Cost of Setting Up a Business in Indonesia

There is no single reliable total cost for setting up a business in Indonesia. The amount depends on the company structure, business activities, licensing risk, location, notarial and professional scope, and—if the company is foreign-owned—the separate PT PMA capital and investment requirements.

A useful budget therefore separates four categories:

Official registration charges
Notary and professional setup fees
OSS, licensing and location costs
Capital and investment requirements

Mixing these categories is one of the easiest ways to misunderstand a business-setup quotation.

Cost of Setting Up a Business in Indonesia: What Should You Budget For?

The first decision is not the price. It is the legal and operating structure.

Before estimating cost, identify:

Whether the company will be PT PMDN or PT PMA
The shareholders and ownership structure
The exact business activities and KBLI
The business or project location
The licensing risk level
Whether the business needs dedicated premises
Whether sector-specific approvals are required

Bali Legal ID’s verified Business Setup services separate PT PMDN Setup, PT PMA Setup and NIB OSS RBA Registration into distinct workstreams.

The 4 Cost Categories You Should Separate

The table below shows why ‘company setup cost’ should not be treated as one number.

Cost category	What it covers	Fixed or variable?
Official registration charges	Government-system or PNBP charges where applicable	Partly fixed
Notary and professional fees	Deed preparation, incorporation assistance and legal/administrative work	Variable by scope
Licensing and location costs	OSS work, supporting licenses, premises and site-dependent requirements	Variable by activity and location
Capital and investment	Company capital and regulatory investment commitments	Determined by company and investment rules

The main implication is that a low registration quote does not necessarily represent the total capital or operating budget required to launch the business.

1. Official Registration Charges

The Ministry of Law’s current AHU Limited Liability Company FAQ explains that PT establishment starts with the company name, place of domicile, purposes and objectives, capital structure and management, followed by incorporation through a notary.

The current AHU FAQ lists establishment PNBP voucher charges of IDR 300,000, IDR 600,000 or IDR 1,100,000, depending on the capital band stated in the FAQ.

Those figures are useful because they show an important budgeting distinction: the official AHU voucher is only one component of company establishment. It should not be confused with the full cost of the notary, professional assistance, licensing, business address, sector permits or company capital.

2. Notary and Professional Setup Fees

A standard limited liability company establishment involves corporate documents and notarial work. Professional-service pricing varies because the scope can be materially different from one business to another.

For example, a simple domestic PT with one straightforward activity is not the same engagement as a PT PMA with several foreign shareholders, multiple KBLI activities, several project locations and additional sector licensing.

A quotation should therefore make clear whether it includes items such as:

Company-structure review
Name and corporate-data preparation
Notarial deed work
Ministry/AHU processing
Tax-registration support where applicable
OSS account and NIB work
Additional KBLI or project-location work
Supporting licenses or Standard Certificates
Post-establishment amendments or compliance

Bali Legal ID’s verified PT PMDN Setup service covers local-company incorporation work, while its PT PMA Setup service addresses foreign-owned company establishment.

This page does not publish a universal professional fee because Bali Legal ID’s live service pages do not state one, and the actual scope should be determined before pricing.

3. OSS, Licensing and Location Costs

Licensing cost depends on the actual business activity, not simply on the company name.

The OSS portal describes the NIB as the official identity for starting or running a business and states that the risk-based licensing system groups businesses into four risk levels that determine permits and business obligations.

Indonesia’s current national framework for risk-based business licensing is Government Regulation No. 28 of 2025, which BKPM JDIH currently lists as in force.

That means two companies with similar incorporation documents can still have very different overall budgets if one needs only a basic licensing output while the other requires additional standards, approvals, environmental work, building-related requirements or sector-specific permits.

Location also matters. Depending on the business, the budget may need to include:

A registered or operating business address
Physical premises or lease commitments
Spatial-planning review
Building-related requirements
Environmental or sector-specific approvals
Additional project locations in OSS

Where the licensing path itself is the main issue, Bali Legal ID’s verified NIB OSS RBA Registration service is the relevant workstream.

4. Capital and Investment Requirements

Capital is where PT PMDN and PT PMA differ most significantly—and where setup-cost articles can become misleading.

Domestic PT / PT PMDN

For a domestic PT, the current AHU guidance states that authorized capital is determined by the founders and that at least 25% of that authorized capital must be placed and fully paid, subject to the applicable legal framework.

That company capital is different from the professional fee paid to establish the company.

PT PMA

For PT PMA, Article 26 of the current Ministerial Regulation No. 5 of 2025 categorizes PMA entities as large businesses and generally requires total investment of more than IDR 10 billion, excluding land and buildings, per five-digit KBLI business field per project location, subject to sector-specific exceptions.

The same regulation separately sets minimum placed or paid-up capital for PT PMA at IDR 2.5 billion per limited liability company, unless another regulation provides otherwise.

