More levies imposed on foreign workers

More levies imposed on foreign workers

JAKARTA (JP): The government has issued a decree requiring
expatriates working in Indonesia to pay US$100 a month during the
period of their working contract.

The money will finance vocational training programs for local
workers, spokesman for the manpower ministry Sutanto told
reporters yesterday.

The levy is a condition of obtaining a work permit in
Indonesia and will have to be paid by the worker's employer
before they get the necessary working permit.

The decree became effective as of Jan. 1, 1997 Sutanto said.

Sutanto said the new ruling was issued as a directive to
Presidential Decree No. 75 of 1996 on the recruitment of foreign
workers.

The presidential decree regulates positions, in companies
whose shares are wholly owned by local investors or partly and
wholly owned by foreign investors, which can be filled by foreign
workers.

It also regulates the "Indonesianization" of positions in the
companies as well as levies imposed on foreign workers.

Sutanto said the ministry would soon have a separate
directorate to manage the funds and conduct vocational training
programs for local workers.

"All this is aimed at anticipating the future need of quality
human resources to enable Indonesia to compete in the
international market," he said.

He said the new decree annulled the previous Ministerial
Decree No 143A requiring expatriates to pay $150 a month to
extend their working contracts.

The 37,590 expatriates currently working in Indonesia are
expected to contribute around $3,75 million a month to the
vocational training programs. (rms)