During his weekly press briefing on Wednesday, 03 January 2024, the Minister of Tourism and the Creative Economy, Sandiago Uno, said that when Indonesia grants visa-free status to 20 countries, it will generate between US$ 20 and 25 billion (around Rp. 388 trillion) in foreign exchange.
As reported by Kompas.com, Sandiaga Uno said the tourist visits facilitated by the change in visa rules would result in US$5,000 in spending per passenger.
Dandiaga said three airports are prioritized to welcome visa-free tourists from the selected 20 counties: Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport, Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, and Batam’s Hang Nadim International Airport.
The 20 countries
The Minister’s recommendation on visa-free facilities forms part of a video uploaded to the YouTube Channel of the Indonesian State Secretariat.
The 20 countries recommended for free visitor visas to Indonesia are:
Australia
China (PRC)
India
South Korea
U.S.A.
U.K.
France
Germany
Qatar
United Arab Emirates
Saudi Arabia
The Netherlands
Japan
Russia
Taiwan
New Zealand
Italy
Spain
Plus, two unspecified Middle Eastern Countries
The nine ASEAN member nations currently eligible for visa-free visits to Indonesia:
Brunei Darussalam
Cambodia
Lao PDR
Malaysia
Myanmar
Philippines
Singapore
Thailand
Vietnam
Figures from the National Statistic Agency (BPS) record a cumulative total of foreign visitors to Indonesia for January-October 2023 of 9,942,004, an increase of 124.30 percent over the same ten months in 2022.
Sandiga’s list of countries recommended for visa-free access has been submitted to Joko Widodo for Presidential review.
Related Link
Indonesia Adding 20 Nations as Visa-Free?
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