BERITA TERKINI
JAKARTA, DDTCNews - The surge in year-end letters of inquiry (surat permintaan penjelasan atas data dan/atau keterangan/SP2DK in Indonesian) has drawn scrutiny and captured the attention of netizens throughout the week.
A member of Commission XI of the House of Representatives (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat/DPR in Indonesian), Harris Turino, stated that the large volume of SP2DKs issued by the Directorate General of Taxes (DGT) at the end of the year tends to target taxpayers who are already compliant.
“Those who keep getting chased are the compliant taxpayers. Many of them received SP2DKs at the end of the year. This is a recurring problem,” claimed Harris.
According to him, the spike in SP2DKs has contributed to the surge in tax refunds, which in turn has pressured tax revenues this year. He urged the government not to repeat this strategy in the coming year.
"If the strategy is to push everything in the final month, or targeting the same group again, the same pattern will recur in 2026. Consequently, net revenue plummets while gross revenue appears strong," he added.
On another note, as of October 2025, gross tax revenue stood at IDR1.799.55 trillion, far above net tax revenues of IDR1.459.03 trillion.
The wide gap stems from a 36.4% jump in tax refunds this year, totalling IDR340.52 trillion.
In further detail, corporate income tax refunds reached IDR 93.8 trillion, an 80% increase compared to the same period last year. On the other hand, VAT refunds rose 23.9% to IDR 238.86 trillion.
Minister of Finance, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, explained that this year’s surge in refunds was partly due to a two-year deferral of refund disbursements.
He noted that tax overpayments from the previous 2 years were only disbursed this year, depressing tax revenues from January to October 2025.
“I have received information that this year’s refunds include refunds from the previous two years that were deferred. So, next year should see a smaller impact compared to this year’s negative effect. Essentially, the refunds from two years ago were pushed entirely into this year,” Purbaya remarked.
In response, the Ministry of Finance will involve the Directorate General of Economic and Fiscal Strategy (Direktorat Jenderal Strategi Ekonomi dan Fiskal/DJSEF in Indonesian) in managing tax refunds in the foreseeable future.
On the other hand, Director General of Taxes, Bimo Wijayanto, claimed that SP2DK is a “human-centred” mechanism implemented by the DGT to allow taxpayers to clarify tax-related data and information.
“There is absolutely no need to be afraid; it is not a threat of any kind. It is simply a request for clarification of the data or information we possess,” he stated.
Beyond the spotlight on the SP2DK surge, several other developments also merit attention, including new regulations on tax compliance monitoring, supertax deduction incentives in the Nusantara Capital (Ibukota Nusantara/IKN in Indonesian) and the dismissal of dozens of tax officials throughout 2024.
The Ministry of Finance (MoF) is preparing a dedicated regulation governing the supervision of taxpayer compliance. The MoF and the Directorate General of Legislation (Direktorat Jenderal Peraturan Perundang-undangan/DJPP in Indonesian) at the Ministry of Law have held discussions on harmonising, consolidating and finalizing a draft minister of finance regulation (MoF Reg.) concerning the Supervision of Taxpayer Compliance.
To date, the supervision of taxpayer compliance has not been specifically regulated under any MoF Reg. However, the DGT currently refers to Circular Letter SE-05/PJ/2022, which provides guidelines for end-to-end supervision, ranging from planning and execution to follow-up and evaluation.
The Nusantara Capital (Ibukota Nusantara/IKN in Indonesian) Authority is inviting taxpayers to contribute towards the construction of public facilities, social facilities and other non-profit infrastructure in the IKN.
Director of Funding of the IKN Authority, Insyafia, stated that entrepreneurs making strategic contributions are eligible for a supertax deduction of up to 200%, as provided under MoF Reg. 28/2024.
“This strategic donation scheme allows a deduction of up to 200% of gross income. This implies that the contribution not only reduces corporate tax burdens but also increases after-tax income," she said during a socialisation event on the supertax deduction facility for strategic donations in the IKN.
The DGT has introduced an artificial-intelligence (AI) technology to support tax officers’ work.
The AI in question, referred to as the Advanced Responsive Virtual Tax Assistant or abbreviated to Arvita, has been in use since 2024, based on the DGT's 2024 Annual Report.
Arvita serves as a virtual assistant to help the tax authority identify potential tax risks in specific sectors, issues related to crypto assets, transfer pricing and basic tax regulations.
The DGT imposed severe disciplinary sanctions on employees found guilty of violations, ranging from demotion to dismissal of civil servants (pegawai negeri sipil/PNS in Indonesian).
In 2024, the DGT issued 45 severe disciplinary decisions to civil servants, 39 of which resulted in dismissal from the civil service.
“The level/type of the disciplinary sanction: Dismissal with respect not at one’s own request as a civil servant – 39 cases,” stated the DGT in its 2024 Annual Report.
Ahead of the 2025 annual income tax return (surat pemberitahuan/SPT in Indonesian) filing period, taxpayers can familiarize themselves with the filing features and menus available in the coretax administration system through the Coretax Simulator.
The DGT explained that the Coretax Simulator is an online educational tool designed to help taxpayers understand how to file annual tax returns through the coretax system. The Coretax Simulator mirrors the actual tax return filing process.
“Planning to file your Annual Tax Return? Easy, learn the steps first through the Coretax Simulator," the DJP urged. (sap)
