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Indonesia import taxes on parcels

How Indonesia's 12% VAT works out to 11% on most imports, when parcels pay 5% income tax, how duty is rounded, and when foreign digital sellers collect VAT.

Updated · 7 official sources

Indonesia charges VAT on every imported parcel at a statutory rate of 12%, applied to 11/12 of the import value for goods that aren't luxury goods, so the effective rate is 11%. Parcels also pay import duty above US$3 FOB, and income tax (PPh) of 5% applies to a list of product groups such as clothing, shoes and bags. Foreign sellers of digital products collect VAT separately once DJP appoints them.

Rules as of 30 October 2026.

How is VAT on imports calculated?#

Indonesian VAT (PPN) on imports is charged at 12% under Finance Ministry Regulation 131 of 2024, applied from 2025. For goods that aren't luxury goods, the tax base is 11/12 of the import value, so the effective rate is 11%. Luxury goods pay 12% on the full import value and may also carry luxury goods sales tax (PPnBM).

For parcels, the Directorate General of Customs and Excise (DJBC) states the result directly: VAT of 11%, written as 11/12 × 12%, on parcels up to US$3 FOB and on parcels from US$3 to US$1,500. There's no value below which a parcel escapes VAT; the US$3 line exempts import duty only.

Customs converts the foreign-currency customs value to rupiah using the NDPBM, the exchange rate base for calculating duty, and works out duty and taxes on the rupiah figure.

When does a parcel pay income tax?#

Income tax on imports, the PPh, is collected at the border alongside duty and VAT. For parcels valued from US$3 to US$1,500, PPh isn't collected on most goods, and it isn't collected on parcels up to US$3 at all. Since 5 March 2025 the exception is a list of product groups that pay 5%.

Product group in the US$3 to US$1,500 band HS reference Duty PPh
Most goods Any other 7.5% Not collected
Books and similar printed matter Headings 49.01 to 49.04 0% Not collected
Cosmetics and beauty preparations Headings 33.03 to 33.07 15% 5%
Iron or steel goods Chapter 73 15% 5%
Watches Headings 91.01 and 91.02 15% 5%
Bags, cases and similar Heading 42.02 25% 5%
Textiles and garments Chapters 61, 62 and 63 25% 5%
Footwear Chapter 64 25% 5%
Electric bicycles and scooters, other than CKD Subheadings 8711.60.92 to 8711.60.99 25% 5%
Bicycles without a motor Heading 87.12 25% 5%

Parcels over US$1,500, and parcels declared on the special import notice (PIBK), pay duty and import taxes under the general rules for their HS code instead. The HS reference decides the row, so a product's classification matters more than its description; the HS code lookup and the HS codes guide help you place it.

How is duty worked out and paid?#

Import duty on a parcel is a percentage of its customs value, which DJBC sets on the CIF value of the whole parcel for each recipient and shipment. Duty is rounded up to the next full thousand rupiah on each assessment. The postal operator or courier clearing the parcel pays the duty and taxes on the importer's behalf.

A licensed courier (PJT) settles the duty and taxes within three days of the customs assessment for the parcel (the SPPBMCP), and PT Pos Indonesia within 30 days.

Here's how two parcels compare, each with a customs value equivalent to US$100 and shipped to a consumer in Jakarta. The first holds phone cases, the second a pair of sneakers.

Line Phone cases Sneakers
Band US$3 to US$1,500 US$3 to US$1,500
Duty rate 7.5% 25%
Duty, before rounding US$7.50 US$25.00
VAT 11% effective, on the import value 11% effective, on the import value
PPh Not collected 5%

The same price lands very differently: the sneakers pay more than three times the duty of the phone cases and income tax on top.

Do foreign sellers of digital products collect VAT?#

Foreign sellers of digital products and services, such as streaming, software and online games, collect Indonesian VAT under the PPN PMSE scheme once the Directorate General of Taxes (DJP) appoints them as collectors. Physical parcels stay outside it and are taxed at the border as described above.

DJP appoints a foreign business as a collector when its transactions with Indonesian buyers exceed Rp600 million a year or Rp50 million a month, or its traffic from Indonesia exceeds 12,000 users a year or 1,000 a month. The current rules are Finance Ministry Regulation 60 of 2022 and Director General of Taxes Regulation PER-12/PJ/2025. Appointed collectors collect, deposit and report the VAT, and DJP had appointed 251 of them by October 2025.

How Indonesia's VAT compares with VAT and GST elsewhere is in the VAT, GST and sales tax guide, and the rest of the import rules are in the Indonesia guide.

Common questions#

What is the VAT rate on imports into Indonesia?#

12%, applied to 11/12 of the import value for goods that aren't luxury goods, which gives an effective 11%. Luxury goods pay 12% on the full value.

Do parcels to Indonesia pay income tax?#

Only some. Cosmetics, watches, iron or steel goods, bags, clothing, footwear and bicycles valued from US$3 to US$1,500 pay 5% PPh; most other parcels in that range don't.

When does a foreign digital seller have to collect Indonesian VAT?#

When DJP appoints it as a PPN PMSE collector, which happens once its Indonesian transactions or traffic pass the thresholds. A seller isn't a collector until appointed.

Sources#