There are several ways that people become Indonesian citizens. Broadly speaking, there are two principles of birth that are used to determine one’s nationality. First, ius soli sees nationality based on where a person is born. Second, ius sanguinis is based on citizenship because of blood ties.
Under Law No. 12 of 2006 concerning the Citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia, the principle adopted by Indonesia is ius sanguinis, although there are three points that indicate the existence of the principle of ius soli. For more details, you can read these following steps.
- Apply some documents electronically
One of the requirements while applying for obtaining Indonesian citizenship is that at the time of submitting an application, the applicant has resided in the territory of the Republic of Indonesia for at least 5 consecutive years or at least 10 consecutive years.
Requests for citizenship are submitted electronically in Indonesia by the applicant through the official website of the Directorate General of General Legal Administration. After submitting an application for electronic citizenship, the applicant is also required to submit physical documents to the Minister of Law and Human Rights through the Directorate General of General Law Administration accompanied by a statement stating the truth of the contents of physical documents.
Read also: How to Speak as Indonesian Natives
- Make sure you include on these one or more criteria
In general, Law Number 12 of 2006 concerning Citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia (“Citizenship Law”) stipulates that applications for Indonesian Citizenship can be submitted by the applicant with the following criteria:
- Foreigners who legally marry with Indonesian citizens
- Foreigners who have contributed to the State of Indonesia
- Children who have dual citizenship
- Indonesian citizens who have lost their Indonesian citizenship status and wish to regain Citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia
The submission of Application for Citizenship for each applicant criteria has different procedures and stages.
Read also: How to Get Married in Indonesia for Foreigners
- Meet these general requirements before applying to obtain Indonesian citizenship
Based on the provisions of Article 9 of the Citizenship Law, the conditions that must be met in order to obtain Indonesian citizenship are as follows:
- Has been 18 years old or married;
- At the time of submitting an application, it has resided in the territory of the Republic of Indonesia for at least 5 (five) consecutive years or a minimum of 10 consecutive years:
- Physically and spiritually healthy;
- Able to speak Indonesian and recognize the basic state of Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia;
- Never been sentenced to a criminal case for committing a criminal offense which is threatened with imprisonment of 1 (one) year or more;
- If you obtain Citizenship from the Republic of Indonesia, you do not become a dual citizen;
- Having a job and / or permanent income; and
- Paying citizenship money to the State Treasury.
Read also: How to Get KTP indonesia
- Complete the documents you should attached electronically
Here are quoted from article 5 PERMEN (Ministry rule) No. 36 of 2016 states that in submitting a statement request to become an Indonesian citizen as referred to in Article 4, the Applicant must upload the following documents:
- photocopy of the applicant’s birth certificate that has been translated into Indonesian by an official sworn translator and has been legalized by an authorized official
- photocopy of identity card or certificate of residence of the Applicant that has been legalized by an authorized official
- photocopy of the birth certificate of the Applicant’s husband or wife which has been legalized by the competent authority
- photocopy of the identity card of the applicant’s husband or wife that has been legalized by the authorized official
- photocopy of marriage certificate / marriage book Applicant from husband or wife who has been translated into Indonesian by an official translator is sworn and legalized by an authorized official
- original letter from the immigration office in the applicant’s residence which explains that the Applicant has resided in Indonesia for at least 5 (five) consecutive years or a minimum of 10 (ten) years not in a row; original certificate of police record issued by the current Indonesian National Police Headquarters
- original statement from the state representative of the Applicant explaining that if the Applicant obtains the citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia, the concerned person loses his citizenship
- original physical and spiritual health certificate from a government hospital
- fitting the latest 4 x 6 cm size Applicant’s photo with 6 (six) pieces with a red background, well-dressed and polite
- original proof of payment for a statement requesting to become an Indonesian citizen
Foreigners who wish to apply for Indonesian citizenship must complete the complete documents as stated in Article 5 PERMEN (Ministry rule) No. 36 of 2016 and uploaded electronically through the official website of the Directorate General of General Legal Administration. Furthermore, these physical documents must be submitted to the Minister through the Director General of General Legal Administration within a maximum period of 5 (five) days from the date the application is electronically received.
Read also: How to Divorce in Indonesia
- Document examination
After the physical documents are received by the Director General of General Legal Administration, the next procedure is the examination of physical documents carried out within a maximum period of 10 (ten) days from the receipt of physical documents.
In the event that the results of the examination have a lack of complete physical documents, the Minister informs the Applicant electronically to complete the document shortcomings and the application has a maximum period of 14 (fourteen) days from the date of notification and if the applicant submits the stipulated period then the application will be rejected.
Read also: How to Work in Bali as Foreigner
- Oath statement
At latest 3 months after the President’s decision is sent to the applicant, the Official calls the applicant to swear an oath or declare a pledge of loyalty. Minutes of the oath or statement of faithful promises submitted by the Official to the Applicant no later than 14 (fourteen) days from the date of the oath or statement of pledge of loyalty.
A copy of the Presidential Decree as stated in letter c above and the minutes of the oath of affidavit or statement of faithful promises from the official become legitimate evidence of the Citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia a person who obtains citizenship.
Read also: How to Preserve Indonesian Culture
- Submit the document to the local immigration office
After swearing an oath or stating the pledge of the applicant must submit documents or immigration documents in his name to the immigration office whose area of work covers the residence of the applicant within no later than 14 (fourteen) days from the date of the oath or statement of pledged loyalty.
The Minister announces the name of the person who has obtained citizenship in the State Gazette of the Republic of Indonesia. The announcement is made after the minutes of the oath of swearing or the announcement of a faithful promise are received by the Minister.
Read also: How to Study in Indonesia
- Pay for the official fee
In the results of the examination of documents declared complete, the Minister determines the decision regarding obtaining Indonesian Citizenship which is submitted electronically to the Applicant.
The official fee for managing citizenship on item H paragraph 1 for Foreign Citizenship PP No. 45 of 2016 states: “Citizenship / Naturalization based on the Application for Foreign Citizens per application is Rp. 50,000,000 – fifty million Rupiah”. Based on the explanation above, it is known that the official fee for citizenship applications is Rp. 50,000,000 – fifty million Rupiah.
Those are the things you should pay attention when you want to get Indonesian citizenship. There have been thousands of foreigners that apply for becoming Indonesian foreigners. Some of them might be accepted, however some of them couldn’t get Indonesian citizenship due to their data are incomplete.
Read also:
