Suahasil Urges DGT to Streamline Tax Refund Processing

JAKARTA, DDTCNews - Minister of Finance Suahasil Nazara’s directive to the Directorate General of Taxes (DGT) to expedite the processing of tax refunds has captured public attention over the past week.

Suahasil affirmed that a tax refund is a taxpayer's right. Accordingly, the DGT will process tax overpayment reimbursements as swiftly as possible, especially for business sectors requiring liquidity to sustain their operations.

"It is true that there is refund management, but I have given instructions to the Director General of Taxes that a tax refund is the right of the taxpayer. For industries that genuinely require cash flow, labour-intensive industries and SME, it shall be granted as quickly as possible, and the rights of these taxpayers shall be processed so that payment can be made," he claimed.

Suahasil also stated that the ease of refund management has been implemented by DGT employees. This policy is expected to accelerate the disbursement of tax refunds for eligible taxpayers.

Where a taxpayer genuinely has a tax overpayment and is entitled to a refund, that refund will be granted without delay.

"We also understand that we will ease refund management. Our colleagues at the Directorate General of Taxes have begun to implement this easing," he said.

Through the end of September 2026, the realisation of tax refunds reached IDR198.71 trillion, a decline of 38.7% compared with the same period last year. The largest refunds came from value added tax (VAT) and sales tax on luxury goods (STLGs) at IDR137.79 trillion, followed by income tax refunds of IDR59.08 trillion and refunds from other tax types totalling IDR1.84 trillion.

Tax refunds remain a key concern for taxpayers, particularly entrepreneurs. The Indonesian Employers Association (Asosiasi Pengusaha Indonesia/Apindo in Indonesian) has urged the government to expedite tax refund disbursements, highlighting that tax refunds are vital to the business sector.

Apindo Chairperson, Shinta W. Kamdani, stressed that the timely and smooth disbursement of tax refunds would affect companies’ cash flow.

“Let us not even talk about new incentives for now. Tax refunds have a significant impact on companies’ cash flow,” she said.

Shinta said the speed of tax refund disbursements could affect companies’ financial conditions. If refunds are disbursed promptly, entrepreneurs may use the funds for working capital, supplier payments and employee salaries as well as business expansion.

She said businesses do not always need new incentives to boost business activity. Instead, the business community is calling on the government to ensure that tax refunds, which are taxpayers’ legal entitlement, are disbursed promptly, as this would have an impact on companies’ cash flow.

Shinta also said she had no objection to the government conducting an audit or preliminary audit of refund claims. However, she urged the government not to take too long to complete the process.

“Mr. Suahasil said they must be audited. That is not an issue; they can be audited first, as this is necessary. However, taxpayers remain entitled to receive them [refunds],” she said.

Previously, Apindo had raised concerns over the lengthy processing time for tax refunds. According to an Apindo survey conducted in July 2026, taxpayers had to wait 6-12 months to receive their refunds. Some taxpayers even had to wait more than a year.

Aside from tax refunds, several other tax-related issues also garnered readers’ attention over the past week. These included revisions to the regulation on tax amendments and objections as well as the implementation of the tax competency examination.

The following is a comprehensive review of the latest tax-related articles.

MoF Reg. 71/2026 Issued, Tax Amendments and Objections Revised

The government has revised the provisions governing the procedures for amendment, objection, reduction, nullification and cancellation in the field of taxation through the issuance of MoF Reg. 71/2026, which revises MoF Reg. 118/2024. MoF Reg. 71/2026 improves and affirms a number of provisions.

First, clarification of the director general of taxes' authority to conduct the exchange of tax information (EoI) with the tax authorities of tax treaty partners in the context of objection examination. Second, clarification of the submission deadline for the response letter for the results of the examination of the

Third, the addition of Article 21A, which details the types of administrative penalties in notices of tax assessment/notices of tax collection and fines for land and building tax (L&B Tax) in the plantation, forestry, oil and gas mining, geothermal mining, mineral or coal mining and other sectors (L&B Tax P5L) that may be reduced or nullified. Fourth, clarification that payments made by a taxpayer against a notice of tax assessment, notice of tax collection, including for L&B Tax P5L, must first be set off to settle the amount of tax unpaid or underpaid.

