[JAKARTA] When the Indonesian government first announced the plan to launch a new “golden visa” programme, one minister went as far as to describe the proposed scheme as a “game changer” that would attract the world’s best talent and boost foreign investment in South-east Asia’s largest economy.

“The golden visa is a new policy that we will soon launch to attract quality talent in the field of digitalisation, health, research and technology,” said Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno last week. “(The policy) will be a game changer that will bring more foreigners, including digital nomads and entrepreneurs, to invest in Indonesia.”

Several sources whom The Business Times spoke to said that the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights is currently revising the ministerial decree which will allow foreign tech talent to stay and work in Indonesia for up to 10 years.

The holder of a golden visa will enjoy all sorts of perks. Apart from the 10-year permit, they will get a streamlined immigration service, the ability to buy assets in the country, as well as a fast-track route to citizenship. Foreign investors, highly skilled workers and high-earning retirees are among the groups who are eligible to apply.

News of this impending visa scheme – the detailed requirements have not yet been announced – was welcomed by industry players in Indonesia.

Many have long called for the current work permit regime – which grants only one-year visas that need to be renewed – to be improved, in order to address the massive talent shortfall that is needed to drive the country’s vast and growing digital economy.

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Miguel Latorre, managing director Indonesia and Malaysia of Vistra, a corporate business services provider, said that the golden visa is a sign that the government is being proactive and listening to the concerns of the business community.

“The question is whether such talent will still be attracted to come to Indonesia, given the competition from places like Singapore and Dubai which offer much better lifestyle choices,” he added. “I expect the golden visa will boost the talent pool, but it remains to be seen as to just how successful it will be.”

Indonesia’s digital economy is the largest in South-east Asia, valued at US$70 billion in 2021 and estimated to reach US$146 billion in 2025, indicated Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto.

The biggest challenge in the next few years is the severe lack of tech professionals, with Hartarto saying that Indonesia will need as many as nine million digital talents to fulfil its digital economy potential.

If it does get launched, the golden visa will be Indonesia’s second visa scheme to attract wealthy investors. In October last year, the government introduced the “second home” visa programme aimed at elderly foreigners looking to retire in Bali and other popular tourist destinations in the country.

That scheme allows foreigners to apply for a 10-year stay permit if they have an existing visa. They also have to provide proof of funds of two billion rupiah (S$181,018 at today’s exchange rate) in a personal Indonesian bank account, or proof of ownership of a luxury property in Indonesia.

Indonesia is not alone in the region in rolling out the red carpet to lure well-to-do foreigners to invest in return for long-stay visas.

Thailand has a scheme that offers a 10-year residence visa with multiple entries and other benefits. It requires applicants to have at least US$1 million in assets, a validated annual personal income of at least US$80,000 for the past two years, and an investment of at least US$500,000 in Thai government bonds, foreign direct investment or Thai property.

In Malaysia, the government last year introduced a premium visa programme that allows foreigners to stay in the country for as long as 20 years. Cambodia has a 10-year visa scheme that lets foreigners apply for citizenship after five years, as well as other perks such as VIP medical treatment.

Separately, Indonesia and Singapore have already started to work towards ensuring that tech professionals have easier access to each other’s markets.

In March this year, President Joko Widodo and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong launched the Tech X programme which would allow tech talent from both countries to work in each other’s digital economies without the usual bureaucratic red tape.