After writing about easy methods to get a US visa for Australians, I assumed you would possibly need to know easy methods to go about getting one for Indonesia as properly.
As soon as our passports arrived again from the US embassy we headed straight for the Indonesian embassy in Melbourne to organise an prolonged visa for our subsequent journey to Bali in Could/June 2015.
Common Bali Visa On Arrival
Often whenever you fly to Bali you’ll be part of an extended queue to acquire your Visa On Arrival (VOA).
Whereas there was just lately some speak from the Indonesian authorities about making this course of free for Australians, the visa exemption by no means was applied and the price remains to be US$35 per individual to enter (together with youngsters).
TIP: Don’t overlook you pay 200,000 IDR in native forex (AUD$20, US$15.50) to go away as properly. There may be rumours this can quickly be a part of your departure flight ticket as an alternative of paying money on the airport.
You may solely pay with money and in a single forex (USD, AUD, Euro, Rupiah), so be sure you have sufficient. Though you may pay in your chosen forex, USD works out the perfect based mostly on the dwell change charge. You may be barely worse off utilizing Indonesian Rupiah or Australian {Dollars}. There may be an ATM close by if you’re not ready. And like most VOAs, you could have at the very least 6 months left in your passport to enter.
This VOA will provide you with 30 days in Bali on a single entry. Don’t screw up the dates. It’s not one month, it’s 30 days counting the day you arrived and the day you allow, so finest to rely 28 days. Overstaying attracts a penalty of 200,000 IDR per individual per day.
What If You Need To Keep 60 Days?
Whereas acquiring a vacationer visa forward of time is feasible, so is extending the Visa On Arrival whereas in Indonesia, though doing so by your self could be fairly draining.
It’s best to have the assistance of an agent. Ask your pleasant, native expat and so they can level you in the best course. Or you need to use the agent we used, Made (pronounced “Ma-deh”), simply let him know we advisable you.
Do it at the very least 2 weeks forward of the scheduled departure date. He’ll acquire your passports out of your resort or villa (together with fee through money) and organise every little thing. Don’t be alarmed when he takes the passports with him, that is a part of the method. He’ll keep in contact through SMS or e-mail each few days and can prepare an appointment on the Immigration Workplace (positioned near the Ngurah Rai Worldwide Airport). Right here’s a drawn map we obtained:
Immigration workplace location
Or if you happen to’re like me and like a Google Map, use this hyperlink I made only for you.
Every passport holder (together with youngsters) should attend the appointment and despite the fact that it’s set at a particular time, it’s principally a free-for-all. Our visa agent handed on the contact particulars of a man contained in the workplace who helped us get to the best spot. He didn’t communicate a lot English, however he helped us get a ticket for the visa interview queue.
Organising all that is a lot simpler when you have your personal telephone (a neighborhood SIM card is tremendous low cost and straightforward to get). We referred to as the workplace contact upon arrival and he grabbed a ticket for us.
We waited round for the interview in a number of ready rooms for a complete of round 1 hour. As soon as contained in the interview room it was fairly simple with finger scanning and doc stamping. There was nothing to really pay for right here on the workplace.
We didn’t obtain the passports right away – they had been delivered to our villa by our visa agent just a few days later.
To prolong the VOA prices roughly US$70 per individual. That is on prime of the US$35 paid to get by way of immigration on the airport initially. Be mindful transport prices to and from the Immigration Workplace – in our case a return journey in a non-public van for our household from Ubud price round 400,000 IDR (US$31).
This extension will provide you with an extra 30 days however can solely be performed 1 time. After the 60 days expire you will have to go away Indonesia.
You Can’t Do Your Juice Quick in 60 Days… You Want Longer
The VOA plus the visa extension goes to set you again at the very least US$105. Nonetheless there’s a higher method and you’ll keep longer.
The identical visa agent which helped us for our authentic visa extension, was additionally in a position to present a sponsor letter for us so we may apply for a social visa on our subsequent go to.
The sponsor letter was 250,000 IDR per individual (US$20) and the social visa US$45 (AUD$60) totalling US$65. Not solely was that at the very least US$40 per individual cheaper (not together with transport), however we received’t should queue within the VOA line once we arrive late at evening at Bali’s airport.
Whereas the social visa is paid 60 days upfront, it can be prolong each 30 days after that for round US$25 per individual as much as a most keep of 6 months, with out having to go away Indonesia.
Issues to recollect:
- You may solely apply for the social visa if you find yourself bodily outdoors Indonesia. Some Indonesian embassies will probably be faster than others. It took 5 working days for us in Melbourne, Australia.
- You’ll need a letter of sponsorship from an Indonesian citizen (ie. visa agent).
What To Do To Get A Social Visa
First you want a sponsorship letter. Our agent, Made, organised all of this over the Web through e-mail. All he wanted was scanned copies of our first passport web page (the one together with your picture).
TIP: You may take a photograph of your passport utilizing your smartphone.
As soon as this letter has been printed it is advisable fill in an software kind, which is a bit of laborious to search out on the Indonesian Embassy web site, so right here is the direct hyperlink.
Ensure you have flights in and in a foreign country booked – the embassy workers will need to see printed copies of these (an “itinerary” is ok). A totally refundable flight ticket is ok.
The Indonesian Consulate in Melbourne
There was no have to e book an appointment for the Indonesian embassy, simply flip up. On the time of publication they had been open 9:30am to 1pm in Melbourne and the wait time inside was minimal, not like our US visa expertise. There have been no safety checks and we waited lower than 3 minutes to be served.
At your appointment take with you:
- Passport
- Passport picture
- Utility (1 per individual)
- Flight itinerary (printed)
- Photocopy of your passport
- Sponsor letter
- Copy of sponsor’s ID (the visa agent will present this)
- For teenagers below 18 you will have a duplicate of their start certificates
- Your bank card to pay the AU$60 price
There have been hardly any questions, they only checked all of the paperwork had been so as, offered a receipt after which requested us to come back again in 5 working days. Once we returned the next week, the pick-up course of was even quicker.
There are a number of different visas you may receive to get into Indonesia, however these are the 2 we’ve used and know from expertise, and are additionally the most well-liked with guests.
Backside Line
We love Bali and are wanting ahead to heading again to Ubud subsequent week for an additional few months of yoga, wholesome meals and nice mates. So if you happen to’re occupied with spending a pair months on the island of the gods, you understand how to do it.