Immigration Uncovers Fictitious Investor ITAS Scheme
The Tangerang Immigration Office has named ten foreign nationals (WNA) as suspects in a case involving the use of fictitious documents for Investor Limited Stay Permits (ITAS). Eight of them are Pakistani nationals with the initials ZU, J, L, AS, QU, FUR, HU, and JK. The other two suspects are Iraqi nationals with the initials RMA and PAH.
Head of the Tangerang Immigration Office, Hasanin, said officers arrested all the foreign nationals during an immigration surveillance operation at an apartment in Tangerang City, Banten, on 1 November 2025. According to him, the case began with officers’ suspicions regarding the guarantor status and the credibility of the foreign nationals’ investments.
"During brief interviews in the field, these foreign nationals were unable to provide basic explanations regarding the profile of the guarantor company or the realisation of the investment activities claimed in their names while in Indonesia," Hasanin said in a written statement on Tuesday, 21 July 2026. Officers then suspected the foreign nationals of falsifying data and providing false information to obtain visas and investor stay permits. "In practice, there was no real business activity," Hasanin said.
Hasanin said the investigation developed after officers pulled data on the issuance of the Investor ITAS and examined it in depth. Together with the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), officers verified the documents for the establishment of foreign investment companies (PMA) and conducted field checks. From this process, officers uncovered several facts. According to Hasanin, when the company deeds, general meeting of shareholders (RUPS) minutes, and share transfer documents were issued, the ten foreign nationals were proven not to have been in Indonesia based on immigration travel records. Furthermore, their signature specimens on the company documents differed from the official signatures in the investigation reports (BAP).
Officers also examined the guarantor companies’ bank accounts at Bank Central Asia and Bank Mandiri. The results showed that the accounts were invalid. Additionally, officers traced the addresses of the guarantor companies and found that all the addresses were fictitious. "Only pawnshops, Padang restaurants, empty plazas, and virtual offices with expired leases were found," Hasanin said. Hasanin added that one of the sponsorship guarantee documents for an Indonesian citizen with the initials KM used a fake population identification number (NIK) registered under another person’s name in the Civil Registry Service (Dukcapil) database. Moreover, the suspects never deposited investment capital, never conducted business activities, and never submitted Investment Activity Reports (LKPM) to the government.
"In this legal process, investigators have secured various pieces of evidence, including the suspects’ national passports, mobile phones, Investor ITAS application files, and electronic immigration travel records," Hasanin said. Investigators also completed the evidence through bank account validation, Dukcapil NIK validation, PMA status verification from BKPM, and expert testimony from criminal law, notarial, and immigration specialists.
Responding to the case, Director General of Immigration Hendarsam Marantoko stressed that Indonesia remains open to quality foreign investors who can add value to the national economy. However, he said Immigration would not tolerate foreign nationals who misuse investor visas or falsify legal documents to stay illegally in Indonesia. "Immigration supervision and enforcement will continue to be tightened across the country," he said.
Hasanin said investigators began the case on 26 March 2026 and named the suspects on 18 May 2026. The Tangerang District Prosecutor’s Office declared the case files complete in mid-July 2026. Tangerang Immigration subsequently transferred the suspects and evidence on 16-17 July 2026. For their actions, the suspects are charged under Article 123 letter b of the Immigration Law in conjunction with the Law on Criminal Adjustments. They face a maximum prison sentence of five years.