Filming Permits & Services in Indonesia
Film Permits & Visa Indonesia
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Yes. All foreign film, TV, and streaming productions intended for public viewing require an official filming permit before shooting.
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National parks, conservation areas, and other protected sites fall under separate environmental and forestry authorities, so productions filming there need an additional Conservation Area Entry Permit in addition to the standard filming permit.
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Yes. Foreign crew require a specific Film Visa, distinct from a tourist or standard business visa. We can apply for this Film Visa only after the filming permit, including its crew, is approved. AsiaFixer.TV coordinates this alongside the different steps of your filming permit application.
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Filming permits are processed through Indonesia’s Ministry of Culture, under its Film Development Centre Unit (previously called Pusbangfilm) and relevant regional, provincial, and local authorities, depending on your filming locations.
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No — a foreign production company must have a government-licensed Indonesian company appointed as a sponsor first. AsiaFixer.TV works through our long-standing local partner to provide this sponsorship, with the application submitted via the Indonesian Embassy closest to your business address.
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Processing time depends mostly on how quickly your local Indonesian Embassy reviews your application — this is the biggest variable.
Production type, scope, locations, and crew size and nationality play a secondary role.
The Embassy reviews your application first, then forwards it to Jakarta for central processing. Jakarta’s own processing typically takes 3-4 weeks, plus another 1-2 weeks for issuing the visa. But the initial Embassy review can take 4-8 weeks or more, depending on the Embassy.
For peace of mind, apply at least 3-4 months before your planned shoot date — earlier is even better.
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Yes, foreign crew typically require a specific filming/work-related visa or pass, separate from a standard tourist visa. AsiaFixer.TV coordinates crew visa applications alongside the filming permit.
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Yes — certain locations and subject matter may require additional permits or special approval.
The region of West Papua, for example, is particularly restricted due to political events.
All national parks and heritage sites need special permits and charge fees.
We assess this during pre-production.
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The initial documents required are:
- Documents on Letterhead – some forms and letters must be on your company letterhead and signed. We will provide the templates.
- Journalist Film Visa Application – each crew member must complete and sign this visa application, which includes a “Personal Statement”. We’ll provide the forms and instructions.
- Script/Storyboard/Synopsis – a detailed script, storyboard, or synopsis in English, on your company letterhead.
- Production Company Profile – include company name, full address, contact person, phone number, fax, email, and website URL. Also, provide a brief history of the company and examples of past productions.
- Crew Passports – clear, high-quality scans of crew members’ passports (no fingers/hands visible). Passports must be valid for at least 12 months from the date of entry to Indonesia. Submit in PDF format.
- Crew Photos – digital, passport-sized (35mm x 45mm) colour photos with a neutral, white background in JPG format. Ensure high resolution, proper lighting, and no shadows. Hats, sunglasses, and sleeveless shirts are not allowed. Low-quality images may lead to rejection. We suggest using an AI passport photo generator for best results.
- Production Schedule – provide the proposed filming schedule with exact dates and locations. We help you to optimise the schedule for the permit process
- Equipment List – list production equipment with serial numbers (if available) and estimated values in USD. If you’re unsure about the exact gear, provide your best estimate and include more items rather than fewer. Indonesia is an ATA Carnet country, so ensure your ATA Carnet for temporary imports is accurate. DO NOT include drones/UAVs on this list—these require separate registration with the Ministry of Transportation, and can only be operated by certified Indonesian citizens. Contact us to discuss drone options.
- Production Insurance – a copy of your production insurance or third-party liability policy.
- Health Insurance – Health insurance documentation for each crew member.
- Foreign Talents / Presenters – A profile of the presenter(s) or talent, including an overview of their past productions.
- Crew List – a complete list of crew members, stating position, birthdate, nationality, passport details and their countries of departure.
- Local Support Letters – support letters from local organisations or communities. We’ll advise what’s needed based on your schedule and synopsis
- Commissioning Broadcaster Letter – a letter from the commissioning broadcaster/company is not mandatory but recommended.
ONCE FILMING PERMIT IS APPROVED, TO ISSUE E-VISA
- Bank Statements – provide the last 3 months of bank statements for each crew member, showing available funds of a minimum of USD 2000 or equivalent. Only redact your account number. We understand this is sensitive information; one workaround is to use a separate e-banking platform (like Revolut or Wise) just for this purpose.
- Return Flight Tickets – return flight tickets for each crew member.
- Curriculum Vitae – a short, professional CV for each crew member.
Requirements are constantly changing; please contact us for an updated list.
