Purbaya to Revise Restitution Regulations, Set to Take Effect from 1 May 2026
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - The Ministry of Finance (Kemenkeu) will soon implement new tax restitution regulations. This stricter policy on refunding overpaid taxes for businesses is scheduled to take effect on 1 May 2026. The plan was revealed in the Draft Ministerial Regulation (RPMK) submitted to the Ministry of Law and Human Rights.
“As part of regulatory updates, this RPMK will revoke and replace previous regulations related to preliminary refunds of overpaid taxes and is planned to take effect on 1 May 2026,” according to the website of the Directorate General of Legislation at the Ministry of Law and Human Rights on Tuesday (14/4/2026).
Previously, the Directorate General of Legislation (DJPP) held a Harmonisation, Rounding, and Concept Finalisation Meeting for the Draft Ministerial Regulation on the Procedures for Preliminary Refunds of Overpaid Taxes from Friday to Saturday (10-11 April 2026) virtually.
“This meeting is a follow-up to previous harmonisation activities conducted on 6 April 2026, aimed at perfecting the substance and ensuring the alignment of the RPMK’s content with statutory provisions.”
The event was attended by representatives from the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the State Secretariat Ministry, and officials from the Ministry of Law, particularly the Directorate General of Legislation.
One of the main points is the research mechanism on taxpayers’ applications, which serves as the basis for the Director General of Taxes to determine whether a preliminary refund can be granted or not.
Additionally, it stipulates that if the research results show that formal requirements are met and there is an overpayment of tax, the Director General of Taxes may issue a Decision Letter for the Preliminary Refund of Overpaid Tax. Conversely, if the requirements are not met or there are certain conditions such as tax examinations or law enforcement processes, the application may be rejected.
This draft regulation also includes provisions on the timeframe for processing applications, namely a maximum of three months for Income Tax and one month for Value Added Tax since the application is received.
Tax Restitution, a Leakage Gap
Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa is indeed planning to review tax restitution. The policy on refunding overpaid taxes for businesses will be tightened because it is suspected to be a major cause of state revenue leakages.
Purbaya stated that the annual restitution value disbursed by the state is not insignificant. Last year alone, he mentioned it reached around Rp 361.5 trillion, up 35.9% from the 2024 record.
“Last year’s restitution was very large, Sir. Rp 360 trillion. And the reports to me weren’t very clear. Month by month, like what. Now it’s starting to be monitored. I suspect there, there’s a bit of leakage,” said Purbaya during a Working Meeting with Commission XI of the House of Representatives (DPR RI) earlier this week, quoted on Tuesday (13/4/2026).
The tightening mechanism for restitution will be carried out through comprehensive audits, especially those related to restitutions in the natural resources (SDA) business sector. The audit will cover the period from 2020 to 2025.
Purbaya will collaborate with the Financial and Development Supervisory Agency (BPKP) as an external party for the auditing. “Internally, I’m focusing on 2025, and externally, that’s involving BPKP from 2020 to 2025. So I want to see where exactly these things are,” he said.
He explained that the audit is intended to identify vulnerable points in the restitution system while ensuring that its distribution remains on target.
“So now we’re tightening it. It doesn’t mean we’re stopping restitution, but we’re tightening it so that those who are not entitled don’t get restitution,” he stated.