After Jewellery Outlets, Jakarta Customs now inspects luxury watch stores
Jakarta’s Directorate General of Customs and Excise has inspected several luxury watch retail outlets across Jakarta to investigate suspected illegal importation of high-value goods bypassing proper customs procedures.
Siswo Kristiyanto, Head of the Enforcement Division at the Jakarta Regional Office of the Directorate General of Customs and Excise, stated that officers received information about luxury watch shipments from overseas that had not followed the appropriate customs mechanism.
“Our focus is on high-value goods such as luxury watches entering Indonesia’s customs territory, particularly those that have not been reported or have been incorrectly reported in import documents,” Siswo said on Tuesday, 10 March 2026.
Siswo noted that inspections were conducted at several stores selling luxury products. However, during these activities, Customs did not seal any of the inspected outlets.
“Today’s activity involved no sealing. We simply verified that goods in the shops match the documentation. If anything remains unverified, we communicate with the business owners to request clarification,” Siswo explained.
According to Siswo, the oversight aims to ensure that luxury goods being traded have fulfilled customs obligations, which include import reporting and payment of import duties and related taxes.
If goods are found to be inconsistent with import documents, business owners are asked to provide further explanation to Customs. This approach prioritises an administrative strategy.
Siswo stated that this inspection represents the fifth such activity carried out by the Jakarta Regional Office. Previously, officers also conducted administrative reviews of several luxury jewellery shops.
From a customs perspective, Siswo noted that imported goods failing to meet requirements can be categorised as illegal merchandise. Such violations could potentially be escalated to criminal proceedings under the Customs Law.
“Currently, we are prioritising compliance with administrative obligations such as payment of import duties and import taxes to ensure companies adhere more strictly to customs regulations,” Siswo said.
Customs has also urged business operators who have not met customs obligations to coordinate with the Jakarta Regional Office before further enforcement measures are taken.
The enforcement action is based on the Customs Law provisions, including Article 74(1) and Article 103(d).
Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa previously stressed that the government would consistently take action against illegal imported goods trade activities.
“So if people say that, field officers, they have already stolen, then sold them boldly in front of us, that is like insulting the government,” Purbaya said.
Purbaya stated that the sealing of gold and jewellery shops at several shopping centres in Jakarta was conducted because the goods sold did not meet import duty payment obligations.
The government is still calculating potential state losses from the trade in imported jewellery goods that do not meet customs obligations.