Indonesia Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in indonesia, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
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Customs Regulations
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Indonesia’s customs environment continues to present challenges for U.S. exporters, particularly with respect to valuation practices and pre-shipment requirements. Despite Indonesia being a signatory to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Customs Valuation Agreement, U.S. firms frequently report that Indonesian Customs authorities rely on a reference price system to assess duties for certain imported goods. Rather than consistently using the declared transaction value as the basis for customs valuation—as required by the WTO—Indonesia’s Directorate General of Customs and Excise often determines dutiable values based on historical import data, including the average price of similar goods imported over the previous 90 days and the importer’s assessed risk profile.

This practice has led to inconsistencies in customs clearance, especially for U.S. companies importing high-quality or specialized goods, where invoice values may differ substantially from historical averages.

In addition, Ministry of Trade Regulation No. 87/2015 continues to require pre-shipment verification and inspection (PSI) for a broad range of imported products, including electronics, textiles, footwear, toys, food and beverages, and cosmetics. These inspections must be conducted by government-appointed third-party verification companies (referred to as “surveyors”) in the country of export. The costs of these inspections are borne by the importer and can result in delays, increased transaction costs, and in some cases, the need to reroute shipments to designated ports or airports that are authorized to handle such verified cargo.

Further tightening of customs controls has occurred in sectors prone to regulatory or environmental scrutiny. Since 2019, Indonesia has required pre-shipment inspections of imported scrap materials, including paper, plastic, and metals, to ensure compliance with environmental regulations. These inspections aim to verify that materials are homogeneous, clean, and free of hazardous waste, and that they meet minimum quality thresholds. In 2020, Indonesia added a registration requirement for scrap exporters with the nearest Indonesian Embassy or consulate.

Following concerns from international recyclers and industry groups, Indonesia’s Ministry of Trade announced that it would amend regulations governing contamination thresholds. As of late 2021, Indonesia revised the permissible level of impurities in imported scrap from 0.5 percent to 2.0 percent, bringing the regulation more in line with international norms. However, U.S. exporters should continue to coordinate closely with Indonesian importers and verification agents to ensure compliance with the latest technical and documentary requirements.

Companies are advised to engage qualified customs brokers, maintain complete documentation, and proactively confirm product-specific requirements well in advance of shipping. Misclassification, undervaluation, or noncompliance with inspection procedures may result in fines, cargo holds, or re-export orders.

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Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

Limitations

As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

Privacy

The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

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