| I have recently extended my Indonesian visa on | | | | into the immigration office, so vests, shorts and |
| arrival (VOA) in Bali. It took about a week, three | | | | flip-flops are out, as are mini-skirts and skimpy tops. |
| visits to the immigration office, and Rp251,600, but it | | | | You don't need to wear a suit and tie, but at least |
| was a lot easier than leaving the country to get a | | | | long trousers/skirt (jeans are fine) and shirt or t-shirt. |
| new one. | | | | You also need to provide photocopies of your |
| Luckily for me, I live near an immigration office (in | | | | passport (showing your identity details and current |
| Singaraja), so the whole process only took about an | | | | visa), your sponsor's identity card (KTP), and your |
| hour in total, including journey time. If your nearest | | | | marriage certificate (if your spouse is sponsoring |
| office is further away, then you'll need to decide | | | | you). |
| whether it's easier to make the 3 trips or just one | | | | 5 days after dropping the forms off, I returned to |
| trip abroad instead. | | | | the immigration office and paid Rp250,000 (equivalent |
| In my case I needed a sponsor, but I've heard of | | | | to 25 US dollars). |
| other people not needing one. When you do this for | | | | 3 days after that, I returned to pick up my visa. Oh, |
| the first time, I suggest you take a suitable local | | | | and I had to pay Rp1,000 for them to photocopy my |
| person with you just in case. They can always help | | | | passport with the new visa stamp in it. |
| with translation and filling in the visa application forms. | | | | I was initially concerned that, since the whole process |
| Also, I didn't need a photo, but I've heard of other | | | | was going to take a week, I would end up |
| people beings asked to provide one, so it's probably | | | | overstaying on my original visa (which ran out 2 days |
| best to bring one just in case. It's always a good idea | | | | into the process), but this wasn't a problem as I |
| to carry a few passport photos when you visit an | | | | dropped off the forms before my visa expired. |
| immigration office as you never know when they | | | | Ideally, you should go in one week before your visa |
| might ask for one. These should be with a red | | | | expires but, even though I didn't do that, they |
| background. | | | | back-dated the new visa to start from the day my |
| Since I used my wife as a sponsor for my visa, I had | | | | original one ran out. Nice! |
| to provide a copy of our wedding certificate. | | | | Apart from the reduced hassle of doing this |
| Presumably, if you use someone else, this won't be | | | | (compared to leaving the country on a visa run), |
| necessary. | | | | there's another advantage: the visa stamp they use |
| I had to fill in 3 forms. One of these is a sponsor's | | | | only takes up half a page in your passport compared |
| letter, which my wife completed. The others I | | | | to a full page for the standard VOA stamp. |
| completed myself (with some help from my wife as | | | | I hope this helps clarify the process for you. |
| one is entirely in Indonesian). One of the forms needs | | | | One final tip: don't listen to anything they tell you in |
| a "materai" (stamp) which costs Rp6,000. You stick in | | | | Denpasar airport about this as they have been giving |
| on the indicated square at the bottom of the form | | | | out inaccurate information there. For example, they |
| and both you and your sponsor sign so that your | | | | may tell you there's an immigration office in the |
| signatures overlap it. | | | | airport, which isn't true. There is one nearby, but not |
| The second time I did this, they asked me to bring in | | | | in the airport itself. They've also been known to tell |
| my return ticket, presumably to prove that I was | | | | people they can get their VOA extended while they |
| going to leave the country. | | | | wait, which is simply not true. I suggest you save |
| One small but important detail: make sure you | | | | your energy and avoid asking about this in the |
| complete the forms in black ink and in capital letters, | | | | airport. |
| otherwise they could be rejected. Really! Oh, and it's | | | | Good luck and happy travelling! |
| a good idea to dress reasonably well when you go | | | | |