PT PMA Cost in Indonesia: Setup Fees, Capital and First-Year Budget

Answer first: there is no single “PT PMA price.” For most foreign-owned limited liability companies, the current general legal framework separates at least three different numbers: minimum issued/paid-up capital of IDR 2.5 billion per company; a planned investment value of more than IDR 10 billion for the relevant business classification and project location, subject to sector-specific calculation rules; and the actual third-party cost of incorporation, licensing, premises and ongoing compliance. Only the third category is a service or operating expense. Capital belongs to the company and the planned investment is a regulatory business plan, not a fee paid to an adviser or to the government.

That distinction is the starting point for a credible budget. A low setup quote may exclude notarial work, sector licences, office requirements, tax and accounting, or immigration. A high quote may bundle items your business does not need. The right comparison is therefore not “which number is cheapest?” but “which legal, licensing and operational assumptions are included?”

This guide reflects the framework in force on 22 September 2026, including Government Regulation No. 28 of 2025 and Minister of Investment/BKPM Regulation No. 5 of 2025. Sector rules, foreign-ownership limits and the facts of a specific project can change the result, so the figures below should be tested against the selected KBLI codes before filing.

The three numbers that people often confuse

Number	What it means	Is it a fee?
IDR 2.5 billion minimum issued/paid-up capital	The general minimum capital threshold for a PT PMA, per limited liability company, unless another regulation requires more.	No. It is company capital.
More than IDR 10 billion planned investment	The general minimum investment plan, usually calculated per five-digit KBLI and project location, excluding land and buildings unless an exception applies.	No. It is a regulated investment plan.
Setup and first-year operating costs	Notary, filings, licences, address, advisers, accounting, tax, payroll, immigration and other implementation expenses.	Yes. These are actual expenses or professional charges.

 

The distinction matters because the same rupiah cannot automatically be counted in every bucket. Paid-up capital forms part of the company’s funding. It can support genuine business expenditure, but it should not be advertised as money that can be immediately withdrawn for any purpose. Article 27 of BKPM Regulation 5/2025 restricts moving the capital out of the company account for at least 12 months, while expressly allowing its use for asset purchases, building development and company operations. The OSS application uses a self-declaration commitment, and a breach can trigger administrative sanctions.

The planned investment figure is also not an invoice due on incorporation day. It is the scale of investment the company represents in its licensing data and later reports through its compliance framework. The amount and timing of realisation should be credible for the business model and consistent with accounting records, bank activity, assets and LKPM reporting.

1. Paid-up capital: IDR 2.5 billion is not a registration charge

Article 26(10) of BKPM Regulation 5/2025 sets the general minimum issued/paid-up capital for a foreign-investment limited liability company at IDR 2.5 billion per PT, unless a different rule applies. This is materially different from paying IDR 2.5 billion to a notary, consultant or ministry. The shareholders subscribe for shares and the company receives capital that supports its business.

A practical capital plan should answer four questions before incorporation:

• Which shareholder contributes what amount and in which currency?
• Will the contribution be cash, non-cash assets or a combination, and what valuation evidence is required?
• When will funds be placed into the company account and how will the company document their use?
• Does a sector-specific rule, licence, bank requirement or immigration objective require a higher amount?

Do not treat the minimum as a disposable balance. The company should preserve a clean audit trail from shareholder contribution to business expenditure. Transfers to founders, unexplained withdrawals or circular funding can create corporate, tax, licensing and due-diligence problems even when the incorporation certificate has already been issued.

2. Planned investment: usually more than IDR 10 billion

Under Article 26(2), the general rule for a PT PMA is a total planned investment of more than IDR 10 billion, outside land and buildings, per five-digit KBLI business line and per project location. That formula is important: adding business activities or locations can multiply the planning requirement. It should therefore be designed from the actual revenue model, not by adding every remotely relevant KBLI code.

The regulation contains calculation exceptions. Wholesale trade is measured by the first four KBLI digits; food and beverage service uses the first two digits per location point; construction uses the first four digits; and industrial activities may be assessed by the product range within one production line. Property, accommodation, agriculture, plantation, livestock and aquaculture also have special treatment for whether land and buildings are included. A Special Economic Zone or regulated sector may have another rule.

This is why “one PT PMA always costs IDR 10 billion” is inaccurate. The law speaks to an investment threshold and calculation method, not a standard cash price. A correct budget begins with ownership eligibility, KBLI mapping, location and risk level; only then can the investment plan be calculated.

3. Incorporation and professional fees

The third bucket is the amount actually paid to establish and operationalise the company. It is variable because providers use different scopes. Public market quotations can look inexpensive when they cover only deed and company registration, or expensive when they include office address, sector licensing, tax registration, post-incorporation compliance and immigration. These quotations are commercial offers, not statutory tariffs.

