Mandatory Halal Certification Delayed; MUI Urges Public to Continue Buying Halal Products
The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has urged the public to continue buying and consuming products bearing halal labels, and to avoid products without them, after the introduction of mandatory halal certification was postponed from its originally planned 2026 start to 2028.
MUI Deputy Chairman Muhammad Cholil Nafis said the council regretted the delay to the certification requirement.
He said the postponement could reduce consumers’ certainty when buying and using products, including medicines and other goods. The requirement was intended to make it clear to the public which products are halal and which are not.
Cholil said the delay was linked to Muslims’ right to practise their religion.
Without the mandatory requirement, businesses would not be obliged to obtain halal certification and would face no sanctions for failing to do so, potentially making it harder for consumers to determine whether products on the market are halal.
“That is why, even if the government does not implement this, people should still buy products with a halal label, because it is a religious obligation and is not dependent on legislation,” Cholil said.
Asked whether the delay could affect the development of the sharia economy and finance, Cholil said halal certification was fundamentally not just an economic issue, but a matter of Muslims’ right to certainty about the halal status of the products they consume and use.
Cholil also said all the supporting arrangements for halal certification were in place, including the Halal Product Assurance Agency (BPJPH). However, he said the decision to delay implementation was a government decision.
Given Indonesia’s Muslim-majority population, MUI said there should be no reason to postpone mandatory halal certification again, particularly if the country aims to become a global halal hub.
The government announced the adjustment to the phased implementation period for mandatory halal certification in a press release on Friday (16 October), through the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs.
The government said it recognised that implementing mandatory halal certification covered a broad range of activities and involved millions of businesses and multiple industrial sectors.
The requirement is based on Law No. 33 of 2014 on Halal Product Assurance, as amended by Law No. 6 of 2023. Its implementation is further governed, among other regulations, by Government Regulation No. 42 of 2024 on the Administration of Halal Product Assurance.