Last reviewed: August 2026 | Separates what the regulator requires from what individual banks choose to require.
Opening an Indonesian Bank Account Without a KITAS
The single most useful thing to understand here: no Indonesian regulation says a foreigner must hold a KITAS to have a bank account. That is bank policy, and policy varies by bank, by branch and by month.
What the law requires is different, and narrower.
What the regulator actually says
The binding rule is POJK No. 8 of 2023, the financial sector anti-money-laundering regulation. For an individual foreign customer it requires a passport accompanied by immigration documentation in accordance with immigration legislation.
It names the document type. It does not say "you must hold a KITAS to open a savings account". How a bank interprets "immigration documentation", whether a visa stamp suffices or only a KITAS card will do, is a risk decision taken at bank or branch level.
In March 2026 OJK's Bali office put it plainly: foreigners are in principle permitted to open accounts provided they meet administrative requirements, and account opening "may be done according to the SOP of each bank or financial institution".
OJK added an important caveat in the same statement. Opening the account is a banking question. Using it to run a business on a visit visa is an investment law and immigration question, and immigration confirmed that business activity requires a KITAS. The account is not the problem. What you do with it can be.
The three account categories
An OJK circular of September 2015 simplified foreign-currency account opening for foreign individuals and set out three categories:
| Category | Identification required | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Tourist account | Passport only | First deposit USD 2,000, ceiling USD 50,000. Higher charges below USD 10,000 |
| Unlimited balance | Passport plus one additional document | Above USD 50,000 |
| Large balance | Passport plus additional documents | Above USD 1,000,000. Lower deposit-interest tax, restricted to qualifying banks |
The acceptable additional documents are named: a bank reference from your home country, a local domicile letter, a spouse's ID, a copy of your residence lease, or a credit or debit card.
Treat this as the regulatory ceiling of what is permitted, not as a shelf product. We could not find any bank publishing a "tourist account" under that name, and could not confirm whether the 2015 circular has been superseded. It is guidance addressed to bank directors, not a product mandate. Do not walk into a branch and ask for one by name.
Which documents are law and which are policy
| Document | Status |
|---|---|
| Passport | Legal requirement. Non-negotiable |
| Immigration documentation, in general terms | Legal requirement |
| KITAS or KITAP specifically | Bank policy |
| NPWP (tax number) | Bank policy and tax practice, not an account-opening statute |
| Sponsor or employer letter | Bank policy |
| Home-country bank reference | Named in the OJK circular as an acceptable additional document |
| Domicile letter (surat domisili) | Also named in the circular |
| Indonesian mobile number | Not a regulation, but universal in practice because every bank uses SMS one-time passwords |
Which banks in practice
All of this is practice rather than law, and every source stresses it varies by branch and by manager:
- CIMB Niaga is the most consistently cited as accepting tourist-visa holders at selected branches, with Kuta, Seminyak and Sanur named most often.
- Bank Jago offers fully in-app onboarding, and foreigners with a valid passport and an active Indonesian SIM report success. It is OJK-licensed and deposits are insured up to Rp 2 billion. The limitation is no over-the-counter cash deposit.
- OCBC is cited as offering non-KITAS access, generally via relocation agents.
- BCA is the one everyone wants for its app and ATM network, and almost always requires a KITAS. Occasional approvals on social visas get reversed at the same branch weeks later.
- Mandiri and BNI are mainstream expat choices with a KITAS.
One genuinely official passport-only channel exists at Bank Mandiri through its app, but read the eligibility carefully: it covers Indonesian citizens abroad, and foreigners only if they are former Indonesian citizens, children of former citizens, or have one Indonesian parent and hold a KMILN card. It is not a general foreigner route.
Deposits and fees
Verified figures are thin. The OJK tourist category sets a USD 2,000 first deposit and a USD 50,000 ceiling. Bank Mandiri's passport route publishes Rp 100,000 initial deposit, Rp 5,000 monthly admin and a Rp 25,000 idle-funds fee.
