IMEI Registration in Bali & Indonesia for Tourists (2026)

Published October 3, 2026Updated October 25, 2026

📖 25 min read · By the Balitel team, Kuta, Bali · Reviewed by Sheila Theodora

The 30-Second Answer

Staying in Bali, or anywhere in Indonesia, for 90 days or less? You do not need to go to customs. The shop that sells you a local Indonesian SIM or eSIM registers your phone's IMEI for you. It is free and needs your passport.

A Telkomsel tourist registration lasts as long as your plan: 30, 60 or 90 days. It cannot be extended, and Telkomsel allows it only twice in any 12 months for the same phone and the same passport.

Staying longer than 90 days? Two 90-day plans back to back cover up to 180 days, with no customs visit. To make any Indonesian SIM work in your phone, register it with Indonesian customs (Bea Cukai) at the airport on the day you land. The first USD 500 of the phone's value is duty-free there, and customs stops accepting registrations 60 days after you arrive.

Using a travel eSIM such as Airalo, or your home SIM on roaming? No IMEI registration at all.

Get a Telkomsel eSIM with IMEI registration included

Who wrote this

Balitel is an authorized Telkomsel retailer in Kuta, Bali, registered as Telkomsel outlet 3301071729. We register tourists' phones with the Indonesian government every day, so this guide mixes the official rules with what we see at our counter. We are part of Diamond Handphone, trading in Bali since 1998. The official rules below were checked against Bea Cukai's own pages on 2 October 2026.

Which IMEI Rule Applies to You?

It depends on two things: how long you stay in Indonesia, and what kind of SIM you use. Find your row.

Your situation	What you need to do
Travel eSIM (Airalo, Holafly, Saily) or your home SIM on roaming	Nothing. Roaming phones are exempt.
Local Indonesian SIM or eSIM, staying up to 30 days	The seller registers your phone. Free, passport needed. Lasts 30 days.
Local Indonesian line, staying 31 to 90 days	Buy a 60-day or 90-day plan from the start. One registration covers the whole stay.
Staying 91 to 180 days	Two 90-day plans, one after the other. This uses both of your tourist registrations. No customs visit.
Staying longer than 180 days, or you want any Indonesian SIM to work	Register with Bea Cukai at the airport when you land. Deadline: 60 days after arrival.
Already used two tourist registrations in the last 12 months	Register with Bea Cukai at the airport. The tourist route allows two registrations in any 12 months.
Phone bought from an official shop in Indonesia	Nothing. It is already registered.

What Is IMEI Registration in Indonesia?

The IMEI is your phone's serial number. It is usually 15 digits long, and every phone has one. Three ways to find yours:

Any phone: open the phone app and dial *#06#.
iPhone: Settings → General → About, then scroll down to IMEI.
Android: Settings → About phone. On some phones it sits under Status.

Sending your IMEI for a tourist registration? Do not use the *#06# screen. Use the method in Two IMEIs on one phone below.

Since 18 April 2020, Indonesia only lets a phone use an Indonesian SIM card if its IMEI is in a government database. The aim is to stop smuggled and stolen phones. A phone bought abroad is not in that database until someone registers it.

The rule is about your phone, not your phone number. That is why swapping to a different Indonesian SIM card does not get around it.

An Indonesian eSIM counts too. It is an Indonesian SIM in digital form, so the same rule applies.

New to Indonesia's phone networks? Who runs them, who owns Telkomsel, and the other rules visitors meet.

Why Indonesia Blocks Phones: The Black-Market Story

Indonesia blocks unregistered phones to stop black-market phones that skip import tax. For years, phones bought abroad, iPhones especially, were carried into Indonesia without paying tax and sold cheaper than official ones. Indonesians call them "BM" phones, short for black market.

When three ministries (communications, industry and trade) signed the rule in October 2019, the government estimated that 9 to 10 million illegal phones entered Indonesia every year. It put the lost tax at about Rp2.81 trillion a year.

The fix was a whitelist, switched on on 18 April 2020. A phone can use an Indonesian SIM only if its IMEI is on the government list. A phone bought abroad is not on that list until someone registers it. That is why your phone needs registering, even though you did nothing wrong.