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This is not a risk worth taking. Indonesia treats unauthorised filming as a serious immigration and legal matter, not a minor administrative issue. Foreign journalists and filmmakers have been arrested, detained for weeks or months, and in some cases sentenced to jail time for filming or reporting without the correct permits and visas — even when the violation was limited to using the wrong visa category. Immigration violations can carry penalties of up to five years in prison under Indonesian law. Restricted regions such as Papua carry even greater risk, with journalists there facing detention or deportation even for attending public events without the right authorisation. Proper permitting isn’t a formality — it’s what stands between your production and a genuinely dangerous legal situation. This is one more reason why our experience matters.
AsiaFixer.TV doesn’t work with filmmakers or journalists who do not want to comply with Indonesian laws and regulations.
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Yes. Indonesia is the world’s largest Muslim-majority country and is also home to significant religious and ethnic diversity, so content touching on religion, ethnic or regional tensions, and political criticism requires extra care and may affect permit approval. Nudity and sexual content must also be handled sensitively.
Environmental and resource-use topics are also highly sensitive — this includes mining, palm oil production, logging, and deforestation, which can involve powerful commercial and political interests.
Filming in West Papua is particularly sensitive: the region has an active separatist movement and ongoing political tensions, and productions touching on this subject, or simply filming in the region without the correct authorisation, face significant scrutiny and risk of detention or deportation.
Productions covering any of these themes should get in touch with us early in pre-production, so we can advise on how your content may be received and what’s needed for approval.
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Tax treatment depends on how your production is structured — for example, whether payments are made by a foreign entity from outside Indonesia, or through a local Indonesian company. Because this can affect both the production and individual crew members differently, we recommend discussing your specific payment structure with a local tax advisor before the shoot, and we’re happy to help coordinate that conversation.
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Not currently at the national level (as per 2026) — we monitor developments here and will advise if eligibility broadens to foreign shoots.
Drone Filming in Indonesia
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Yes, commercial drone filming requires official approval alongside your standard filming permit. In practice, this means working with an Indonesian-licensed drone operator, who uses their own registered drone and handles the permit application process on your behalf.
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Commercial drone operation in Indonesia is, in practice, restricted to locally licensed and insured pilots only.
Foreign operators cannot fly commercially here unless they acquire an Indonesian drone pilot certificate alongside a valid work permit, which is not a practical solution for most productions.
Contact Us for further insight.
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While it’s theoretically possible to register a drone brought in from outside Indonesia, in reality, this isn’t a viable path for most productions, and we don’t recommend it.
Instead, we can help you source your drone and operator locally.
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Yes — areas near airports, military installations, government buildings, historical buildings or buildings of worship and certain protected natural sites typically have drone flight restrictions or require special clearance.
We have to verify this for each location individually.
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Drone approval should be arranged alongside your main filming permit application, as early in pre-production as possible.
It’s actually an advantage to name the Indonesian-licensed drone operator you’ve engaged directly in your initial filming permit application — this signals to the government that you’re already aware of and compliant with drone regulations, which can help avoid delays in approval.
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Yes — drone filming for natural history and remote location work, including marine and coastal environments, is something we regularly arrange, alongside the necessary approvals, using a locally licensed operator.
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Typically your shot list, planned flight areas/coordinates, and general production details. Requirements are specific and can change, so please contact us to discuss the drone filming part of your production.
Production Research for Filming in Indonesia
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Yes — we draw on our local network to identify and coordinate contributors, interview subjects, and on-camera talent suited to your story, across Indonesia’s many regions and communities.
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Yes. Indonesia’s cultural calendar varies enormously by region, and each major island group has its own signature events:
- Bali — Nyepi, the Balinese Day of Silence, preceded by the dramatic Ogoh-ogoh effigy parades; along with Galungan and Kuningan temple ceremonies
- Java — Waisak at Borobudur, drawing thousands of Buddhist monks to the temple at dawn; and Sekaten in Yogyakarta and Solo, the royal courts’ celebration of the Prophet’s birthday
- Sumatra — Tabuik in Pariaman, West Sumatra, with its towering effigies carried to the sea; alongside Batak ceremonies around Lake Toba
- Sulawesi — the Toraja funeral ceremonies (Rambu Solo’), among the most visually extraordinary and internationally filmed rituals in Indonesia
- Kalimantan — Gawai Dayak harvest celebrations and the Erau festival in Tenggarong, rooted in Dayak and Kutai traditions
- Nusa Tenggara — Pasola on Sumba, a ritual spear-throwing contest on horseback; and Caci whip-fighting on Flores
- Papua — the Baliem Valley Festival near Wamena, featuring highland tribal gatherings and mock battles
Beyond these well-known events, there are countless smaller, less-documented ceremonies and seasonal rites across the archipelago — often far more rewarding for productions looking for something that hasn’t been filmed before. We can identify events that align with your production’s themes and timing, and advise on what’s realistically accessible given permit requirements.
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Yes, sourcing props and specific items is part of our pre-production support, and we can bring in a dedicated prop master if your shoot requires one.
