Key Takeaways<\/p>\n
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- Bali has blocked OSS registration for PT PMA in 18 low and lower-medium risk KBLI codes, including real estate, retail, consulting, and short-term rentals, effective since the third week of May 2026.<\/li>\n
- The trigger was a governor’s letter to the Minister of Investment\/BKPM dated January 28, 2026, reporting that 19,262 PMA entities registered in Bali between 2021 and 2025, about 40 percent of Indonesia’s national PMA total.<\/li>\n
- Virtual office PMA setups received specific scrutiny in the same request, separate from the KBLI list.<\/li>\n
- Companies with an existing, active license in a now-blocked category can keep operating but must keep filing quarterly LKPM reports.<\/li>\n
- A common workaround InvestinAsia advises on: register the PT PMA in Jakarta and add Bali as a business location (branch) once the entity and NIB exist.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n
What Did the Bali Governor Actually Ask For?<\/h2>\n
![\"Bali's](\"https:\/\/investinasia.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/canggu-indonesia-travel.webp\")
Bali’s 2026 PMA Closure (indonesia.travel)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n On January 28, 2026, Governor Wayan Koster sent a formal letter (Nomor B.27.000\/642\/PM\/DPMPTSP) to the Minister of Investment and Downstreaming\/Head of BKPM. The letter cited a specific number: 19,262 PMA business actors registered in Bali between 2021 and 2025, roughly 40 percent of Indonesia’s national PMA total, spread across 55,458 projects. Of those, 47.55 percent fell into the low-risk category, meaning they needed only a Business Identification Number (NIB) and no further certificate or permit.<\/p>\n
The letter named the KBLI codes doing most of that volume: real estate rental (68111), management consulting (70209), motorcycle and vehicle rental (77311, 77100), travel agency services (79121), and several retail categories in clothing, textiles, and food. Koster’s office argued these codes were functioning as a backdoor route to a stay permit rather than genuine business activity, and asked BKPM to close OSS access for both the low-risk KBLI list and any PMA operating out of a virtual office in Bali.<\/p>\n
Which 18 Business Categories Are Now Closed to Foreign Investment in Bali?<\/h2>\n
BKPM approved the request. According to the official release from Pemerintah Provinsi Bali, OSS access closed for 18 KBLI codes across the province starting the third week of May 2026:<\/p>\n
Accommodation and Hospitality<\/h3>\n
Star hotels under 6,000 square meters, budget hotels (hotel melati), and other short-term accommodation types.<\/p>\n
Real Estate and Consulting<\/h3>\n
Real estate rental or leasing on own or leased property, general management consulting, and industrial management consulting.<\/p>\n
Rental and Transport<\/h3>\n
Car, bus, and truck rental, plus motorcycle rental without an option to purchase.<\/p>\n
Retail Trade<\/h3>\n
Retail clothing, retail textiles, retail food, and mobile retail of agricultural food products.<\/p>\n
Food, Wellness, and Recreation<\/h3>\n
Cafes, traditional medicine shops, custom tailoring, stadium facilities, fitness centers, and sports event promotion.<\/p>\n
According to Pemerintah Provinsi Bali, the policy also singles out PMA operating through a virtual office as a distinct enforcement priority, on top of the 18-code list.<\/p>\n
\nNot Sure If Your KBLI Is Still Open in Bali?<\/p>\n
InvestinAsia checks your specific business code against the current OSS status before you commit any capital.<\/p>\n
Check My PT PMA Options<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\nAsk on WhatsApp<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\nWhy Did Bali Close These Categories to Foreign Investors?<\/h2>\n
The stated reason is UMKM protection, not a general retreat from foreign investment. Bali’s evaluation team, working through DPMPTSP with technical agencies, found that low-risk KBLI codes were being used as an entry point into sectors that normally belong to local micro and small businesses, cafes, tailoring, retail clothing, and similar trades.<\/p>\n
Governor Koster framed it directly in his July press release: these sectors were facing unhealthy competition and pressure from foreign entrants who registered through a route that required no meaningful capital commitment, just an NIB. As reported by Pemerintah Provinsi Bali, he stated the goal is to protect the room for growth that these sectors are meant to give local cooperatives and small businesses, not to reject foreign investment outright.<\/p>\n
The virtual office issue is a separate but related thread. A number of these registrations used a virtual office as the company’s registered address, with little sign of real premises, staff, or investment behind the NIB. That combination, low-risk KBLI plus virtual office, is what the province flagged as the clearest shell-company pattern.<\/p>\n
