Indonesia: Tax Office Says No New Tax on Transfers as Minister Keeps QRIS Question Open
Indonesia’s tax office says there is no new tax on bank transfers or e-wallet payments, after a senior figure close to the President claimed that banks, fintechs and online marketplaces would start collecting “digital tax” from 9 November. The Directorate General of Taxes (DJP) says the scheme in question only collects existing value added tax (VAT) on purchases of foreign digital goods and services. But the economy minister has not ruled out a tax on QRIS, the national QR payment standard, saying only that the government “will see later”.
Key facts
- On 29 October, Hashim Djojohadikusumo, the President’s younger brother and special envoy, told a Kadin (Indonesian Chamber of Commerce) meeting that banks, fintechs and platforms such as Shopee, Lazada and GoTo would collect and remit digital tax from 9 November.
- The DJP says the scheme is SPP-TDLN, a system for collecting VAT on foreign digital transactions. It says this is not a new tax and does not change the VAT rate.
- The DJP says personal fund transfers and remittances are not targets of the system, and that VAT already collected by appointed platforms will not be charged twice.
- Six institutions were appointed as the first collectors on 25 September; other candidates are still in a stabilisation period.
- Asked on 2 November whether QRIS payments would stay tax-free, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said, “We will see later,” and that he would first coordinate with the Finance Ministry.
What the system actually does
SPP-TDLN stands for the collection system for tax on foreign digital transactions. It targets a gap in Indonesia’s VAT net: overseas sellers of apps, software, streaming and other digital services that are not registered as VAT collectors under the existing PMSE scheme (the rules for foreign e-commerce platforms that already add VAT at checkout).
Instead of chasing those foreign sellers one by one, the system moves the collection point onshore. When an Indonesian customer pays for a qualifying foreign digital product, a domestic payment intermediary, such as a bank, withholds the VAT before the money leaves the country. The overseas merchant receives a smaller net amount. Consumers do not need to file or pay anything themselves.
The DJP has stressed what the system is not. It does not tax every foreign transaction, only those that already count as taxable under existing VAT rules. It is not aimed at money people send to family or friends. The DJP also did not confirm Hashim’s list of banks, fintechs and platforms, and said new collectors would be announced through its official channels.
Why it matters
For the payments industry, the episode shows how quickly tax rumours can affect behaviour. After Hashim’s remarks, social media users urged people to switch back to cash to avoid the supposed tax. That is a real risk in a market where QRIS has become a key tool for bringing small merchants into digital payments.
The current position on QRIS is set out in a DJP announcement from April 2025: shoppers are not taxed for paying by QR. The tax falls on payment service providers, such as banks and fintechs, which pay VAT and income tax on the fees they earn. Consumers simply pay the normal price of what they buy. Airlangga’s non-answer leaves that position unchanged for now, but it also leaves the door open.
The rollout also gives banks and payment firms a new compliance job. Those appointed as collectors must identify which foreign digital payments are taxable and withhold VAT in real time, with the system’s operator confirming each transaction. More institutions are expected to join in stages, which means more providers will need the systems and processes to do this correctly.
Across the region, governments are looking at payment rails as a way to collect tax from foreign digital sellers. How Indonesia manages the rollout, and how clearly it explains it, will be watched by other ASEAN tax authorities and by the global platforms that sell into Southeast Asia’s largest market.
What to watch
- Whether the DJP names further banks and fintechs as VAT collectors, and when.
- The outcome of Airlangga’s talks with the Finance Ministry on digital tax and any statement on QRIS.
- Whether QRIS and e-wallet usage shows any dip after the cash-switch calls on social media.
Related on FinDeskAsia: ASEAN’s cross-border QR push · How Malaysia’s payment system works
Sources: Kompas.com (Nov 2026) · CNBC Indonesia (Nov 2026) · IKPI (Nov 2026) · InvestorTrust (Sep 2026)