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Yes — many productions find it valuable for us to take on a broader field producer role, working alongside our core location manager and fixer responsibilities.
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During development, we help with location research, identifying potential talent or contributors, and providing cultural and factual context to help shape the production before it’s greenlit.
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Yes — given Indonesia’s ecological and cultural range, we regularly connect productions with relevant specialists, from marine biologists working in the Coral Triangle to historians and cultural experts specific to a region.
Production Logistics for Filming in Indonesia
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Yes — airport pickups, inter-city transfers, domestic flights, ferry and liveaboard sea transport, and terrain-appropriate vehicles for your shoot locations are all part of our logistics support.
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Yes, we handle accommodation for the full crew, selecting options that fit both your budget and the practical needs of each location.
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Yes, on-location catering is included in our logistics package, with dietary requirements and preferences accommodated. The location will determine what’s available, but we will make sure the crew doesn’t get hungry
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Yes — for cast, executive producers, sponsors, or other high-profile guests, we can put together tailored VIP arrangements on request.
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We coordinate all transport, lodging, and support logistics across multiple locations, including remote islands and areas with limited or no infrastructure.
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Inter-island travel in Indonesia typically means flights or ferries rather than road transport — we build crew and equipment movement between islands directly into your production schedule to avoid costly delays.
Crew and Equipment for Filming in Indonesia
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Yes — Indonesia is an ATA Carnet member country, so most productions bring their own gear this way. A Carnet lets you temporarily import equipment without paying customs duties, as long as everything leaves the country again within the document’s validity window. We support you during the customs process on both entry and exit.
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Yes — our network includes experienced camera, sound, and support crew matched to the needs of your specific production. Most Indonesian crew are based in Java and Bali, where the industry is concentrated. There’s a deep pool of experience in commercials, feature films, drama, and travel programming, though crew with specific natural history and wildlife documentary experience are harder to find. If your production needs specialist documentary crew, it’s worth inquiring early so we have time to source the right people.
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Yes, we connect productions with trusted equipment rental houses, primarily based in Jakarta and Bali.
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Yes. Given Indonesia’s linguistic diversity, our fixer team draws on native speakers from the specific regions you’re filming in, beyond just national Bahasa Indonesia.
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Yes. The main crew pool in Indonesia is concentrated in Java and Bali, where you’ll find every standard production position — camera, sound, lighting and grip, art department, wardrobe, hair and makeup, production management, locations, and DIT. The exception is highly specialised roles: wildlife and underwater camera operators, riggers, and similar specialist positions are much harder to source locally, so these are worth discussing with us early in pre-production.
Budget and Accounting for Filming in Indonesia
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Yes — before any agreements are signed, we put together a full, transparent budget estimate covering permitting and visas, fixer support, crew and talent, location fees, craft and catering, transport, travel, accommodation, equipment rental, and other production costs.
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Yes, we stay closely involved with your Line Producer throughout the shoot to keep spending on track and under control.
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Costs vary based on location remoteness (particularly for outer islands), pre-production requirements, crew size, permit complexity, and speciality filming needs. Many protected areas, such as national parks, charge significant location fees, and filming across multiple islands increases transport and logistics costs due to inter-island travel. Let us propose locations that fit your needs.
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Yes — these costs are built into the overall budget estimate from the start, not added as a surprise later.
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Yes. We adapt our crew and logistics recommendations to fit a set budget, and we’ll flag clearly where cutting costs isn’t a good idea. Building in a contingency fund for unexpected issues is something we’d always recommend.
Health, Safety and Security while filming in Indonesia
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We don’t write your production’s formal risk assessment for you, but we’re closely involved in supplying the Indonesia-specific input it depends on — hazards, terrain, weather, wildlife, remoteness, and evacuation options — so the document you produce is grounded in accurate, current information.
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Yes — depending on the shoot’s location and risk level, this can range from on-site first aid staff or a medical officer to a standing ambulance arrangement for higher-risk activities.
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Yes. We tailor safety planning to the specific demands of each location, with extra care taken in remote settings — jungle, mountain, or outer-island terrain — where help takes longer to reach and conditions can shift quickly.
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Given the vastness of the archipelago, helicopter medevac is often not available within a reasonable timeframe. This makes rigorous planning and preventive processes essential for remote Indonesian locations — the priority is avoiding accidents in the first place, since evacuation options can be limited once something goes wrong. We build this into our safety preparation for any remote or hard-to-access shoot location, with particular attention to realistic response times and first-response capability on site.
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Yes, generally speaking. The most common precaution, as in most countries, comes down to equipment security — never leaving valuable gear unattended — and for larger crews, bringing on a small dedicated security presence is worth considering.
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Yes — Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, so seismic and volcanic activity are genuine considerations in some regions, alongside monsoon-season flooding risk depending on location and timing. We advise productions on season and location selection to help avoid weather- and disaster-related disruptions.