Work KITAS refused in 2026: reasons and what to do next

First work out who said no

A work KITAS passes two separate authorities, and either can refuse. The Ministry of Manpower approves the plan to hire a foreigner — the RPTKA. Immigration issues the visa and the KITAS itself. These are two independent gates with different rules, and the cure differs: an RPTKA refusal means fixing company documents and the job description, an immigration refusal means fixing the person's record.

Telling them apart is easy — look at where the case stopped. If the application failed on the ministry portal and never reached the visa stage, that is RPTKA. If the plan was approved, the levy paid, and the refusal arrived on the visa or at the KITAS stage inside Indonesia, that is immigration.

RPTKA refusals: five real reasons

The legal base is Government Regulation PP 34/2021 and its implementing rules, Permenaker 8/2021. The latter states it plainly: where the foreign worker's qualifications do not match the position to be filled, the Director may refuse to approve the RPTKA. That is not a formality — it is the single most common ground.

• ✕The position is closed to foreigners. Ministerial Decree Kepmenaker 349/2019 lists roles a foreigner may not hold. It covers the whole HR function: personnel director, personnel manager, industrial relations manager, recruitment, placement and personnel development supervisors, personnel specialist, career adviser. Calling the job "HR Manager" is a guaranteed refusal.
• ✕The role does not match the company's licensed activity. If your KBLI codes say consulting and the application describes a manufacturing role, the portal sees it.
• ✕Qualifications are not evidenced. Degree and experience must match that specific position and be documented.
• ✕No Indonesian counterpart appointed. The employer must name an Indonesian as the accompanying worker and train them — the law requires transfer of technology and skills. No counterpart and no training plan, no approval.
• ✕Company filings are not clean. Outstanding BPJS and unclosed employment obligations surface at submission.

One more item is the justification. You must explain why an Indonesian cannot do this work. "We need a native speaker" or "we need an experienced specialist" without specifics no longer passes. The procedure itself is covered in our breakdown of RPTKA and the DKP-TKA levy.

Immigration refusals: what they look at

Here the reasons are different and almost always sit in the applicant's past or in careless paperwork.

• ✕Application data differs from the passport — one letter in a name, a different date, a different number.
• ✕The wrong visa category was filed for work purposes.
• ✕A history of overstaying. Thresholds and details are in our piece on overstay in Bali.
• ✕A past deportation or a live entry ban.
• ✕The sponsor does not meet the requirements — see our guide to sponsorship.

Overstay runs at IDR 1,000,000 for every day and every person. Up to 60 days it is a money question: pay the fine and the status is closed. Past 60 days immigration measures begin, up to deportation and an entry ban, and that trace then gets in the way of any later application.

If the reason is the blacklist

An entry ban (cekal) is visible to the system both when a visa is requested and at aircraft boarding. While it stands, any application is pointless — the refusal is automatic.

Removal is possible but follows a strict order. The request is accepted no earlier than six months after the listing — filed sooner, it is rejected automatically. It is submitted by a sponsor with legal status in Indonesia: an employer, a spouse, an authorised representative. If the relevant immigration unit refuses, there is an appeal to the Director General of Immigration, and if that fails, recourse to the administrative court.

What to do, step by step

• ✓Get the refusal in writing and identify the gate: Manpower or Immigration.
• ✓Do not refile the same package. An unchanged resubmission gets the same answer and adds a second refusal to the file.
• ✓Refused on the position — rewrite the title and duties to match the real role and the company's KBLI codes, checking against the closed-positions list.
• ✓Refused on qualifications — gather the degree and proof of experience and align them with the position.
• ✓No counterpart — appoint one and attach a training plan.
• ✓Refused by immigration — check yourself for an entry ban before filing anything new.

What a second attempt costs and takes

Refiling is a full cycle again, not a top-up. Our prices and timelines on the work track:

The DKP-TKA is a government levy of USD 100 for each month a foreigner works, paid a year in advance. A refusal before payment does not trigger it, which is why sorting out the cause before you pay beats sorting it out afterwards.

How to avoid a refusal

• ✓Check the position against the closed-roles list before preparing anything.
• ✓Make sure the company's KBLI codes cover the work the person will actually do.
• ✓Appoint a counterpart and write down what they will learn.
• ✓Clear the company's filings before submission.
• ✓Write a justification with substance: the task, the experience that covers it, why this person.
• ✓Application data exactly as in the passport, character for character.

The full process from scratch is in our work KITAS guide.

Frequently asked questions