Purbaya Vows to Resolve Tax Refund Obstacles
JAKARTA, DDTCNEWS - Minister of Finance, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, has stated that he will look into the obstacles surrounding tax refunds experienced by businesses. This topic is among the reviews featured in national media today, Thursday (10/9/2026).
Purbaya suspects there has been a shift in the implementation of his instructions regarding refund supervision. He emphasised that from the outset his ministry had only instructed its staff to strengthen supervision of refunds in the coal sector, not other sectors.
"Refunds were at that time suspected in the natural resources area. I paid IDR25 trillion in subsidies to coal companies. That was actually what was being monitored, but apparently the implementation shifted somewhat. I will monitor it and sort it out later," said Purbaya.
Purbaya had previously paid close attention to the disbursement of tax refunds, particularly in the coal sector. At the start of 2026, he highlighted the high level of refund realisations in 2025, which reached IDR361 trillion.
Purbaya assessed that there was a revenue leakage arising from tax refunds, especially those granted to coal companies. He even likened the disbursement of refunds to businesses in that sector to subsidies.
"Up to now it has been as if automatic; there has been no control from the [Directorate General of] Taxes to check. I thought it was too easy and wanted to examine it. If we calculate the VAT on the coal industry, I am actually subsidising it, which is why I am trying to close that gap with a coal export duty," Purbaya said in February 2026.
However, the implementation of that refund supervision has now come under scrutiny, as it is considered to have also affected businesses in other sectors.
Minister of Industry, Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, said his ministry had received complaints from the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kamar Dagang dan Industri/Kadin in Indonesian) regarding obstacles to the disbursement of said refunds.
According to Agus, delays in disbursing refunds would affect entrepreneurs' cash flow as well as their capacity to undertake new projects.
"We fully understand these complaints [from entrepreneurs], and we have coordinated, conveyed and consulted with the minister of finance, who indeed holds the authority or policy responsibility for refunds," said Agus last week.
Similar concerns were raised by Harris Turino, a member of the House of Representatives (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat/DPR in Indonesian) Commission XI. In his view, refunds need to be disbursed promptly as they are a taxpayer's right.
"A refund is fundamentally a corporate right. If this is withheld, many corporations will experience cash flow issues," said Harris.
A tax refund constitutes a return of tax overpayment. In general, taxpayers may apply for a refund through 2 mechanisms: a refund based on an audit, and an accelerated refund pursuant to Minister of Finance Regulation (MoF Reg.) 28/2026.
Up to July 2026, refund realisations were recorded at only IDR185.38 trillion, representing a decline of 33.65%.
In addition to that news, there is a review of the implementation of the tax collection system for foreign digital transactions (sistem pemungutan pajak transaksi digital luar negeri/SPP-TDLN in Indonesian). There is also a discussion regarding the preliminary hearing for the judicial review of Article 44E paragraph (2) subparagraph e of the General Tax Provisions and Procedures (GPTP), as last amended by the Harmonisation of Tax Regulations (Harmonisasi Peraturan Perpajakan/HPP in Indonesian) Law.
Below is a full review of the tax articles.
Purbaya Suspects a Shift Occurred in Refund Supervision Instructions
Purbaya will investigate the cause of the shift in the implementation of tax refund supervision.
In his view, supervision that was originally directed at refunds in the coal sector has in fact had an impact on businesses in other sectors. He will also ensure that the policy being carried out by his staff is in line with the instructions he has given.
"That is what I mentioned earlier; why has there been a shift from those instructions? I will check on that later," he said. (DDTCNews)
SPP-TDLN Scheduled to Take Effect Today
The SPP-TDLN is scheduled to take effect today. The Directorate General of Taxes (DGT) has also declared its readiness to implement it.
"The system infrastructure has been prepared together with PT Jalin Pembayaran Nusantara, as the operator of the SPP-TDLN, including system development, integration, testing, sandboxing and connectivity trials with the payment system industry," said DGT Director of Tax Dissemination, Service and Public Relations, Inge Diana Rismawanti.
The SPP-TDLN will be implemented in phases, taking into account system readiness, transaction and data security, and the readiness of parties connected to the SPP-TDLN. (DDTCNews)
Tax Attorney Regulation Challenged; Applicant Must Strengthen Standing
The Constitutional Court (Mahkamah Konstitusi/MK in Indonesian) has requested the applicant and legal counsel to strengthen their legal standing and the grounds for the application in the judicial review of Article 44E paragraph (2) subparagraph e of the GPTP Law, as last amended by the HPP Law.
Constitutional Justice Arsul Sani stated that an applicant has legal standing if their constitutional rights or authority have been harmed as a result of a law coming into force. For an applicant to have legal standing, the constitutional harm, whether actual or potential, must be comprehensively set out.
In general, the judicial review of Article 44E paragraph (2) subparagraph e of the GPTP Law, as last amended by the HPP Law, essentially requests the Constitutional Court to annul the said paragraph on the grounds that it is deemed to restrict the competencies that a taxpayer's attorney must possess. (DDTCNews)
Addition of Tobacco Excise Layers Feared to Trigger Moral Hazard
House Commission XI has called for the planned addition of tobacco excise (cukai hasil tembakau/CHT in Indonesian) tariff layers to be closely supervised to prevent moral hazard and a worse cigarette downtrading phenomenon.
The moral hazard in question refers to the potential for entrepreneurs to exploit changes in the excise tariff structure to pay excise at a lower tariff to increase profits.
"Please bear in mind that this must be safeguarded. Moral hazard must not be allowed to occur. You have also indicated a downtrading trend towards cheaper cigarettes," said House Commission XI member Harris Turino at a working meeting with Directorate General of Customs and Excise Director General Djaka Budhi Utama. (DDTCNews)
Disaster Management Budget Confirmed Sufficient
The government has confirmed that it has allocated a budget for disaster management throughout 2026.
Purbaya said the total ceiling prepared for disaster management needs amounts to IDR5 trillion. He emphasised that this budget does not reside in a single budget line or a single ministry, but is spread across the central government and regional government budgets.
"Every year the National Disaster Management Agency (Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana/BNPB in Indonesian) is given a reserve of IDR5 trillion; some of that has already been used for Aceh, but there is still enough," he said. (DDTCNews, Kontan) (dik)