Purbaya Responds to Claims of Targeting Influencers and Merchants
JAKARTA, DDTCNews - Minister of Finance, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, has affirmed that the government is not targeting specific groups such as influencers and online merchants for tax purposes, but is rather encouraging them to comply in paying taxes pursuant to the applicable provisions.
Purbaya stated that individuals whose income exceeds the personal tax relief (penghasilan tidak kena pajak/PTKP in Indonesian) threshold are naturally required to pay income tax to the state. He noted that the prevailing tax policy is intended to establish fairness.
"If you have a high income, you are taxed. As such, it's equal treatment for all Indonesian citizens, not targeted," he said in a podcast, as quoted on Friday (3/7/2026).
On another note, the government has officially designated 4 marketplace providers as collection agents on 1 July 2026. However, tax collection by marketplace providers will take effect from 1 August 2026.
Under this policy, marketplace providers will collect Article 22 Income Tax at 0.5% on income received by online merchants selling on those marketplaces.
Tax collection by marketplace providers aims to simplify tax administration for online merchants. In addition, Purbaya considers that this policy will create a level playing field between online shops and conventional (offline) shops.
"So we wish to establish a balanced and fair competition between online and offline. That is the main idea," said Purbaya.
Please note that online merchants whose turnover has not yet exceeded IDR500 million in the current tax year are not subject to Article 22 Income Tax collection by marketplace providers, as regulated under MoF Reg. 37/2025.
On the other hand, Purbaya said that influencers who earn substantial income should also pay income tax pursuant to the applicable statutory tax laws and regulations. Influencers are classified as freelance workers and may therefore choose to use deemed profit (norma penghitungan penghasilan neto/NPPN in Indonesian) to simplify the calculation of their net income.
"Only influencers with large incomes [are taxed], while those with small incomes, including micro, small and medium enterprises, are not subject to [tax]," he added. (dik)
