Purbaya to Request BPJS Data on 95% Tax-Free JHT Disbursements

Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa will request complete data from the Social Security Administering Body for Employment (BPJS Ketenagakerjaan) regarding claims that approximately 95.45 percent of Old Age Security (JHT) disbursements are subject to a zero percent tax. The facility of a zero percent final income tax rate applies to JHT disbursements with a nominal value of up to Rp50 million. This step follows a meeting with the President’s Special Advisor for Employment and Workers’ Welfare, Said Iqbal. “From what I saw earlier, 95 percent of the existing data is already covered by the zero percent tax. But Mr Said said the data is not entirely accurate, so I will request more complete data from BPJS Ketenagakerjaan to examine the figures,” Purbaya stated in Jakarta on Wednesday. During the meeting, Said Iqbal proposed an evaluation of the JHT taxation, a review of the progressive tax mechanism for workers who make multiple JHT withdrawals due to layoffs, an adjustment to the taxable benefit threshold for JHT, and changes to the tax treatment of pension benefits, holiday allowances (THR), and severance pay. Responding to these proposals, the Finance Minister emphasised that he would study them comprehensively before making any decisions. “We do not want to make things more difficult for the public. We will maintain what is already in place, but we must also carefully calculate the policy’s impact on state revenue and ensure that the benefits are truly felt by those in need,” he said.