The Official Rule From Bea Cukai

Indonesian customs (Bea Cukai) gives foreign visitors two routes, split at 90 days. This is written on the website of Bea Cukai Ngurah Rai, the customs office at Bali's airport.

Length of stay	Where the phone is registered
Up to 90 days	At a mobile operator's outlet. In practice, the shop or authorized retailer that sells you the SIM does it.
More than 90 days	With Bea Cukai: at the airport counter, on the Bea Cukai website, or in the Mobile Bea Cukai app. Maximum 2 devices per traveller.
Any length, foreign SIM on roaming	No registration needed.

The rule covers phones, handheld computers and tablets that take a SIM card or eSIM. A Wi-Fi-only tablet or a laptop is not included.

Customs registration is what lets your phone use any Indonesian SIM, from any shop. If you buy from a seller like Balitel, the seller registers your phone through Telkomsel instead, so you do not register separately. With two tourist registrations in any 12 months, two 90-day plans can cover up to 180 days.

Two more dates matter on the customs route. The USD 500 duty-free allowance only applies if you register inside the customs area at the airport. And a customs office will register your phone for up to 60 days after you arrive, not later.

👉 Read the rules on the Bea Cukai Ngurah Rai website (in Indonesian)

The Two-Registration Limit Most Guides Miss

A tourist IMEI registration through Telkomsel lasts as long as your plan, cannot be extended, and can be done only twice in any 12 months for the same phone and the same passport.

Telkomsel tourist plan	Your IMEI registration lasts
30-day plan	30 days
60-day plan	60 days
90-day plan	90 days, the legal maximum for a tourist

The 12 months roll. They are not a calendar year: a registration made in December still counts until the next December.

The limit counts both the phone and the passport. If your passport has used its two registrations, a different phone will not get a third. If your phone has used two, it will not get a third under someone else's passport either.

Age makes no difference. A child's passport follows the same rule as an adult's.

What this means for your trip

Staying six weeks on a 30-day plan? At day 30 you need a new eSIM, and that uses your second registration in 12 months. A 60-day plan covers the same six weeks with one registration.
Staying up to 180 days? Two 90-day plans back to back cover it, with no customs visit. The second plan is a new eSIM with a new number.
Coming back within 12 months? Count the tourist registrations you have used in the last 12 months. Two use up your limit.
Need a third registration within 12 months? Register the phone with Bea Cukai at the airport when you land, or use a cheap Indonesian phone (see Cheap phone or pay the duty?).

Where this rule comes from. This is Telkomsel's rule for tourist lines, as Telkomsel explained it to us as a reseller in 2026. We could not find it on a government web page. We include it because it is the rule we work with every time we register a phone, and it decides which plan you should buy.

Staying in Indonesia Longer Than 90 Days

You have two options.

Up to 180 days, with a tourist line: use your two tourist registrations back to back, for example two 90-day plans. With Balitel we register your phone through Telkomsel each time, so you never visit customs. The second plan is a new eSIM with a new number. This only works if you have not used a tourist registration in the last 12 months.
Longer than 180 days, or you want any Indonesian SIM to work: register your phone with Bea Cukai at the airport on the day you land. It is the cheapest way to register with customs, and the customs route closes 60 days after arrival. Once registered this way, your phone works with any Indonesian SIM, permanently. This is also the route for expats arriving on a KITAS.

Expensive phone? A cheap Indonesian phone used as a hotspot can cost less than the duty. See the comparison.

How to register at Bali airport (Ngurah Rai)

Up to 3 days before you land, fill in the All Indonesia arrival card. In the customs part, declare your phone and its IMEI. You get a QR code. Save it offline.
After baggage claim, before you leave the arrivals hall, go to the Bea Cukai IMEI counter.
Show the QR code, your passport, your boarding pass and the phone itself. Bring the purchase receipt if you have it. Without one, the officer estimates the value from the model.
The officer sets the phone's value and tells you what duty is due, if any. You pay at the counter.
Within 2 × 24 hours, your phone can use any Indonesian SIM card.

The All Indonesia form alone does not register your phone. You still have to visit the counter.

