Bali Deports Tourist For Illegal Fundraising To Support Local Stray Animals 

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Bali Immigration teams have confirmed the rapid deportation of a Swiss national who was caught engaging in illegal fundraising activities on the island.

Immigration teams across Indonesia are committed to cracking down on foreigners who engage in illegal activities and violate the conditions of their visas and residency permits. 

The Denpasar Immigration Office has confirmed the prompt deportation of a Swiss national, known by his initials BFM, for engaging in illegal fundraising activities in the province.

BFM is said to have been fundraising for stray animals on the island, though he was unable to produce evidence of a connection with a legally registered international charity with the right to operate in Indonesia or an Indonesian-registered Yayasan or community group. 

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During the investigation, officers from the Intelligence and Immigration Division of Denpasar Immigration Office reviewed BFM’s documents and fraudulent fundraising efforts. On arrival, he entered Indonesia on a 30-day tourist visa.

The Head of the Denpasar Immigration Office, R. Haryo Sakti, told reporters that the fact that BFM entered Indonesia on a tourism visa, rather than a volunteer visa or a socio-cultural visa sponsored by an Indonesian yayasan, or Indonesian registered NGO “raises suspicions that the funds collected were also used for his personal interests.”

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Sakti did not reveal how much money BFM has fundraised but cited that he had violated Article 75 (1) of Law Number 6 of 2022 concerning immigration.

As stipulated in law, BFM was subject to administrative action in the form of deportation and his name has been put forward to the Directorate General of Immigration to be added to Indonesia’s banned entry list, also known as the black list. Sakti confirmed that the Central Immigration Office will process any subsequent proceedings regarding BFM and his deportation or any potential appeal. 

Sakti told reporters “We want to maintain security and order in the region and ensure that every foreigner respects the laws and norms that apply in Indonesia.”

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Tourists and international visitors to Indonesia must be extremely careful about the activities that they engage in while in the country, especially in Bali.

While many countries around the world permit foreigners to engage in volunteer activities while on a tourism visa, in Indonesia, any foreigner who wishes to do so must do so on a volunteer visa or the most appropriate visa for their specific activities and be supported and sponsored by a local organization. 

Foreigners who wish to volunteer in Indonesia must apply for a C6 visa, also known as the volunteer visa.

This socio-cultural visa is a single-entry residency permit valid for up to 60 days. It can be applied for online at the Official Indonesia eVisa website. 

Applicants must pre-arrange their volunteer activities with a registered charity, social organization, private institution, or government agency before applying.

Volunteers can only proceed with their C6 Visa application when they have at the ready their passport, which has at least 6-months validity remaining and two full pages free, a personal bank statement showing the last 3-months of activity, a recent color photography, a sponsorship letter from the organization with whom the applicant is set to volunteer with and a statement from that institution outlining the activities the volunteer will be taking part in during their time in Indonesia. 

This visa also permits volunteers to engage in social and cultural visits and tourism activities but strictly prohibits any income-generating work, investment, or business activities.

For more information regarding all the different categories of visa available to tourists, volunteers, long stay visitors, business travellers and socio-cultural visitors, prospective travellers must visit the official Indonesian eVisa website, and be sure to follow the Indonesia Immigration Instagram account where hints, tips and immigration advice is shared in English on a regular basis.