Over four million tourists traveling through Bali Airport have used the newly installed autogates over the last few months.
The autogates became fully operational in October 2024, and the technology makes it possible for tourists to complete immigration arrival checks in a matter of seconds.
The Directorate General of Immigration for Indonesia is on a mission to level up the service across the board for both Indonesian residents and foreigners using the services.
This has included digitalizing the visa application process, allowing foreigners to apply for visa extensions online, and installing 90 autogates at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport’s arrival and departure terminals.
The Head of Immigration Information and Communication Technology Division of the Class I Special Immigration Office of TPI Ngurah Rai, Alexander Maxwell, spoke with reporters earlier this week to share that more than 4,000,000 passengers utilized the autogate facility throughout 2024.
This equates to around 57% of the total 6,994,903 arrivals during 2024. “This autogate has become an effective solution to reduce waiting times at immigration checks,” he noted.
Maxwell added, “We started the first phase in early 2024 and will continue until all devices are installed. This is part of our commitment to provide technology that supports better services.”
Australian tourists still dominate the international arrivals rankings, with over 1.5 million Australians visiting Bali in 2024 alone. Followed by tourists from India, with 563,000 visits in 2024, and tourists from China completed the top three with 466,000 people.
Maxwell explained, “This figure reflects the success of handling the surge in travelers. We are optimistic that this increase will continue in the coming years.”
Not all tourists can use the autogate technology, however. It is only available for foreigners who have an e-visa; this includes the e-Visa on Arrival.
The eVisa on Arrival can be applied for between 90 days and up to 48 hours before arriving in Indonesia, and the application can be completed totally online. The eVisa on Arrival is valid for 30 days and can be extended one time for a further 30 days.
The initial 30-day visit costs IDR 500,000, and the process is incredibly simple. For couples, families, or groups of friends traveling together, it is possible to process up to five travelers on one application, making the process as streamlined as possible.
It should be noted that it is expected that there may be changes to the visa application process in 2025 as the Directorate General of Immigration has just signed a deal to hand over visa application operations to VFS Global. Though no further changes have been announced.
Not only does apply for the eVisa on Arrival enable the tourist to use the autogates to complete immigration arrival checks in less than 30 seconds, but it also saves time to queue to pay for and then apply for the visa on Arrival. It is the same visa, and it is applied for by different means.
Tourists who do not wish to apply for the eVisa on Arrival are still eligible to apply for the Visa on Arrival in person when they get to the arrivals terminal at Bali Airport.
Both the eVisa on Arrival and the Visa on Arrival are open for tourists from over 90 countries, including Bali’s most frequent visitors.
In 2025, as Bali anticipates welcoming over 6.5 million international tourists, travelers are advised to make the most of every opportunity to complete as much of the arrival process in advance as possible to help minimize time spent in Bali Airport when they touch down.
This includes applying for the eVisa on Arrival, completing the online customs declaration form, making the Bali Tourism Tax Levy contribution, and downloading the Satusehat One Health App from the Indonesian government.
Remove All Ads & Unlock All Articles… Sign up for The Bali Sun Premium
Plan Your Bali Holiday:
Book The Best English Speaking Drivers For Airport Transfers & Tours
Choose From Thousands of Bali Hotels, Resorts, and Hostels with Free Cancellation On Most Properties
Book Cheap Flights To Bali
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance That Covers Medical Expenses In Bali
For the latest Bali News & Debate Join our Facebook Community
SUBSCRIBE TO NEW POSTS
Enter your email address to subscribe to The Bali Sun’s latest breaking news, straight to your inbox.
Discover more from The Bali Sun
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Alwani Aziz
Friday 17th of January 2025
Gates didn’t work for Indian why why We had pre arrival visa paid the money still no electronic gates We had to bribe money to guards on duty and immigration was done in seconds 🤣🤣🤣
Loups-Garoups
Sunday 19th of January 2025
@Alwani Aziz, Is this story for real?? No such thing as bribing inside a secured facility like an airport border control. Even if it was a real, you are making a big mistake and catching the attention of the law enforcement. Nobody is entitled! After researching online, an Indonesian passport holder actually ranks much higher than an Indian passport and some other Asian and African nations.
Randy
Saturday 18th of January 2025
@Alwani Aziz, THIS IS NOT INDIA! You are complicit in bribing an immigration official in a foreign country. Are you hiding some information?? Some Indian passport holders may not go through the auto gates for several reasons. An Indian friend who has the done the visa on arrival ahead of time could not get through and it had to be done manually. And his friend who is US citizen also could not use the auto gates either. But these two people did not bribe anyone and went through manually in Bali and leaving out of Jakarta without a hitch. They could not use the auto gates back in September 2024.
So shame on you and making other Indians actually look bad. Posting what you just wrote isn’t funny at all.
Thommo
Thursday 16th of January 2025
Speedy process on arrival. Never heared anything more ludicrous. Move through swiftly, why bother you will wait an eternity for your baggage anyway.
Shorty
Sunday 19th of January 2025
@Randy,
It's a bad day for @Exp if he doesn't have something to complain about or criticise.
Randy
Saturday 18th of January 2025
@Exp, complaints after complaints!! You must never have any luck in your life. It starts with your attitude simple as that.
Randy
Friday 17th of January 2025
@Thommo, the article did not say about baggage collection as speedy...unless it was written in small print. Since when picking up luggages was a speedy process, if your baggage appeared before you went through passport control, then congratulations!! Sigh...
Exp
Friday 17th of January 2025
@Thommo,
1. The luggage handling is way too slow.
2. They need to install more monitors along the belts to let people know what is going on as they love to suddenly change belt.
3. The monitor need to inform what flight number is currently on the belt
4. I had luggage arriving on two different belts (luckily my daughter spotted the bag). That is just unacceptable.
5. There are a lot of locals swarming around for some reason. That is a security issue.
Randy
Thursday 16th of January 2025
Legit travelers with their visas ahead of time can use without hindrance the auto gates. Some nationalities (with countries with a history of overstaying) may or may not use the auto gates. It may also depend with each individual travel history or what have you (perhaps having another different passport). Some travelers regardless of ethnicity may own 2 or 3 different citizenships.
For example, heard complaints from some Indonesians that they cannot use the auto gates last year to exit the country from Bali except when entering only in Bali. It has to be done manually by an immigration officer to exit Bali, Indonesia. This year who knows...but in Jakarta, the auto gates may be used for all Indonesians exiting and entering the country.
Exp
Thursday 16th of January 2025
The KITAS/KITAP cash cows are not able to use the auto gates.
Shorty
Friday 17th of January 2025
@Exp, So what. We've dedicated gates on departure and arrival.