Buying your SIM card at the airport too? Here is every price at the 3 SIM card kiosks in the arrivals hall.

Already left the airport?

You can still register at a Bea Cukai office within 60 days of arrival. In Bali that is the Ngurah Rai customs office on Jl. Airport Ngurah Rai in Tuban. Bring your passport (photo page and arrival stamp), ticket, boarding pass, the phone, and your receipt if you have one. You lose the USD 500 allowance, so duty is charged on the full value.

Typed the wrong IMEI at customs?

On the customs route, ask the customs office to correct the registration within 30 days of its approval. Bea Cukai answers within 2 × 24 hours.

The day 61 to day 90 trap

On a 90-day tourist line, your phone still works between day 61 and day 90. But customs will no longer register it. If you might stay longer than two tourist plans cover, or you want any Indonesian SIM to work in your phone, decide by day 60.

What IMEI Registration Costs

The registration itself is free. What you may pay is import duty, only on the customs route, and only on a phone worth more than USD 500.

Route	What you pay
Tourist registration by the SIM seller	Nothing extra. Balitel includes it in every plan.
Bea Cukai, at the airport on arrival	The first USD 500 of the phone's value is duty-free. Duty on the rest.
Bea Cukai office, after leaving the airport	Duty on the full value. No allowance.

Every Bea Cukai page lists 10% import duty and 11% VAT. Bea Cukai Ngurah Rai, the office at Bali's airport, also lists income tax: 10% if you hold an Indonesian tax number (NPWP), 20% if you do not. Bea Cukai's national IMEI FAQ says travellers' phones are exempt from that income tax. So expect to pay between about 22% and 44% of the part above USD 500. The officer at the counter decides.

Some agencies quote a flat 40%, or 30% with a KITAS. That is the top of this range, worked out with income tax included.

Example: a phone worth USD 1,000

	At the airport on arrival	Later, at a customs office
Duty-free part	USD 500	USD 0
Value that is taxed	USD 500	USD 1,000
Import duty (10%)	USD 50	USD 100
VAT (11%)	USD 60.50	USD 121
Income tax (0% or 20%)	USD 0 to 110	USD 0 to 220
Total to pay	about USD 110 to 220	about USD 221 to 441

VAT and income tax are charged on the taxed value plus the import duty. The officer decides the phone's value, not you, and whether income tax applies. Budget for the higher figure.

Do not pay an "IMEI unlock" service

Bea Cukai warns about people on social media selling IMEI "unlocks". Official registration is free and done by customs or by an authorized SIM seller. A paid unlock from a stranger is not a registration.

Long Stay: Buy a Cheap Indonesian Phone or Pay the Duty?

If your phone is worth more than about USD 1,000, a cheap Indonesian phone used as a hotspot costs less than the import duty. If it is worth less than about USD 750, paying the duty costs less. In between, it depends on whether income tax is charged. This matters once you stay longer than two tourist plans cover, or have used both tourist registrations.

You have two permanent fixes:

Buy the cheapest Indonesian phone and use it as a hotspot. New phones from official shops in Indonesia start at about Rp2,000,000. They are already registered, so any Indonesian SIM works in them, with no time limit. Put the SIM in it, switch on its hotspot, and connect your own phone to it.
Pay the import duty on your own phone. Register it with Bea Cukai at the airport on the day you land. After that, your own phone works with any Indonesian SIM.

How the duty is worked out

The first USD 500 of your phone's value is duty-free, if you register at the airport on arrival.
On the rest, you pay 10% import duty.
Then 11% VAT and 0% to 20% income tax, charged on that part plus the duty.
Total: about 22% to 44% of the part above USD 500.

Your phone's value	Duty at the airport	Cheaper fix
USD 700	USD 44 to 88 (about Rp0.8 to 1.6 million)	Pay the duty
USD 1,000	USD 110 to 220 (about Rp2.0 to 4.0 million)	Indonesian phone, or about the same
USD 1,500	USD 221 to 441 (about Rp4.0 to 7.9 million)	Indonesian phone

Rupiah figures use Rp18,000 per US dollar, rounded. Customs uses its own weekly rate, and the officer sets the phone's value.

