Aussies travelling to Bali will now be slugged with a ‘tourist tax’ as the holiday island looks to discourage ‘cheap tourists’
- Holidaymakers to Bali will need to pay an extra $15 tax
- Entry fee must be paid on arrival such as at the airport
Foreign visitors to Bali will be required to pay an entry fee of 150,000 Indonesian Rupiah in a new tax designed to boost revenue and discourage ‘cheap tourists’.
The tax, which works out to about $15 Australian dollars, must be paid electronically on arriving at designated foreign entry points such as air and sea ports from 2024.
Bali has been implementing a number of measures in recent months designed to raise the ‘quality’ of holidaymakers and shake off the island’s reputation as a budget destination.
Foreign visitors to Bali will need to pay an extra $15 tax upon arrival from next year
The tax along with instructional billboards and pamphlets hope to raise tourist behaviour while also raising revenue
‘We have set the fee at IDR150,000 for one visit to Bali, with the amount in rupiah to avoid following the fluctuating dollar exchange rate,’ Governor Wayan Koster said at the Bali Regional Representative Council (DPRD) office on Wednesday.
The tax is allowed by a recently enacted Indonesian law that gives local Bali authorities the power to levy fees on international tourists.
More than two million foreign tourists visited Bali in 2022, so at least AUD$30million in new revenue would be generated from the tax, with Governor Koster saying the numbers weren’t expected to dip.
‘We will use the money for the environment, culture and we will build better-quality infrastructure so travelling to Bali will be more comfortable and safe,’ Koster told reporters.
‘These funds will be managed by relevant regional authorities in a planned, targeted, transparent, and accountable manner.’
There were rumours the tax being considered by President Joko Widodo’s government could have been up to $150 and implemented alongside tourist instructional billboards and pamphlets to improve behaviour.
The holiday hotspot relies on foreign cash but, after a few quiet years, the Indonesians seem to be losing patience with boisterous and littering tourists flooding back to their shores post-Covid.
‘Income from the tourism tax would help fund a range of measures and prevent Bali from becoming known only as a cheap destination,’ Bali Tourism Board chairman Ida Bagus Agung Partha Adnyana said.
‘Cheap destinations bring in cheap tourists who tend to cause a lot of problems.’
About two million foreigners visited the Indonesian island of Bali in 2022
Indonesian officials said the tax would raise the quality of tourists and prevent the island being seen as a ‘cheap’ destination
While Bali is less strict than the rest of Indonesia, the country is deeply conservative with many locals frowning upon excessive drinking or scantily-clad social media snaps at temples.
In April a Russian woman was deported for posting a naked photo of herself in front of a sacred tree, while in June a Danish woman was deported for flashing the public while riding a scooter.
Foreigners acting as tour guides or renting out scooters, taking money away from locals businesses, has also become a problem, according to the Indonesian Hotel General Managers Association.
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