These figures are not consultant fees.

Bali Legal ID’s verified PT PMA Paid-Up Capital guide explains why the IDR 2.5 billion capital requirement should not be treated as a government or consultant fee.

For readers who specifically want the narrower Bali PT PMA cost discussion, the PT PMA Setup Cost Bali guide remains the specialist page.

PT PMDN vs PT PMA: Cost Structure Comparison

Use this comparison before deciding which setup budget applies to you.

Cost factor	PT PMDN	PT PMA
Company-establishment work	Required	Required
Notarial/corporate documents	Required for ordinary PT structure	Required
AHU/Ministry processing	Required	Required
OSS/NIB licensing	Depends on registered activities	Depends on registered activities
Capital framework	Domestic PT rules	Separate PMA paid-up-capital and investment rules
Foreign-investment review	Not applicable to domestic ownership	Required for the intended structure and activity
Sector and location licensing	Activity-dependent	Activity-dependent
Overall budget sensitivity	Driven mainly by structure and licensing	Driven by structure, licensing, capital and investment requirements

The major difference is therefore not simply that one company type has a higher consultant fee. PT PMA carries a separate regulatory capital and investment framework that must be budgeted independently from establishment-service costs.

What Usually Changes the Final Setup Cost?

The final setup cost can increase when the business involves:

Multiple KBLI activities
Several project or operating locations
A regulated industry
Foreign ownership
Complex shareholder or management arrangements
Physical premises
Spatial, environmental or building requirements
Additional sector permits
Amendments after the original company structure has already been prepared

This is why a price should follow the scope rather than the other way around.

A very low headline price can be difficult to compare if one quotation includes only incorporation while another includes OSS, NIB, tax registration and additional licensing.

What Should a Business Setup Scope Include?

Before comparing quotations, ask for the proposed scope in writing.

A useful scope review should identify:

Company structure — PT PMDN or PT PMA
Shareholders and management — who will own and manage the company
KBLI activities — what the business will actually do
Corporate documents — which establishment documents are included
AHU processing — what Ministry/AHU work is included
OSS and NIB — what business-licensing work is included
Additional licenses — which items are excluded or require separate work
Business location — whether address or premises requirements create additional cost
Capital requirements — clearly separated from fees
Post-registration work — tax, accounting, LKPM or other compliance if required

The goal is not to find the lowest single number. It is to understand what must be paid to service providers, what must be paid to authorities, what must be invested into the company and what may still be required before operations can begin.

Conclusion

The cost of setting up a business in Indonesia depends first on what company you are establishing and what business you will operate.

For a PT PMDN, the budget typically centers on corporate establishment, notarial/professional work, OSS licensing and the company’s chosen capital structure. For a PT PMA, the same setup layers apply, but they sit alongside the separate IDR 2.5 billion minimum paid-up-capital requirement and the broader investment-value rules.

The safest way to compare costs is to separate fees, licenses, premises and capital before comparing quotations.

The practical rule is: define the structure and KBLI first, confirm the licensing scope second, separate capital from fees, and only then compare the total setup budget.

Define the Setup Scope Before Comparing Costs

If you are planning a business in Bali or elsewhere in Indonesia, prepare the intended shareholders, company structure, KBLI activities, business locations and licensing requirements before comparing setup costs.

Discuss the scope with Bali Legal ID to identify whether your setup requires PT PMDN Setup, PT PMA Setup, NIB OSS RBA Registration or a combination of business-setup and licensing work.

FAQ – Cost of Setting Up a Business in Indonesia

How much does it cost to set up a business in Indonesia?

There is no single universal total. The cost depends on the company structure, notarial and professional scope, KBLI and risk-based licensing, business location and any capital or investment requirements. Official registration charges are only one part of the total budget.

Are PT PMA capital requirements part of the setup fee?

No. The IDR 2.5 billion minimum placed or paid-up capital is company capital, not a consultant or government service fee. PT PMA also has a separate investment-value framework.

Is PT PMDN cheaper to establish than PT PMA?

The structures have different regulatory requirements, so PT PMA generally has additional foreign-investment and capital considerations. However, the actual professional and licensing cost still depends on the company’s activities, locations and service scope.

How much are the official AHU fees for establishing a PT?

The current AHU FAQ lists PNBP voucher charges of IDR 300,000, IDR 600,000 or IDR 1,100,000 depending on the capital band stated in its guidance. These are voucher charges and should not be confused with the full cost of incorporation.

Does every business need additional licenses after obtaining an NIB?

Not every business has the same licensing output. OSS uses risk-based licensing, and the required permits or obligations depend on the business activity and risk level.

What should I compare between two business-setup quotations?

Compare the company structure, notarial and AHU scope, OSS/NIB work, number of KBLI activities and locations, additional licenses, business-address assumptions, exclusions, and whether regulatory capital has been clearly separated from professional fees.