Example: a USD 1,500 phone costs about Rp4.0 to 7.9 million in duty. A Rp2 million Indonesian phone saves you about Rp2.0 to 5.9 million, or 50% to 75%.

Registering later at a customs office, after leaving the airport? There is no USD 500 allowance, so even a USD 1,000 phone costs about USD 221 to 441 (Rp4.0 to 7.9 million). Then the cheap Indonesian phone wins easily.

Before you buy a cheap phone: many phones at this price take a physical SIM card only, not an eSIM, so check before you buy. Sign-up codes for Gojek, Grab and Shopee arrive on the phone that holds the SIM. And you carry and charge two phones.

What Happens When Your IMEI Registration Ends

Your Indonesian line loses signal. Everything else on your phone keeps working.

After the registration ends	Still works?
Your Indonesian SIM or eSIM (calls, texts, data)	❌ No
A different Indonesian SIM card	❌ No. The block is on the phone.
Your home SIM on roaming	✅ Yes. Roaming is exempt.
Wi-Fi, including WhatsApp over Wi-Fi	✅ Yes

If you are still in Indonesia when it ends, your options are a new tourist registration (if you have used fewer than two in the last 12 months), a travel eSIM on roaming, or a phone bought in Indonesia.

Data-Only Travel eSIM vs Local eSIM: Pros and Cons

Travel eSIMs such as Airalo, Holafly and Saily connect as foreign roaming lines, and Bea Cukai exempts roaming phones. So there is no IMEI step and no passport form.

The trade-off is the phone number. A travel eSIM gives you data only, with no Indonesian +62 number. Without one, Gojek, Grab and Shopee sign-up codes may not arrive, you cannot top up GoPay or OVO, QRIS payments are hard, and drivers have to make an international call to reach you.

	Data-only travel eSIM	Local Telkomsel eSIM
Examples	Airalo, Holafly, Saily	Balitel
Passport and IMEI registration	Not needed	Needed. The seller does it.
Indonesian +62 number	❌ No	✅ Yes
Gojek, Grab and Shopee sign-up codes	Often do not arrive	✅ Arrive
GoPay, OVO and DANA top-ups	❌ No	✅ Yes
Drivers calling you	International call	Local call
Switch on before you fly	Usually yes	No. On your arrival day.
Uses one of your two registrations	No	Yes
Price per GB	Often higher	Usually lower
Best for	A few days, data only	Using Indonesian apps

If you only need data for a few days, a travel eSIM is simpler. We sell local lines, and we would still rather tell you that.

Can I Install a Telkomsel eSIM in My Home Country?

Yes. Install it at home before you fly. Balitel activates it on your arrival day, not before.

Activation means two things: we register your phone's IMEI with Telkomsel, then switch your line on. We do both on the day you arrive in Indonesia, even while you are still on the plane, so the line works when you land.

We never activate a tourist line before your arrival day. It is not allowed, and it can get your phone blocked.

Your 30, 60 or 90 days start when we switch the line on, not when you buy. So buying early wastes nothing. Download Gojek, Grab and Shopee at home, then sign up with your new +62 number when you land.

More detail: Can you activate a Telkomsel eSIM outside Indonesia?

Eight IMEI Myths, Corrected

What you may read	What is true
"Every tourist must register at customs."	No. The SIM seller registers your phone. Customs is for stays longer than two tourist plans cover, or to make any Indonesian SIM work in your phone.
"IMEI registration costs money."	It is free. Duty applies only on the customs route, above USD 500.
"The tax is always 40%, or 30% with a KITAS."	That is the top of the range. Expect about 22% to 44% of the value above USD 500.
"Every tourist gets 90 days."	90 days is the maximum. A Telkomsel tourist registration lasts as long as your plan.
"You can renew every month for as long as you like."	Telkomsel allows two tourist registrations in any 12 months, per phone and per passport.
"A new SIM card fixes a blocked phone."	The block is on the phone's IMEI. A new SIM does not change it.
"A wrong IMEI can be fixed later."	Not on a tourist line. The registration is used up and still counts as one of your two. The one exception: if you sent your phone's other IMEI, move the eSIM to it.
"Travel eSIMs need IMEI registration too."	Roaming lines are exempt.

