DGT on Supreme Court‘s Proposal for Tax Court Decentralisation

JAKARTA, DDTCNews - The Directorate General of Taxes (DGT) is of the view that handling tax disputes is more effective when centralised at the Tax Court in Jakarta.

Director General of Taxes Bimo Wijayanto stated that tax disputes need to be handled in Jakarta given that 55.8% of appeal and lawsuit applications to the Tax Court are submitted by taxpayers domiciled in Jakarta.

"Some 55% of cases are in Jakarta. So, in the current context, trials in Jakarta are more efficient and more effective," said Bimo at a public consultation on the formulation of tax policy recommendations entitled Tax Court Decentralisation: Towards an Independent and Accessible Court, Wednesday (4/11/2026).

The majority of tax appeal and lawsuit applications are submitted by taxpayers located in Jakarta, as Jakarta currently retains its status as both the business centre and the seat of government.

Even where taxpayers have business activities in the regions, including outside Java, most taxpayers choose to centralise their financial and taxation functions in Jakarta.

"Control over finance, human resources, payroll and taxation can already be centralised, or decentralised but still centralised in function. Systems such as SAP and Oracle are all already streamlined. This must be a point of consideration for colleagues at the Supreme Court," said Bimo.

The centralisation of tax dispute handling in Jakarta is also seen as not impeding access to justice for taxpayers in the regions.

Even where taxpayers are located outside Jakarta, they may file an appeal in respect of the disputed matter and attend trials electronically using the e-tax court.

"Today, 96% of cases go through the e-tax court. This means supports a simple, swift and low-cost judicial process. There is no need for planes, buses, trains or any other vehicles. Everything can be done through the e-tax court," said Bimo.

Further, Article 4 of the Tax Court Law also permits trials to be held outside the court's domicile. At present, trials outside the domicile may be conducted in Yogyakarta and Surabaya.

For information, the Supreme Court is pushing for tax court decentralisation through the establishment of regional tax courts or their integration with the regional state administrative courts.

Supreme Court Justice of the State Administrative Court Chamber, Yodi Martono Wahyunadi, stated that tax court decentralisation is necessary to strengthen access to justice and to reinforce the one-roof system.

"Why is court decentralisation needed? It is to realise access to justice and to strengthen the one-roof system. It is also for case efficiency," said Yodi at the same event. (dik)