Yahoo Finance Major change for Aussie tourists as Bali visa 'tax' to be axed
Families could save hundreds of dollars with the visa exemption expected from next year.
Aussies travelling overseas to one our of most popular destinations can expect to have a little bit of extra spending money after Indonesian authorities flagged the removal of what's come to be known as the "Bali tax".
Travellers entering the tourist hotspot have been required to pay $50 for an "entry visa", however late last week the country's Minister for Tourism and Creative Economies, Sandiaga Uno, indicated the fee would be removed.
He said President Joko Widodo instructed the government to consider the visa waiver for as many as 20 countries that provide large volumes of tourists to the nation. Of course, Australia is on that list along with New Zealand, China, India, the United States and England. The final list will be put to the president "in the next month" with the change expected early in the new year.
"After that we will receive direction from the president and the policy will be followed up with immigration," Sandiaga Uno told local media.
It means, a family of four could expect to save $200 when travelling to Bali.
Ross Taylor from the Indonesia Institute said officials had always slugged tourists with such a payment on arrival.
"Bali has always required Australians to get what they call a visa on arrival, which actually isn't a visa, it's just simply a tax," he told Nine News.
The change is reportedly driven by a desire to remove any friction for travellers and boost the nation's tourism industry.
From January to October this year, Indonesia received just shy of 9.5 million foreign visitors. Prior to the Covid pandemic there were more than 16 million foreign tourists in 2019. According to Nine, the last time the so-called Bali tax was axed, Australian visitors increased by 16 per cent.
"That's what's concerning authorities in a broader sense, ensuring those big numbers going to Bali, will stay that way," Mr Taylor said.
The full savings won't last long, however, with a new $15 fee to be collected upon arrival from February which officials say will be used to maintain and improve the natural environment of the island.
The expected change also comes amid an ongoing crackdown by local authorities on unruly tourists on the island. Since the start of the year, authorities in Indonesia have been getting tougher on visitors in an attempt to stamp out reckless behaviour, by reinforcing laws and introducing stricter penalties, including deportation.
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