The Indonesian Government will expand the visa exemption list at the end of this year, instead of in 2016 as had been previously announced, to include citizens from 45 countries.
This exemption, signed by Indonesian President Joko Widodo, will be valid for all foreigners coming from 90 countries who arrive in Indonesia as tourists, on official missions or for reasons related to study, business or socio-cultural activities. It will also apply to those who are in transit to other countries.
According to the Tourism Minister of the Southeast Asian state, Arief Yahya, his country made this decision after releasing the economic stimulus package last week, where they propose increasing the number of tourists arriving to their many destinations. Additionally, they expect to reach the objectives outlined in the plan to attract 10 million foreign vacationers in 2015, and to double this number by 2019. In recent years, Indonesia has increased the number of foreign visitors by 25%, a number which they hope to double to 20 million in 2019.
Last June, the Asian nation added 30 states to the list of those who benefit from the regulation, raising the total number to 45 nations, which contributed to raising the number of foreign visitors by 2.69% in the first period.