Two IMEIs on One Phone

Most recent phones have two IMEIs, one for each SIM slot. Indonesia registers the IMEI that your Indonesian line uses.

*#06# shows both IMEIs, but not which one your Indonesian line uses. To find the right one:

Install the eSIM and switch the line on.
Open Settings → General → About on iPhone, or Settings → About phone on Android.
Find the block where the carrier reads Telkomsel.
Send a screenshot of the IMEI in that block.

A screenshot avoids typing mistakes. On a tourist line, a mistyped IMEI or another phone's IMEI cannot be corrected.

On an iPhone, an eSIM can land on either slot, depending on the order you install your eSIMs. If your Telkomsel eSIM ends up on the IMEI that was not registered, it will not connect. Because both IMEIs belong to the same phone, this one can be fixed: move the eSIM to the registered IMEI. Our guide shows how: How to switch a Telkomsel eSIM between IMEI1 and IMEI2 on iPhone.

How to Check if Your IMEI Is Registered

For a customs registration, use the Bea Cukai checker at beacukai.go.id/cek-imei. A registered phone shows "Data IMEI telah terkirim ke Database Kemenkominfo", which means the IMEI has been sent to the communications ministry's database.

If the checker shows that and your phone still has no signal, Bea Cukai suggests trying a different Indonesian SIM card first. If that fails, contact the communications ministry's call centre on 159.

A tourist registration done by a Telkomsel seller may not show in the customs checker. The simple test is whether your Indonesian line has signal. When we register your phone, we confirm on WhatsApp.

Registered but Still No Signal?

Most "IMEI problems" after registration are phone settings, not the registration. Check these in order.

Pick the right data line. Go to Settings → Mobile Data (Cellular on iPhone) and choose your Telkomsel line for mobile data.
Restart the phone, or switch airplane mode on and off. This makes the phone check the network again.
Check the eSIM is on the registered IMEI. On dual-SIM phones the line can land on the other slot. How to move it on iPhone.
Check the phone is not carrier-locked. A phone locked to your home carrier rejects other networks' SIMs, registered or not.
Give a customs registration time. Bea Cukai says up to 2 × 24 hours after you pay.
Check the IMEI you sent. Compare it with the IMEI in the block where the carrier reads Telkomsel. If you sent your phone's other IMEI, move the eSIM to it (step 3). If a digit is wrong, or it is another phone's IMEI, it cannot be corrected: you need a new eSIM, and the registration still counts as one of your two.

Still stuck with a Balitel eSIM? Message us on WhatsApp and a person in Bali will check it with you. Full fix guide: Telkomsel eSIM not working.

How Balitel Registers Your Phone

Balitel registers your phone's IMEI and your passport with Telkomsel on your arrival day, so your Indonesian line works when you land. It is included in every plan.

Buy an eSIM any time before your trip, or after you land.
Fill in our short form: your passport photo page, a selfie holding your passport, and your arrival date.
Install the eSIM from the QR code we send by WhatsApp, with email as a backup.
Send us the IMEI your Telkomsel line uses: a screenshot from the block where the carrier reads Telkomsel (see Two IMEIs on one phone). A wrong IMEI cannot be corrected: you would need to buy a new eSIM, and the wrong registration still uses up one of your two. Changed phones? Tell us before your arrival date and we register the new phone on the same eSIM.
On your arrival day, even before your plane lands, we register your phone through Telkomsel's reseller system and switch your line on. It usually takes about 10 minutes, between 08:00 and 02:00 Bali time.
We delete your passport details 30 days after your line is activated.

Why a passport at all? Indonesian law registers every mobile number against an identity document, and a tourist's document is the passport. Why you need a passport to buy a SIM or eSIM in Bali.

Pick the plan that matches your stay

Your stay	Plan
Up to 30 days	30-day Telkomsel eSIM
31 to 60 days	60-day Telkomsel eSIM, 150 GB
61 to 90 days	90-day Telkomsel eSIM, 200 GB
91 to 180 days	Two 90-day plans, one after the other
More than 180 days	Register with Bea Cukai at the airport, or use a cheap Indonesian phone as a hotspot (compare)

IMEI registration, done for you

Official Telkomsel line with a real +62 number. Government IMEI registration included. No queue at customs. Passport details deleted 30 days after activation. A real person on WhatsApp in Bali from 08:00 to 02:00.