What Happens to a PMA That Already Holds a License in a Blocked Category?<\/h2>\n
If your PT PMA already has an active license in one of the 18 categories, you keep operating. The closure blocks new OSS registrations, not existing ones. You still have to file quarterly LKPM (Investment Activity Reports) as usual, and Bali’s provincial government has said it will coordinate enforcement with district heads and mayors against licensing violations. If your existing license is genuine and your LKPM filings are current, this closure does not touch you directly.<\/p>\n
What it does mean is that if you want to expand, add a second location, or start a new project in one of these categories in Bali, the OSS door for that specific combination is currently shut.<\/p>\n
\nNotes from InvestinAsia Consultants<\/p>\n
Clients who registered a low-risk KBLI in Bali purely to sponsor an Investor KITAS, with no real operating business behind it, are the group this closure targets most directly. If that describes your setup, the safer move now is to make sure the existing entity has real activity and current LKPM filings, rather than trying to add a second low-risk location on top of it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
How Do You Register a Business in Bali Now That These Categories Are Closed?<\/h2>\n
The structure InvestinAsia’s team most often recommends when a client’s target KBLI sits on the blocked list: incorporate the PT PMA in Jakarta, then register Bali as an additional business location (lokasi usaha) under that same entity through OSS, rather than trying to register the company itself in Bali.<\/p>\n
This works because the closure targets new PMA registrations located in Bali for specific KBLI codes. A company incorporated in Jakarta, holding its NIB and legal registration there, with Bali added afterward as a branch location, follows a different registration path than a company registered from the outset as Bali-based. This is not a way around the 18-code restriction itself. If your KBLI is on the blocked list, it stays blocked regardless of where the parent entity is registered. It matters for KBLI codes that are not on the restricted list but where you still want a genuine Bali presence, or where your main revenue activity is legitimately Jakarta-based with Bali as a secondary location.<\/p>\n
The mechanics, at a high level:<\/p>\n
Incorporate the PT PMA in Jakarta<\/h3>\n
This covers the notarial deed, Ministry of Law ratification, NPWP, and NIB. Jakarta remains the more established path for company formation, with faster turnaround on notary and Kemenkumham steps than most provinces.<\/p>\n
Choose a Jakarta Office Setup<\/h3>\n
A virtual office is generally sufficient for the Jakarta head office registration if your business does not require walk-in premises there. See InvestinAsia’s virtual office service<\/a> for what is included.<\/p>\n
Add Bali as a Business Location Through OSS<\/h3>\n
Once the entity and NIB exist, Bali can be registered as an additional operating location under the same company. This is where Bali company registration support<\/a> becomes relevant, since the local address, zoning, and any sector-specific permit still need to hold up to scrutiny.<\/p>\n
Use a Real, Verifiable Bali Address<\/h3>\n
Given the province’s current enforcement focus on virtual offices, a serviced office or co-working space with actual physical presence is the safer choice for the Bali location, not a virtual-only address.<\/p>\n
For the full step-by-step breakdown of PT PMA registration timing and documents, InvestinAsia’s complete guide to PT PMA in Bali<\/a> covers the process end to end.<\/p>\n
\nReady to Register in Jakarta and Add a Bali Location?<\/p>\n
InvestinAsia has handled Indonesia company registration for 18+ years, with local teams across Jakarta and Bali.<\/p>\n
Start My PT PMA Registration<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\nTalk to a Consultant on WhatsApp<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\nHow Much Capital Does a PT PMA Need in 2026?<\/h2>\n
Capital requirements depend on your KBLI code, whether you are pairing the entity with an Investor KITAS, and whether recent capital-threshold changes apply to your sector, and this is genuinely not a question a general article should answer with a single number. Reported figures have shifted over the past year, and the exact threshold that applies to your specific business plan needs a direct check rather than a guess. This is the one part of setting up a PT PMA where getting a number wrong costs real money, so InvestinAsia’s team confirms the current requirement against your specific KBLI and investment plan before you commit anything.<\/p>\n