Beyond that, reported ranges from agencies and comparison sites put standard savings first deposits at Rp 500,000 to Rp 1,000,000, and foreign-currency accounts at around USD 100. Treat those as indicative.
The practical limit nobody mentions
A Bali banking practitioner quoted in March 2026 made the point that matters most: customer data must be refreshed annually, including visa validity. For a non-KITAS holder that is the real constraint. The account can be restricted or frozen when the visa behind it lapses, and that happens on the bank's timetable, not yours.
The same source noted that foreign-national accounts cluster in tourist areas and are few per branch, which is consistent with the wide variation people report.
Non-resident restrictions
There is no retail product called a non-resident account. What exists is a set of Bank Indonesia prudential restrictions on bank dealings with "Foreign Parties", covering things like rupiah credit, rupiah placements and rupiah transfers to foreign-party accounts.
Those rules bind banks, and they target offshore and institutional rupiah speculation. A retail expat savings account is not what they were written for. We could not confirm the current definition of "Foreign Party" or whether a foreigner resident on a KITAS is carved out, so treat any specific threshold you are quoted with caution.
What actually changed recently
Be sceptical of claims that the rules on foreigner accounts changed in the last two years. We found no OJK or Bank Indonesia regulation from 2024 to 2026 that tightens or loosens foreigner account opening. The 2015 circular remains the last identifiable liberalising instrument.
Two things did change:
- Reporting. PMK No. 108 of 2025, in force from 1 January 2026, replaced the earlier framework for automatic exchange of financial account information. It aligns Indonesia with the updated common reporting standard and adds crypto-asset reporting, extending reportable accounts to certain e-money products. Crypto reporting first covers data year 2026.
- Enforcement attention in Bali. March 2026 reporting focused on visit-visa foreigners opening accounts and allegedly using them to run rental and villa businesses, including through nominee structures. OJK's response was that opening is permitted, use for business is governed by investment and immigration law, and immigration said enforcement can run from education to deportation.
If you are a US citizen, expect to provide your US taxpayer identification number.
Common questions
Can I open an Indonesian bank account without a KITAS?
Legally there is no rule requiring a KITAS. POJK 8/2023 requires a passport plus immigration documentation and satisfactory customer due diligence. Whether a particular bank accepts a visa stamp instead of a KITAS is its own policy decision, and it varies by branch.
Do I need an NPWP to open an account?
It is bank policy and tax administration practice rather than an account-opening statute. It is widely requested for full-service accounts, and several sources describe it as sometimes optional.
Which bank in Bali accepts tourist visas?
CIMB Niaga is the most consistently reported, particularly at Kuta, Seminyak and Sanur, with Bank Jago as an app-based alternative. This is practice, not policy, and it changes. BCA almost always requires a KITAS.
Can I run a business through a personal Indonesian account on a tourist visa?
No. OJK's own position is that opening an account is permitted, but using it to conduct business is governed by investment and immigration law. Business activity requires a KITAS, and enforcement in Bali can extend to deportation.
Will my account be closed when my visa expires?
It can be restricted. Banks refresh customer data annually including visa validity, which is the main practical constraint on holding an account without a residence permit.
The connected question
Most people asking about bank accounts are really asking a bigger question about how to be here legally and operate. If the account is for a business, the account is the last step, not the first. See our guides to starting a business in Bali and the KITAS.
We advise foreign residents and investors in Bali on immigration status, company structure and compliance. Tell us what you are trying to do and we will tell you the cleanest route.
General information as at August 2026, not legal or financial advice. Bank requirements are set by each bank and change frequently. Confirm directly with the bank before relying on anything here.
Sources
- POJK No. 8/2023 on AML and CFT in the financial services sector
- OJK Circular No. S-246/S.01/2015 and press release SP 76/DKSN/OJK/9/2015
- OJK Bali statement, March 2026
- PMK No. 108/2025 on access to financial information for tax purposes
- UU No. 9/2017 on access to financial information
- PBI No. 7/14/PBI/2005 as amended, on rupiah transactions with foreign parties