Living In Indonesia Living in Indonesia Guides for foreign residents in Indonesia since 2007

Dual Citizenship for Children

Before you rely on this page: Indonesian immigration and citizenship rules change constantly, and the same regulation is often read differently — sometimes creatively — from one immigration office to the next. Nothing here is legal advice. Confirm your own situation with a suitably qualified firm, such as Okusi Associates, before you act on any of it.

Dual citizenship for children of mixed marriages

A child with one Indonesian and one foreign parent gets a period of dual nationality under Indonesian law. This is limited dual citizenship (kewarganegaraan ganda terbatas), governed by Law No. 12 of 2006. That statute replaced the old 1958 law, under which a child automatically took the father's nationality and could not be Indonesian if the father was foreign. The current rule applies regardless of which parent is Indonesian.

The dual status lasts only until the child turns 18 (or marries earlier). The child must then choose one nationality, with three years to declare that choice — so the effective deadline is the 21st birthday. Note the window: it runs from 18 to 21, not from 21. A child who lets the 21st birthday pass without declaring automatically becomes a foreign national and loses Indonesian citizenship. Mark this deadline early.

Parents must register the child before age 18, now done electronically through the immigration and AHU online portal. Once registered, the child receives an affidavit: an immigration facility letter attached to the foreign passport that lets the child enter and leave Indonesia on that passport without a visa or KITAS. It costs IDR 400,000 (set by Government Regulation 28/2019) and issues about a week after the biometric appointment.

Since 21 October 2024, immigration matters (passports, affidavits, registration) sit under the new Ministry of Immigration and Corrections (Kemenimipas) rather than the Ministry of Law, though citizenship status itself still runs through the Law Ministry's AHU directorate. Confirming a child as an Indonesian citizen ends with an oath ceremony, after which foreign citizenship documents must be surrendered within 14 days.

A child who instead chooses foreign nationality has a defined residence path: a limited-stay permit for children of Indonesian citizens (Visa E31C), and later a permanent stay permit (KITAP).

At the time of writing (mid-2026), Indonesia still does not allow full dual citizenship for adults. A draft revision of the 2006 law (proposing to raise the choice age to 26 and to permit limited dual nationality for strategically valuable foreign nationals) has been debated but not enacted. The separate Global Citizenship of Indonesia (GCI) scheme, authorised in late 2025, offers the diaspora long-term residency, not citizenship.

The deadlines and paperwork are unforgiving. Get authoritative advice before a child's status is at risk: Indonesian immigration, visas and work permits.


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