossier for the department to forward to Jakarta which, we were told, will take about a month and then another month for it to come back. So we remain in limbo for some while yet.

 

[lifelongexpat]

That's made me think twice about trying to convert a sosbud into a spouse sponsored kitas. I think I'll just apply for the Vitas directly and pick it up in Singapore.

 

[Annet]

Oh gosh now I really don't regret I took an agent in Ubud rather than going all the way down to Denpasar.
So you DO have to leave the country to get the telex, yes?

 

[lifelongexpat]

Oh gosh now I really don't regret I took an agent in Ubud rather than going all the way down to Denpasar.
So you DO have to leave the country to get the telex, yes?

You need to go to any overseas Indonesian diplomatic mission. Singapore and Malaysia are the easiest choices.

I got my two previous work sponsored visas from Singapore and used an agent for same day service.

 

[Annet]

Ok, I think I fiiiinally get it now. Thank you!

 

[lifelongexpat]

Ok, I think I fiiiinally get it now. Thank you!

If you choose Singapore and want to go down the agent route I'd recommend Hana Express. I've used them twice and the service is great. Just drop your passport and documents off before 11 a.m. and then you can pick it up at around 5pm.

 

[Annet]

Thanks lifelongexpat!
We are picking up the telex in Paris but just in case, Hana Exoress!

 

[kroshka]

Hana Express in Singapore is good.. I have used them 3 times.. and referred them to several people. Not so much chit chat but concrete info and guidance.. and result delivered within a few hours..

 

[harryopal1]

Krosha or Lifelong Express, do you have any rough idea of what Hana Express charge for their services? Thanks in anticipation of your advice.

 

[lifelongexpat]

Krosha or Lifelong Express, do you have any rough idea of what Hana Express charge for their services? Thanks in anticipation of your advice.

I don't have the last receipt as I had to give it to our accounting department, but if I remember correctly around SG$200-220.

 

[harryopal1]

Thank you Mr Lifelongexpat for your prompt reply. Meanwhile we twiddle our thumbs waiting for the next step. We are still not sure if the package has been passed on to Jakarta. As Manuel from Fawlty Towers would say with a flourish, "Eventually."

 

[Annet]

Lifelongexpat... is 200_220 SGD the total of what you spent on your KITAS? Or is it plus the Rp 1,300,000 you had to pay at Denpasar Immigration?

 

[lifelongexpat]

Lifelongexpat... is 200_220 SGD the total of what you spent on your KITAS? Or is it plus the Rp 1,300,000 you had to pay at Denpasar Immigration?

That's just the cost in Singapore (agents fee and the Indonesian embassy's fees).

 

[Annet]

Ah ok, thanks!
Today I paid an agent in Ubud Rp 8 million, incuding the multiexit permit. Then I'll have to pay again at the Indonesian embassy.
Going all the way to Immigration in Denpasar by motobike was such an awful experience and after reading all the hassle
people had gone through, I decided to pay an agent and cut down going out for dinner.
The agent told me his service for a KITAP is 36 million

 

[lifelongexpat]

If you do it by yourself, a KITAP would probably cost under 10 million.

 

[Annet]

Then I will DEFINITELY do it myself!
Thank you!

 

[Daniel50]

Then I will DEFINITELY do it myself!
Thank you!

Annet if you look under the visa section some have posted the process including in Bali. Once you get KITAS the paper work is pretty much identical a couple of variations for the KITAP. I believe the KITAP fee was something like 5.5 million (for a spouse sponsored KITAS to KITAP).

 

[kroshka]

Using Hana Express I paid SGD 255 in April 2017... some guy made a small tour guide you can see at youtube

 

[harryopal1]

Do Hana Express have an office here in Bali? I was hoping to save on air fares?

 

[lifelongexpat]

Do Hana Express have an office here in Bali? I was hoping to save on air fares?

Hana Express is in Singapore. All they do is enable you to get the visa stamp from the embassy in Singapore the same day as opposed to waiting several days by doing it yourself.