Fifth, a new incentive in the form of a reduction or nullification of L&B Tax P5L penalty fines to stimulate the national economy (Article 27A). This incentive may be granted by the director general of taxes upon a taxpayer's application submitted no later than 2 years from the date MoF Reg. 71/2026 comes into force.

Sixth, clarification that an application for reduction/cancellation of an incorrect notice of L&B Tax P5L assessment may only be submitted provided that: (i) no objection has been filed; or (ii) an objection has been filed but is not considered.

DGT Reveals Reason for Centralised UKP

The DGT is of the view that the tax competency exam (uji kompetensi perpajakan/UKP in Indonesian) is considered necessary to be held centrally i to ensure the independence and integrity of the examination process. Head of the Sub-Directorate for General Provisions and Tax Provisions and Tax Collection Using Distress Warrant at the Directorate General of Taxes (DGT), Meidijati, stated that centralised examination is aimed at preventing conflicts of interest.

" This also ensures the independence and integrity of the examination process, free from the interests of particular parties. There is no commercialisation practice within this competency exam," Meidijati said.

The centralised administration of the UKP by the Finance Education and Training Agency (Badan Pendidikan dan Pelatihan Keuangan/BPPK in Indonesian), rather than by private entities, is also claimed to be necessary to maintain the standards of the examination that a person must sit before becoming a taxpayer's attorney.

Tax Revenue Rises 24%, Reaching IDR1,607.6 Trillion as of September

The Ministry of Finance recorded tax revenue of IDR1,607.6 trillion as of September 2026, representing a 24.1% increase compared with the same period last year. This realisation accounted for 68.2% of the 2026 state budget target of IDR2,357.7 trillion.

“The factor is that, if we look at last year, tax revenue contracted by 4.4%. Indeed, tax collection last year had not yet been particularly robust,” Suahasil said.

Suahasil elaborated that non-oil and gas income tax revenues reached IDR809.3 trillion, rising by 17.6%, while value added tax (VAT) and sales tax on luxury goods (STLGs) revenues amounted to IDR683.3 trillion, up 38.6%.

Meanwhile, oil and gas income tax revenues reached IDR43.6 trillion, representing growth of 128.2%, whereas land and building tax (L&B Tax) and other taxes totalled IDR71.4 trillion, declining by 24.8%. (dik)

BPK: Two Entrepreneurs Found Ineligible for Tax Holiday

Through its Semi-Annual Overview of Audit Findings (IHPS) I/2026, the Audit Board (Badan Pemeriksa Keuangan/BPK in Indonesian) disclosed findings relating to the granting of tax holidays and tax allowances.

BPK found that 2 entrepreneurs received tax holiday and tax allowance facilities despite having been in commercial production since before the facilities were applied for. This arose because the Ministry of Investment and Downstream Industry/BKPM failed to verify the completeness of data on the estimated date of start of commercial production.

Further, the BPK considers that the online single submission system remains unable to detect the risk of entrepreneurs having already commenced commercial operations before applying for the relevant facility.

DGT: SPP-TDLN Data Collection Not for Monitoring Taxpayers‘Accounts

The DGT has affirmed that all cross-border transaction data will be used on a limited basis by the operator of the tax collection system for cross-border digital transactions (sistem pemungutan pajak atas transaksi digital luar negeri/SPP-TDLN in Indonesian).

Director General of Taxes Bimo Wijayanto stated that a range of taxpayer data, including identity, account numbers, and transaction amounts, will be managed to map and analyse transactions subject to VAT. However, the DGT will not automatically use such data to deliberately monitor taxpayers' accounts.

"Data governance is used on a limited basis for mapping, analysis and VAT collection. This system is not intended in any way to monitor the public's accounts," he said. (dik)