Banking system for expats in jakarta

5POSTS

7 years ago

Hi, I am moving to Jakarta , got an offer letter from a multinational company, I would like to know how easy is to open a bank account and apply a unsecured credit card from any bank in Jakarta for an expat, and what is the taxation rules for an expat living in Jakarta

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GuestPoster0210 Guest

0POSTS

7 years ago

Opening a bank account is very easy once you have your KITAS etc
Taxation depends on the amount you earn, I can’t remember the amounts but If you are earning a typical expat wage you’ll pay in the region of roughly 30% once you hit a certain amount plus about 1.5/ 2 % ? BPJS (you can claim about 80^ back annually) the least I have paid over the years is around US $ 350 a month “ish” (equivalent)
Unsecured credit card and loans are highly unlikely ask but expect to be looked at in a strange way and refused
(They want to know why not get one in own country)

Fred Indonesia Expert

30549POSTS

7 years ago

dhan1234 wrote:
Hi, I am moving to Jakarta , got an offer letter from a multinational company,

Looking at this from another angle, are you sure the letter is real? Lots of scams around.

lukereg ViP

2114POSTS

7 years ago

Once you have your legal paperwork and the bank has checked the details with immigration to prove the visa is real and you declare your tax number or not and a number of other new banking rules you can get an account. A credit card or other financial facilities are difficult now as banks do not like to issue credit cards to expats on certain visas and or without a tax number or permanent address.

Angy Buleh Member

13POSTS

7 years ago

Your native bank pass and credit card are still working fine. It's not that Indonesian cards are cheaper in use? If your stay is only for few years I would use the ones from your own country.

Also a reminder bank business in Indonesia takes 10x longer than elsewhere. Meaning it takes half a day to get something done.

Fred Indonesia Expert

30549POSTS

7 years ago

Angy Buleh wrote:
Also a reminder bank business in Indonesia takes 10x longer than elsewhere. Meaning it takes half a day to get something done.

I might have agreed with that ten years ago, but not now.
My experiences have been of fast, friendly, and efficient staff the vast majority of the time.
Most of my banking is now internet and ATM based, but I still have to visit branches once a month, so I pick my times in order to avoid queues and all is well