See the plans

Frequently Asked Questions

Do tourists need IMEI registration in Indonesia?

Only if they use a local Indonesian SIM or eSIM. Tourists staying up to 90 days do not go to customs: the shop or authorized retailer that sells the local SIM registers the phone, free, using the passport. Tourists using a travel eSIM or their home SIM on roaming need no registration. For stays longer than 90 days, two tourist registrations back to back cover up to 180 days. Registering with Bea Cukai, Indonesian customs, within 60 days of arrival makes any Indonesian SIM work in the phone.

Do I need IMEI registration in Bali?

Bali follows the same national rule as the rest of Indonesia. Staying up to 90 days on a local SIM or eSIM: the seller registers your phone, free, with your passport. Staying longer: two 90-day plans back to back cover up to 180 days, or register at the Bea Cukai counter at Ngurah Rai airport when you land so any Indonesian SIM works. Using a travel eSIM or your home SIM on roaming: no registration.

Can I use my phone in Indonesia without IMEI registration?

Yes, in three ways: on Wi-Fi, with your home SIM on roaming, or with a travel eSIM such as Airalo. IMEI registration is only needed when you put an Indonesian SIM or eSIM in the phone.

Why does Indonesia block foreign phones?

To stop black-market phones that skip import tax. When three ministries signed the rule in October 2019, the government estimated 9 to 10 million illegal phones entered Indonesia every year, costing about Rp2.81 trillion in lost tax a year. Since 18 April 2020, a phone can only use an Indonesian SIM if its IMEI is on the government list. A phone bought abroad is not on that list until it is registered.

How long does a tourist IMEI registration last in Indonesia?

A Telkomsel tourist registration lasts as long as the plan: 30, 60 or 90 days. 90 days is the legal maximum for a tourist line. The registration cannot be extended. Staying longer on a 30-day plan means buying a new eSIM, which uses a new registration.

How many times can I register my phone as a tourist?

Twice in any 12 months. Telkomsel allows two tourist IMEI registrations in any 12 months for the same phone and the same passport. The 12 months roll; they are not a calendar year. Age makes no difference: a child's passport follows the same rule. After that, the phone needs registration with Bea Cukai at the airport on arrival, which is free up to USD 500 of phone value and charges duty on the rest.

Is IMEI registration free in Indonesia?

Yes. The registration itself is free. Through Bea Cukai, a phone registered at the airport on arrival gets USD 500 of its value duty-free. On the rest you pay 10% import duty and 11% VAT, plus income tax of up to 20% if the officer applies it: about 22% to 44% of the part above USD 500. A phone registered later at a customs office gets no allowance.

Is it cheaper to buy an Indonesian phone than to pay import duty?

It depends on your phone's value. At the airport on arrival, the first USD 500 is duty-free and the rest costs about 22% to 44% in duty and taxes. The cheapest new Indonesian phones cost about Rp2,000,000 and work with any Indonesian SIM. So for a phone worth more than about USD 1,000, a cheap Indonesian phone used as a hotspot costs less. For a phone worth less than about USD 750, paying the duty costs less. In between, it depends on whether income tax is charged.

What if I stay in Indonesia longer than 90 days?

You have two options. On a Telkomsel tourist line, use your two tourist registrations back to back: two 90-day plans cover up to 180 days, with no customs visit. The second plan is a new eSIM with a new number. For longer stays, or to use any Indonesian SIM, register the phone with Bea Cukai. The cheapest way is the IMEI counter at the airport on the day you land, after declaring the phone on the All Indonesia arrival card. Customs offices accept registrations for up to 60 days after arrival. After that, the phone can use any Indonesian SIM permanently.

Do eSIMs need IMEI registration in Indonesia?

A local Indonesian eSIM does. It is an Indonesian SIM in digital form, so the phone's IMEI must be registered, which the seller does for stays up to 90 days. A travel eSIM such as Airalo, Holafly or Saily does not, because it connects as a foreign roaming line and Bea Cukai exempts roaming phones. The trade-off is that they have no Indonesian +62 number, which Gojek, Grab and Shopee sign-up codes, GoPay and OVO top-ups, QRIS payments and calls from drivers rely on.

