Conversion of Bali's Rice Fields into Villas Now Leads to Criminal Prosecution

Denpasar, Kompas.com – The tangle of land-use changes on Bali, often dubbed the Island of the Gods, has entered a new phase. The Bali Provincial Government has officially begun enforcing progressive legal instruments to curb the increasingly voracious concrete wave devouring subak and productive land. Bali Governor I Wayan Koster signed a Regional Regulation (Perda) on Controlling the Conversion of Productive Land and Prohibition of Nominee Land Ownership on Tuesday, 24 February 2026. This move is described as the ‘last fortress’ to safeguard food sovereignty and Bali’s ecological identity from encroaching property investment. The public or investors who dare to transform productive rice fields into villas or commercial complexes must prepare to face heavy legal consequences. Not only licence revocation or administrative fines, violators also face criminal sanctions under applicable laws, including orders for demolition to restore land function. ‘To support achieving food sovereignty, economic self-reliance, and ecological balance, it is necessary to regulate the control of productive land-use changes strictly,’ Koster stated in official remarks received by Kompas.com on Thursday, 26 February 2026. One of the most pointed provisions of the regulation is a strict ban on land ownership via nominee arrangements, where local residents are used in name by foreign nationals to control land. Until now, this pattern has been a main entry point for ‘land colonisation’ in Bali’s coastal and upland areas. Sanctions apply not only to capital owners, but also to intermediaries, facilitators, and even those who smooth foreign land control. Even Civil Servants (ASN) are not immune. The regulation provides for penalties for public servants found to have colluded in the land-use change process. ‘The Perda also sets penalties for ASNs who violate,’ Koster added.