Marketplace Tax Collection for Online Sellers Is Not a New Tax, Finance Ministry Clarifies

The Directorate General of Taxes (DJP) at the Ministry of Finance has clarified that changes to tax compliance for marketplaces, effective 1 July 2026, do not represent a new tax but are designed to make it easier for online business taxpayers to meet their tax obligations. Director General of Taxes Bimo Wijayanto stated that the appointment of four marketplaces as tax collectors does not create a new tax, as it still falls under Income Tax (PPh) Article 22. “So the regulatory change in the tax settlement mechanism, from being self-paid by domestic merchants to being collected by the designated marketplace, is not a new tax. This is income from business activities conducted through the marketplace. Once again, it shifts from being self-paid by domestic merchants to being collected by the designated marketplace,” Bimo said during a press conference on Wednesday (1/7/2026). This appointment is in accordance with Minister of Finance Regulation (PMK) Number 37 of 2025 concerning the appointment of Electronic Trading System (marketplace/PMSE) operators as collectors of Income Tax Article 22 on transactions by domestic merchants. The primary objective of designating marketplace operators as PPh Article 22 collectors is to simplify tax reporting obligations for online business actors. “The main goal is fairness and ease. This policy will create a level playing field between offline and online entrepreneurs and merchants, while also making it easier for merchants to fulfil their tax obligations,” Bimo continued. The mechanism is designed to provide administrative ease, improve compliance, and ensure equal tax treatment among business actors. Bimo explained that the appointment of marketplace operators as PPh Article 22 collectors was made after considering several factors, particularly system readiness. “This appointment was certainly made after considering everything from upstream to downstream, including system readiness, transaction scale, administrative capacity, the use of escrow backing mechanisms, and of course the readiness of the marketplace to carry out electronic tax collection, deposit, and reporting,” Bimo elaborated. Today, the DJP officially designated four marketplaces as PPh Article 22 collectors for online merchants. The four designated marketplaces are Tokopedia, Shopee, Lazada, and Blibli.