Marketplaces Raising Admin Fees Unilaterally to Face Sanctions

The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) is preparing to issue a ministerial regulation that will impose sanctions on marketplaces raising administrative fees unilaterally. Minister Maman Abdurrahman stated that his ministry is coordinating with marketplaces to integrate the Sapa UMKM application platform with their systems. The regulation is planned for release this week. One key provision requires online shops to announce new policies well in advance, for instance three months before a fee increase is applied. Violators, including those raising service fees unilaterally, face sanctions ranging from public exposure to recommendations for licence revocation by the Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Communication and Digital. Maman expressed confidence that marketplaces will comply following coordination. The regulation mandates annual long-term contracts between marketplaces and sellers to prevent arbitrary price hikes, and stipulates that digital contract font sizes must not be too small for MSMEs to read. The government is standardising cost components across platforms into three categories: registration fees, service fees, and promotion fees. Additionally, platforms are required to provide a 50 per cent discount on service fees for domestically produced goods, an incentive specifically targeting micro and small businesses operating on marketplaces to enhance their competitiveness.