In short. According to the immigration pages for the B1, C1 and D12 visas, a foreigner may not sell goods or services or receive payment in Indonesia: a tourist visa and work are incompatible. Work for an Indonesian company goes through an E23 work KITAS with an employer sponsor, who first gets an approved RPTKA plan from the manpower ministry (ministry regulation 8/2021, article 2) through the TKA Online portal. Remote work for a foreign company is the E33G visa for a year without a sponsor; services to local clients are not in its permission. For using a permit for the wrong purpose, article 122 of law No. 6/2011 threatens up to 5 years in prison and a fine. There is no official job board for foreigners: first the employer, then the employer starts the RPTKA and the E23.
What counts as work. The immigration pages for the visa on arrival B1, the C1 visa and the multiple-entry D12 visa say it directly: a foreigner may not sell goods or services or receive remuneration or payment for work from individuals and companies in Indonesia. For C1 a ban on performing at events is added. The Australian government's Smartraveller advice puts it more broadly: on a tourist visa it is illegal to work, do research and volunteer, including creating and publishing online content for payment or for commercial purposes. So a paid project on the spot, paid filming or volunteering falls under the ban. About remote work for a foreign employer on a tourist visa, the immigration pages contain neither permission nor a separate ban, so you cannot rely on it.
The E23 work KITAS. This is a visa followed by a residence permit for people hired by an Indonesian company. A sponsor is needed, that is, an employer. According to the immigration page the length of stay is 180 days, 1 year or 2 years, the price depends on the term and on 11 October 2026 is 5,250,000, 7,000,000 and 9,500,000 rupiah respectively. Among the documents: a passport valid for more than six months, bank statements for three months with a balance of at least 2,000 US dollars, a CV, a travel plan and a work permit from the manpower ministry. The visa itself is valid for 90 days, and processing takes four working days. You may work only in the profession and for the employer named in the permit, and you may not sell goods and services beyond that.
The manpower ministry permit. First the employer gets an approved plan for hiring a foreign worker, the RPTKA (Rencana Penggunaan Tenaga Kerja Asing). This is a requirement of article 2 of ministry regulation 8/2021. It is submitted through the TKA Online portal, where only the employer works. The conditions for the foreigner are in article 4: education suited to the position, work experience of at least 5 years and skill transfer to an Indonesian counterpart. Eligible employers are listed in article 3: companies, foundations, representative offices, educational and religious organisations and others. A one-person company (PT perorangan) is excluded from the list. For each foreigner the employer pays the DKPTKA fee, 100 US dollars per position and person per month (article 35). It is paid in advance for the approved term, and government bodies, embassies, religious and social organisations and some positions in education are exempt. You will still hear the name IMTA, but it is not in the text of regulation 8/2021: the RPTKA approval became the work permit.
Remote work for a foreign company: E33G. The "second home for remote workers" visa E33G is issued for a year without a sponsor. Immigration states its purpose as living in Indonesia and performing tasks for a company abroad. You need an income of at least 60,000 US dollars a year and an employment contract with a company registered outside Indonesia. Entry and exit, tourism and meeting friends and relatives are allowed, while work outside the terms of the permit, selling goods and services and overstay are banned. Fees on the page: a stay for a year 7,000,000 rupiah, the visa 500,000 rupiah, plus verification, permit and re-entry (as of 11 October 2026).
Freelancing for local clients. The E33G description says that goods and services may be sold only to the extent required for work for the foreign company. Services to Indonesian customers are not named among the permitted activities. For such work you need a document that directly allows it, for example a work KITAS through an employer. Without it, work for local clients remains illegal. A foreigner runs their own business through a company with foreign capital, a PT PMA; which activities in Bali are closed to new companies of this kind and which reports they file is covered in the company-setup guide on buzz-visa.com.
Blogs and advertising for local businesses. Paid posts, advertising and paid filming for cafes, villas and other companies in Bali are payment for services in Indonesia: on the B1, C1 and D12 visas it is banned, and the E33G permit has no services to local clients. The visa list on the immigration site has a separate C5A visa for content creators (Visa Kunjungan Konten Kreator), but as of 10 November 2026 the description on its page is not filled in. According to CNA of 12 August 2026, citing the ministry's website, this visa allows running personal social media and travelling, but not working for a local employer or earning income in Indonesia. An immigration patrol, Satgas Dharma Dewata, goes around Bali, and the Bali immigration office told CNA that its aim is to stop the tourist visa being used for work and commercial activity. Where a personal travel story ends and commercial content begins has not yet been clearly defined by the authorities: experts and the creators themselves point this out in the same article.
What illegal work risks. Under article 122 of the immigration law UU 6/2011, a foreigner who intentionally uses a permit for the wrong purpose or does something other than what it was issued for risks up to 5 years in prison and a fine of up to 500,000,000 rupiah. The same punishment is set for those who ordered such work or made it possible, that is, the employer too. Besides criminal liability, under article 75 immigration may put a person on the entry-ban list (penangkalan), shorten, change or cancel the residence permit and expel the person from the country. Law 63/2024 did not change these articles.
Where to look for jobs legally. We found no official job board for foreigners: the TKA Online portal serves employers. The practical order is this: you find an employer, and as sponsor they start the RPTKA and the E23 processing. If you are invited to work "on a tourist visa" or "while it is being arranged", that is a reason to refuse.
What this means for you. A tourist visa and work are incompatible. For work at an Indonesian company you need an E23 with a manpower ministry permit, and the employer handles it. For living in Bali with foreign work, the E33G fits if your income and contract meet its conditions. If you do not want to work it out yourself, message @buzz_visa on Telegram.