What happens when my IMEI registration ends?

The Indonesian SIM or eSIM loses signal for calls, texts and data. A different Indonesian SIM does not help, because the block is on the phone's IMEI. The home SIM on roaming and Wi-Fi keep working.

My phone has two IMEIs. Which one is registered?

The one your Indonesian line uses. *#06# shows both numbers but not which one the line is on. Install the eSIM, switch the line on, then read the IMEI in the block where the carrier reads Telkomsel (Settings → General → About on iPhone, or Settings → About phone on Android). On an iPhone, an eSIM can land on either IMEI depending on installation order, and a Telkomsel eSIM on the unregistered IMEI will not connect until it is moved to the registered one.

Why do I need my passport for IMEI registration?

Indonesian law registers every mobile number against an identity document, and for a tourist that document is the passport. The IMEI registration is tied to the same passport. Balitel deletes passport details 30 days after the line is activated.

Can I install a Telkomsel eSIM in my home country?

Yes. Install the eSIM at home before you fly. Balitel activates it on your arrival day in Indonesia, even before your plane lands: we register your phone's IMEI with Telkomsel and switch the line on. We never activate a tourist line before the arrival day, because it is not allowed and can get the phone blocked. Your 30, 60 or 90 days start at activation, not at purchase.

Can I register my IMEI before I arrive in Indonesia?

Partly. With Balitel, you install the eSIM and send your passport, a selfie holding it, the IMEI your Telkomsel line uses and your arrival date before you fly, and the registration is done on your arrival day, even before the plane lands. On the customs route, you declare the phone on the All Indonesia arrival card up to 3 days before arrival, then finish at the Bea Cukai counter at the airport.

I changed phones after buying my eSIM. Do I need a new one?

Not if you tell the seller in time. With Balitel, tell us before your arrival date and we register the new phone on the same eSIM, because the registration only happens on your arrival day. Once the line has been registered to a phone, it cannot be moved to another one, and a different phone would need a new eSIM.

Does my iPad or tablet need IMEI registration?

Only if it takes a SIM card or eSIM and you use an Indonesian line in it. The rule covers phones, handheld computers and tablets with mobile connectivity. Wi-Fi-only tablets and laptops are not included. On the customs route, each traveller can register up to 2 devices.

I registered my phone at customs on an earlier trip. Do I need to do it again?

No. A customs registration stays with the phone's IMEI, so the phone keeps working with Indonesian SIM cards on later trips.

What if I gave the wrong IMEI?

It depends on the route and the mistake. If you sent your phone's other IMEI, IMEI1 instead of IMEI2 or the reverse, move the eSIM to the registered IMEI and it will connect. On a tourist line, any other wrong IMEI, a mistyped number or another phone's IMEI, cannot be corrected: the registration is used up and still counts as one of your two registrations in 12 months. The fix is a new eSIM, bought again and registered to the right IMEI. So send a screenshot of the IMEI in the block where the carrier reads Telkomsel, not a typed number and not the *#06# screen. On the customs route, ask the customs office to correct it within 30 days of the registration being approved. Bea Cukai answers within 2 × 24 hours.

Do I need to register a phone I bought in Indonesia?

No. A phone sold by an official shop in Indonesia is already registered. Buying an iPhone in Bali: IMEI rules and official distributors.

The Short Version

Staying 90 days or less on a local Indonesian line? The seller registers your phone, free, with your passport. With Telkomsel it lasts as long as your plan and can be done twice in any 12 months, so if you are staying more than a month, buy the 60-day or 90-day plan from the start.

Staying up to 180 days? Two 90-day plans back to back cover it. Staying longer, already used two tourist registrations in the last 12 months, or want any Indonesian SIM to work? Register at the Bea Cukai counter at the airport when you land, before day 60 at the latest, or use a cheap Indonesian phone as a hotspot if your own phone is worth more than about USD 1,000. Using a travel eSIM on roaming? You can skip all of this.