Cost component	What a complete quote should state	Common exclusion risk
Pre-incorporation legal review	Foreign-ownership eligibility, KBLI mapping, shareholder/director structure and name/address checks.	Quote assumes your activity is fully open and low risk.
Notarial and AHU work	Deed, articles of association, execution formalities and Ministry of Law legal-entity process.	Translation, powers of attorney or amendments billed separately.
OSS and NIB	Creation and verification of the correct business activities and licensing profile.	Only NIB issuance; no follow-up for licences or commitments.
Sector and operational licences	Risk-based licence, standard certificate, PB UMKU or regulator-specific approval where applicable.	Complex licences expressly excluded.
Business address	Lease, virtual office eligibility, zoning/building documents and correspondence handling.	Headline price excludes annual address cost.
Tax and accounting	NPWP activation, bookkeeping setup, recurring filings and finance controls.	Only registration; no monthly or annual compliance.
Immigration	Investor KITAS eligibility review and application scope for qualifying shareholders/directors.	Visa fee excludes company readiness or related filings.

 

Ask whether government charges and third-party disbursements are included, capped or billed at cost. Also ask which assumptions would trigger a change order. A good engagement letter identifies the deliverables, dependencies, client documents, excluded licences and the point at which work is considered complete.

For an integrated review of incorporation and residence planning, see MLS Investor KITAS and PT PMA Indonesia services. Coordinating the corporate and immigration workstreams helps prevent a company structure that is legally incorporated but unsuitable for the founder’s intended role or stay in Indonesia.

4. Office and operational readiness

A registered address is not just a postal detail. The permitted use of a virtual office, co-working address, serviced office, shop, warehouse or industrial location depends on the business activity and local or sector requirements. Physical activities may require building, environmental, location or technical evidence that cannot be satisfied by a virtual office package.

Budget separately for lease deposits, fit-out, utilities, internet, local permits, signage, warehousing, equipment and insurance. These costs often exceed incorporation fees but are omitted from “company setup” packages. They also affect the project location recorded in OSS and the investment-realisation data later reported through LKPM.

5. Licensing beyond the NIB

The NIB is foundational, but it is not a universal licence to begin every commercial activity. PP 28/2025 retains risk-based licensing: the required business licence depends on the risk classification and the norms, standards, procedures and criteria for the selected activity. Medium- and high-risk activities may need verified standard certificates, licences or additional approvals before commercial operation.

Import, distribution, food, cosmetics, health products, construction, education, tourism, financial technology and other regulated fields may require sector-specific approvals. A budget should distinguish:

• corporate establishment and legal-entity status;
• NIB and base OSS profile;
• risk-based business licence or standard certificate;
• licences supporting the main activity (PB UMKU);
• product, professional, facility or location approvals; and
• renewal, reporting, inspection and audit obligations.

If a proposal promises a “fully licensed PT PMA” without naming the KBLI, risk level and regulator, it is not yet specific enough to compare.

6. Investor KITAS is a separate budget and eligibility analysis

A PT PMA does not automatically give every foreign shareholder an Investor KITAS. Immigration eligibility, shareholding, corporate position, permitted activities and company documentation must be reviewed separately. The current immigration product commonly used by qualifying investors is the E28A limited-stay visa/permit route, but the permitted activities follow the immigration conditions; it should not be marketed as blanket permission for any operational work.

Include immigration only after the company structure is settled. The budget may cover government immigration charges, application assistance, corporate-document preparation, stay-permit processing and, where relevant, dependent arrangements. Do not compare an immigration-only price with a package that also repairs company documents, ownership or licensing data.

The official E28A information page should be checked at the time of application because immigration nomenclature, documentary requirements and fees can change. Avoid budgeting on an old “investor KITAS” blog that uses superseded visa codes.

7. First-year compliance costs

The cost of owning a PT PMA begins after incorporation. A dormant-looking company can still have tax, corporate and investment-reporting obligations. Your first-year budget should normally consider:

• monthly bookkeeping, bank reconciliation and supporting documents;
• tax registrations, periodic returns and annual corporate income tax compliance;
• LKPM reporting and reconciliation by KBLI and project location;
• annual corporate approvals and maintenance of shareholder/director records;
• beneficial-owner data and updates when control changes;
• payroll, employment, social-security and expatriate compliance if hiring;
• licence monitoring, renewals and evidence of fulfilled commitments; and
• contract drafting, data protection and industry-specific legal support.

The expensive failure is often not the filing fee; it is correcting inconsistent data after a bank, investor, regulator or immigration officer notices that the deed, AHU record, OSS profile, tax data, bank account and LKPM reports do not tell the same story.

A practical first-year PT PMA budget model

Build the budget in four layers. This format prevents capital from being mistaken for expense and makes competing proposals comparable.

