There are a few things to keep in mind when entering Bali. In particular, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Indonesian government has tightened entry requirements. It is therefore all the more important to check the current entry regulations before flying to Bali. Even though proof of vaccination is no longer required, other entry requirements for Bali must be observed.
Current overview: What is required to enter Bali?
The Indonesian government currently requires the following to enter Bali or Indonesia:
Important: The entry requirements regarding the coronavirus pandemic were lifted with effect from June 9, 2023. Therefore, proof of vaccination is no longer required. Nevertheless, this article still describes which conditions had to be met for entry in relation to coronavirus.
- Valid visa
- Passport with a minimum validity period, which depends on the visa
- Return flight or exit ticket
- Customs declaration
Proof of full (2-fold) vaccination against Covid19PeduliLindungi app installed, registered with personal data and vaccinations verified via the app (where possible, see appendix for guidelines)
Valid visa
A valid visa is of course required to enter Bali. The Indonesian government issues various visas for this purpose. There are very different types of visa here. The most common ones for tourist purposes are considered below.
Visa on arrival (VOA)
For a simple vacation in Bali, the visa on arrival is the best option. As the name suggests, this visa does not have to be applied for before the trip, but only upon arrival. To obtain the visa on arrival, you only have to pay 500,000 IDR (about €35) when applying at the airport. In addition, the passport must be valid for at least another six months and have at least one free page. Furthermore, a flight ticket for the onward or return journey to another country must be presented upon request. This is only done on a random basis, but you should not risk anything and book your onward or return flight before entering the country.
The visa on arrival allows you to stay in Indonesia and thus on Bali for up to 30 days. You can extend the VOA once for another 30 days. The maximum length of stay with a (renewed) visa on arrival is therefore 60 days.
B211A visa
If you want to apply for a visa for a longer stay than 30 days in advance, you can apply for the B211A visa before entering Bali. The B211A visa can be issued for different lengths of time. The shorter stay is valid for up to 60 days, the maximum validity of the visa is 180 days. The B211A visa costs significantly more than the visa on arrival. For the 60-day version, tourists pay 1,500,000 IDR (about €100). If you apply for a non-tourist visa, it costs 2,000,000 IDR (about €130) and the 180-day version costs 6,000,000 IDR (€400) regardless of the reason for the trip.
We recommend using the services of Chris and Matze to apply for the B211A visa. They will help you competently with the application or extension of the visa.
Other visas
In addition to the two types of visas usually chosen by tourists, the visa on arrival and the B211A visa, the Indonesian government also issues other visas. These other visas will not be discussed in detail here, as they are not necessary for tourist purposes.
Passport
When entering Bali, the passport must of course be presented, in which the officials at the airport then make the necessary entries. Depending on which visa you have applied for, there are different requirements regarding the validity period of the passport.
For example, when applying for a visa on arrival, the passport must be valid for at least another six months at the time of entry. The passport must be valid for the same length of time if you enter with a B211A visa, provided that you have applied for it for a stay of up to 60 days. For a B211A visa, which allows a stay in Bali or Indonesia of up to 180 days, the passport must be valid for at least another 12 months at the time of entry. For other visas, the minimum validity period is sometimes even longer.
A temporary passport is not accepted. So, it is not possible to enter Bali with a temporary passport.
Return or exit ticket
Anyone entering Bali or Indonesia must prove that they will also leave the country as planned. This proof is provided by the planned return or onward journey in the form of already booked flights or an international ferry connection. The outward or onward journey must be an international connection. So you have to prove that you will leave Indonesian territory.
Vaccinations for entry to Bali
During the Corona pandemic, entry into Bali was hardly possible, if at all, for a long time. In the meantime, it is relatively easy to enter again. Proof of full vaccination against Corona is no longer required. This measure was abolished on June 9, 2023. In the entry requirements, the Indonesian state had stipulated full vaccination with at least two doses of vaccine. The second vaccination had to be at least 14 days before entry.
A third vaccination was not currently required for entry. While Indonesian citizens had to provide proof of three vaccinations for domestic Indonesian travel, foreign citizens still only had to provide proof of two vaccinations.
People who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons had to present a certificate to that effect, issued by a state hospital. This certificate should be issued in English. There were also other exceptions regarding proof of vaccination. These applied to minors and people who had recovered from the disease and could provide proof from an official state agency.
PeduliLindungi app for entry to Bali
The PeduliLindungi app is the Indonesian Corona app. This was developed to be able to identify contact persons of Corona-positive individuals. In theory, vaccination certificates can also be stored via the app. However, this very often does not work. But that’s not a problem, because to enter Bali, the vaccinations did not have to be loaded into the app. It was enough to download the app, register in the app and create an account.
With the elimination of the COVID-19 entry requirements, the app is no longer checked upon entry. However, before departure to Indonesia, the app was usually checked at the airport check-in counter to see if it was installed.
Customs declaration for entry to Bali
Before or upon entering Bali, you must fill out a form to declare the potential import of goods or cash. This form is available at the airport in Bali and can be filled out by hand. However, you can also fill out the import declaration online before your trip using the following link:
The form (online or offline) must be completed in any case, even if you are not importing any goods or large sums of cash (or checks) into Bali.
Conclusion: Entry to Bali is strictly regulated
In summary, it can be said that a number of points must be taken into account when entering Bali. If you take care of the documents, vaccinations and the Indonesian Corona app described above in good time, you can enter Bali without any problems. It is important that all requirements are met and can be proven at the time of entry. You can take care of the customs declaration at the airport in Bali. However, the PeduliLindungi app should be installed before the outbound flight. This is because, as a rule, proof of installation must be provided at the airline check-in desk before the flight to Bali.
