More red tape ensnares expats

More red tape ensnares expats

Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Lengthy and unclear bureaucratic procedures for foreigners to
obtain permission to work in Indonesia have attracted many to
work as informal immigration agents.

The agents offer services to arrange and procure the necessary
documents, as both local and foreign companies wanting to employ
foreigners have been frustrated by the complicated procedures.

According to several such agents, following procedures to the
letter was not enough to ensure the timely processing of required
documents.

They told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday "extra money" was also
needed to bribe relevant officials. The agents' fees include
these "honorariums", and are thus far above the official
processing fees set in existing regulations.

The agents' fees for arranging complete documents for a single
foreign employee range from Rp 2.5 million (US$271) to Rp 3.6
million, whereas official fees are under Rp 1 million.

"Don't hope they (the officials) will issue documents on time
if you don't give them 'tips', even though you have met all
requirements," Agus (not his real name), an agent who works out
of an East Jakarta office, told the Post.

Of course, he said, the "tips" of about Rp 300,000 per
official were illegal, as several notices at the Ministry of
Manpower and Transmigration read "free processing".

He said similar "tips" should also be prepared for other
relevant institutions like the immigration, the police, the
population and civil registration, and subdistrict offices.

The "tips" are part and parcel of the bureaucratic procedures,
as David (an alias), an expatriate seeking to extend his son's
temporary stay permit (KITAS), acknowledged.

"I was told that Rp 200,000 is the normal 'tip' to speed
things up. We didn't pay and, as a consequence, were treated very
rudely," he said, speaking of an official who works in Cawang,
East Jakarta.

Many expatriates share their frustrating experiences at
www.expat.or.id, a website for foreigners living and working in
the country.

According to the City Population and Civil Registration
Agency, about 32,000 of 36,000 foreigners in Jakarta hold a
KITAS, while only about 4,000 hold permanent stay permits
(KITAP).

Agus said no data existed on the number of agents offering
their services, but he thought it might reach hundreds -- some
worked for companies, while the others were freelancers.

Another agent, who asked that her identity be withheld, said
her Central Jakarta-based company served at least 20 clients a
month.

"Our clients can be new people who want to work here, or those
who want to extend their permits," she said. Her company charged
the same for first-time processes and extensions.

Manpower and immigration procedures for foreigners applying to
work in Indonesia weave through much red-tape and require
documentation from a variety of institutes. First, the applicant
must have proof of corporate sponsorship in order to initiate the
lengthy process, but sponsorship can only be provided by
companies with an Expatriate Placement Plan (RPTKA), which are
approved by the manpower ministry.

The proof of corporate sponsorship is needed to obtain other
documents, including a KITAS from the immigration office and a
recommendation to grant the TA01 work visa -- from the manpower
ministry for local companies or the Investment Coordinating Board
(BKPM) for foreign companies.

Other necessary documents are work permits (IKTA) issued by
the manpower ministry, police registration certificate (SKLD),
foreign identity card (KIP) and family members certificate
(SKSKP) issued by the population and civil registration agency,
and residential registration certificate (SKTT) issued by a
subdistrict office.