Online VITAS application procedure: Step-by-step guide

Indonesian immigration is continuing its push to join the information age. Their stated goal is to eventually process all visa and passport applications online. To that end, Immigration has made visa applications available online through its website at:

https://visa-online.imigrasi.go.id/

With the online application process, the VITAS and other visas are now easier than ever to do on your own. Why do it yourself? Well, consider this: a typical agent charges around USD 900 to 1,000 for a simple spousal VITAS. The official fee is only Rp 2,055,000 (approximately USD 160 at March 2017 rates). You could save upwards of USD 840 by doing this yourself.

Our forum user “sumyunggai” went through the entire application process for a spouse-sponsored KITAS in August 2016. He helpfully shared step-by-step instructions in the forum. We would like to thank him for his efforts. His experience, with some updates that occurred after he obtained his KITAS, is outlined below.

Prerequisites

First of all, be legally married to an Indonesian citizen. This means that marriages abroad should be properly registered in Indonesia, and the Indonesian spouse’s KTP and KK should reflect their married status.
Until recently, it was necessary to either travel to Jakarta to pay the Directorate General of Immigration (DitJenIm) Rp 100,000 in person, or have a representative personally make the payment. But there is a happy update in March 2017: This is no longer necessary because Immigration can now accept payment via any national bank. This removes the biggest hurdle to the process.
Have access to a scanner to scan all original documents. All scans should be less than 400kb in size.
Be able to travel to an Indonesian embassy abroad to get the visa. Singapore is a popular destination. Penang is another.
Have a passport valid for at least 18 months, if applying for a one-year KITAS. The passport should have free space for:

– ITAS visa (which needs one full, clean page)
– Entry/exit stamp for travel to another country and back (if you are currently in Indonesia)
– Entry stamp for entry into Indonesia
– Combined stamp for KITAS & Exit Reentry Permit

Documents

You will need color scans of the following documentation:

Every page of your passport, including the front and back page.
KK (family card) of Indonesian spouse.
KTP (identity card) of Indonesian spouse.
Birth certificate of Indonesian spouse (as of April 2018).
Marriage certificate.
NPWP (tax identification number) of Indonesian spouse, if available. If not, uploading another copy of KTP has been reported to work.
If married outside Indonesia, a Surat Laporan Perkawinan di Luar Negeri (Registration Letter of Marriage Abroad) from your catatan sipil (civil registration office). Preferably, this letter should be completed immediately after marriage, upon return to Indonesia. However, you may be able to arrange it at a later date.
Surat Pernyataan dan Jaminan (Sponsorship Statement Letter). You can download a sample here. Print it out, then affix Rp 6,000 materai stamp and have your spouse sign over the materai.
If married in Indonesia, a certificate of no impediment from your embassy. You should already have this because it is one of the requirements for marriage in Indonesia. If your embassy is not able to provide it, ask if they can notarize a statutory declaration, as this document is also acceptable.
Surat Permohonan (Request Letter). You can read our article on how to write a Surat Permohonan for more information, or simply download a sample here. Have your spouse sign with a materai, as above.
Bank statement with a minimum balance of at least USD 1,500 (or Rupiah equivalent) in the name of the Indonesian spouse. This requirement is new as of November 2016.

Registration

The Indonesian sponsor should be the applicant. Follow the account activation instruction, which is just an e-mail validation.

Make an online application for “suami ikut istri WNI” (husband following Indonesian wife) or “istri ikut suami WNI” (wife following Indonesian husband), as applicable. As part of the application, you can choose which Indonesian embassy/consulate you will collect the visa from.

Follow the instructions and upload all documents requested. Then, you should receive an email asking you to pay a Rp 100,000 fee. It is no longer necessary to pay this fee in person. Immigration is able to accept payment via any national bank.

After you pay, Immigration should send approval to your sponsor’s email account. You can check the application status online at http://visa.imigrasi.go.id. Use the application number from the email you received when you submitted the documents.

If it shows as complete and you haven’t received an email, send an email to [email protected] with the relevant reference number. They should respond within 24 hours. Email as soon as it shows “complete” on the website.

After the visa is approved, you can fly to the foreign country of your choice to visit the Indonesian consulate/embassy there.

At the Embassy

The requirements for the Indonesian consulate in Penang are given below. It should be similar elsewhere. Some Indonesian consulates enforce a dress code, so long pants or a skirt, shoes, and a shirt with sleeves are recommended. Also note that embassies will be closed on all Indonesian and host country holidays, and will be very busy the day after a holiday and on Mondays. Visa submission will typically be in the morning, and collection the next day, so plan accordingly.

Bring with you:

One 3x4cm passport photo, any background color.
Print-out of the approval email from Immigration in Jakarta.
A black pen, so that you can fill out the application form you will need to obtain when you are at the embassy.
One photocopy of your passport data page.
MYR 395, in cash, for the visa fee.

You can submit your materials between 9:30 am and noon. Collection is on the NEXT working day after 2 pm.

The items below are not required at the Indonesian Embassy in Penang, but may be asked for in other locations:

All the documents mentioned above, such as marriage certificates, etc.
A letter to the consulate from the spouse sponsoring the VITAS.

Back in Indonesia

With the visa in your passport, fly back to Indonesia. You will need to make an immediate report on the immigration website. Follow this link.

You will get an email telling you to visit your local immigration office.

Bring all your documents again. In addition, you will also need to bring:

A Surat Domisili (Proof of Residence Letter) from your Kepala Desa (Village Head) or Lurah (District Head).
One photo (6x4cm, red background).
The required fee, in cash. Official fees are available here. For a 1 year electronic KITAS, 1-year multiple reentry permit, and the bio-metric fee, the total will be Rp 2,055,000.

You will also have to fill in and submit several forms provided by the local immigration office:

KITAS application form (your spouse can sign the “Kuasa” section).
Foreigner new data form, again with signature by the spouse.
Surat Pernyataan dan Jaminan from the local office (similar to the one above), signed by your spouse over a Rp 6,000 materai.

Immigration officials will then tell you to come back in two days at a specific time so they can take photos and fingerprint you.

Return at the given time for photographing and fingerprinting. It is possible that officials will require an interview as well. Then they will tell you to come back again in two more days to collect the passport and KITAS card.

Approximate Time Frame

The whole process takes as little as 2-3 weeks if all your documents are ready. For our forum user “sumyunggai”, it went like this:

Mon – Submit application, mail documents to contact in Jakarta.
Tue – Documents arrive in Jakarta.
Wed – Payment in Jakarta by contact.
Fri – Decision arrives from Jakarta.
Sun – Fly to Penang.
Mon – Apply in Penang.
Tue – Get the visa in Penang, fly back to Indonesia.
Wed – Get Surat Keterangan Domisili from Kepala Desa.
Thur – Go to the immigration office with documents.
Mon – Return for photos.
Wed – Collect passport & KITAS.