Indonesia’s immigration system has spent recent years moving online, and by 2026 that shift has reshaped how yacht owners and crew arrange their stay.
The headline changes are practical rather than dramatic. Applications now flow overwhelmingly through the official e-visa portal, the Golden Visa has broadened into clear long-stay tiers, and the KITAS is steadily becoming a digital document. Alongside these sits a continuing policy conversation about longer-duration stays for those cruising and working on the water. Here is what has shifted and what it means in practice for a foreign yacht. This is general information to orient you, not legal advice — the specifics turn on your circumstances and can change through the year.
The e-visa portal is now the default
The most consequential change is procedural. The official portal at evisa.imigrasi.go.id now handles the majority of applications, from the e-VOA through the B211A visit visa. For owners and crew this means cleaner online submissions, digital approvals arriving by email and less dependence on turning up in person — but also less tolerance for inconsistent documents, since the portal expects details to match across the file. We prepare and lodge applications through the portal and keep the supporting paperwork aligned.
An expanded Golden Visa
Indonesia’s Golden Visa programme has broadened, with five- and ten-year tiers aimed at investors and high-value visitors who want to base themselves in the country without renewing every few months. For a yacht owner planning to spend serious time in Indonesian waters, a long-horizon visa can be far more comfortable than a chain of short extensions. Eligibility rests on investment and other criteria, so it suits some owners and not others — we can talk through whether it fits your situation.
KITAS goes digital
The KITAS — the limited-stay permit for those living or working in Indonesia longer term — continues its move to a digital format, joining up with the online immigration system. For crew and marine professionals staying beyond the reach of visit visas, that means a smoother renewal experience and records that travel with the online file rather than a physical card alone. The underlying requirements are unchanged; the process around them is getting lighter.
The direction of travel for marine stays
Beyond the confirmed changes, there is active discussion about accommodating longer-duration yacht and marine stays — recognition that cruising the archipelago properly takes time. Nothing here should be treated as settled policy, and we would not plan a cruise around a rule that has not landed. But the trend is toward digitisation and longer horizons, which is broadly good news for owners. We watch the announcements from Imigrasi and adjust our advice as the framework under Permenkumham and UU 6/2011 evolves.