This was stated by Head of the Bali BPN Regional Office, I Made Daging, here on Monday, in response to a recent statement by Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/National Land Agency (ATR/BPN) Nusron Wahid regarding foreign control of islands in several provinces in Indonesia.
“We have investigated, and there is none, absolutely none,” Daging remarked.
“I think what the minister meant was foreign land control in areas like Bali, West Nusa Tenggara, Riau Islands, and Labuan Bajo (East Nusa Tenggara), all of which are tourism hubs," he remarked.
Daging clarified that there was a misunderstanding regarding Minister Wahid's statement, explaining that in Bali, no small islands are controlled by foreigners, and that the minister was referring to other islands.
In Bali, the agency records only the main island of Bali and a few smaller ones, such as Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, Nusa Ceningan, and Menjangan, none of which are under foreign ownership.
However, there are parcels or lots of land under usage rights held by foreigners, but not full ownership.
“From what we know, there is no such thing as full control by foreigners. If we define 'foreign control' as owning at least 30 percent of an island, that does not exist here. Not a single foreigner owns that much land in Nusa Penida," Daging stated.
He explained that despite the significant presence of foreigners across Bali, the island is still predominantly inhabited by Indonesian citizens, particularly native Balinese.
Foreign nationals residing in Bali are typically tourists or long-term residents using land for business or investment purposes, and some invest by using Indonesian nationals' names on paper.
As of March 2025, BPN Bali recorded 463 land lots with usage rights (hak pakai) held by foreigners, generally used for building large houses or luxury villas.
Foreign nationals using hak pakai must invest at least Rp3 billion. The rights are granted for an initial period of 30 years, with a possible extension of 20 years, and a second extension of another 30 years.
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Translator: Muliantari, Kenzu
Editor: Azis Kurmala
Copyright © ANTARA 2025