Layer	Budget items	Planning treatment
A. Statutory capital	Minimum issued/paid-up capital; any higher sector or transaction requirement.	Funded by shareholders; recorded as equity; trace use for operations/assets.
B. Investment plan	Planned investment by KBLI and project location, including applicable exceptions.	Regulatory plan; align with real project phases and LKPM.
C. Setup costs	Legal review, notary, AHU, OSS, licences, translation, address and disbursements.	Actual one-off expenses; obtain fixed scope and assumptions.
D. Year-one operating/compliance	Accounting, tax, LKPM, payroll, licences, office, insurance and immigration.	Recurring cash budget with monthly/quarterly owners and deadlines.

 

For a service company, Layer C may be relatively contained, while Layer D is driven by staffing, office and recurring compliance. A trading or distribution company may need additional import, warehouse, product or distribution approvals. A physical or regulated project may have substantial facility, environmental, technical and sector licensing costs. These are different projects even when all three use the PT PMA legal form.

How to compare PT PMA setup proposals

1. Confirm the exact legal entity and ownership structure covered.
2. List every five-digit KBLI and project location included in the scope.
3. Ask how the IDR 2.5 billion capital and more-than-IDR 10 billion investment plan are treated.
4. Require a deliverables list: deed, AHU status, NIB, business licence, standard certificate and PB UMKU as applicable.
5. Separate professional fees, government charges, notarial charges, taxes and third-party disbursements.
6. Identify documents the client must provide, including legalized/apostilled foreign corporate records if relevant.
7. Ask whether office address, tax/accounting, LKPM and annual corporate maintenance are included.
8. For Investor KITAS, confirm immigration category, eligibility assumptions and government-fee treatment.
9. Require written exclusions and change-order triggers.
10. Avoid approval guarantees or absolute timelines; both licensing and immigration depend on complete facts and authority review.

Red flags in a “cheap PT PMA” package

• The provider calls IDR 2.5 billion a government fee.
• The quote still states that every PT PMA must pay IDR 10 billion as paid-up capital, without addressing the 2025 rule change.
• The proposed KBLI codes are not listed or are copied from a generic template.
• The package promises an NIB but does not explain operational licensing.
• The provider recommends nominee shareholders to avoid foreign-ownership rules.
• The scope excludes compliance but markets the company as “maintenance-free.”
• Investor KITAS is guaranteed without checking ownership, corporate position or permitted activities.
• The quotation contains no assumptions, exclusions or responsibility matrix.

Frequently asked questions

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

There is no universal all-in price. The general statutory capital threshold is IDR 2.5 billion per PT PMA, while the general planned investment threshold is more than IDR 10 billion under the applicable calculation method. Neither is the same as professional setup fees. Actual expenses depend on ownership, KBLI, location, licences, office, tax/accounting and immigration scope.

Is the IDR 2.5 billion paid to the government?

No. It is issued/paid-up company capital, not a government application charge. It should be funded and used with appropriate corporate and accounting records.

Can the company use the paid-up capital?

Yes, for genuine company purposes. BKPM Regulation 5/2025 restricts moving it from the company account for at least 12 months but permits use for asset purchases, building development and company operations. The purpose and evidence of each use matter.

Must the full investment plan be spent immediately?

The investment value is a planned project figure, not a single incorporation invoice. Realisation should follow the business plan and be reported consistently. Sector and licensing milestones may impose their own timing requirements.

Does every extra KBLI increase the required investment?

Potentially. The general rule is per five-digit KBLI and per project location, but the regulation contains different aggregation rules for wholesale trade, food and beverage service, construction and certain industrial activities. Map only the activities the company will genuinely conduct.

Is an NIB enough to start operating?

Not always. The NIB is foundational, but medium- and high-risk activities and regulated sectors may require a verified standard certificate, business licence, PB UMKU or another approval before commercial operations.

Is Investor KITAS included in PT PMA incorporation?

Not automatically. Corporate incorporation and immigration are separate legal processes. A proposal should state whether E28A eligibility analysis, government charges and processing are included.

Should I choose the lowest setup quote?

Choose the quote with the clearest assumptions and the right scope for the business. A low price can become expensive if it uses the wrong KBLI, excludes licences, or leaves OSS, tax and LKPM data inconsistent.

Before you commit funds

A reliable PT PMA budget starts with legal feasibility, not with a package price. Confirm foreign ownership, KBLI, project location, risk level, capital structure, investment plan, operational licences and the founder’s immigration objectives. Then separate shareholder capital from one-off setup expenses and recurring compliance costs.

Master Legal Solutions can review the proposed structure and turn it into a scoped implementation plan covering the company and, where eligible, Investor KITAS. Request a PT PMA and Investor KITAS consultation before relying on a headline fee or transferring capital.

This article provides general legal information and is not a substitute for advice on a specific investment, sector or immigration case.

Authoritative references

• Government Regulation No. 28 of 2025 — Risk-Based Business Licensing
• Minister of Investment/BKPM Regulation No. 5 of 2025 — OSS and Investment Procedures
• Official BKPM/JDIH publication of Regulation No. 5 of 2025
• Presidential Regulation No. 10 of 2021 — Investment Business Fields
• Official E28A immigration information