Asylum in Indonesia: how protection works through UNHCR

Indonesia has not acceded to the 1951 Convention or its 1967 Protocol. UNHCR reports that refugee protection is nevertheless embedded in domestic law, including the 1945 Constitution, the 1999 Human Rights Law and the 2016 Presidential Regulation on the Handling of Refugees, and that Indonesia generally respects the right to seek asylum and the principle of non-refoulement.

A National Refugee Task Force set up in 2019 under the Coordinating Ministry for Political and Security Affairs oversees refugee affairs, with local task forces in hosting provinces.

People seeking asylum in Indonesia register with UNHCR, which does so on behalf of the government and issues UNHCR identity documents. Registration interviews are mostly held in person, to record biometric data, at the UNHCR Reception Centre in Jakarta or during team visits outside the capital. Claims are not lodged with Indonesian embassies abroad.

Because registered asylum seekers have access to the same rights and services as refugees, UNHCR carries out refugee status determination selectively: for people with a third-country solution that needs refugee recognition, such as resettlement, for cases with heightened protection concerns, and as part of emergency responses to boat arrivals.

Refugees and asylum seekers are not legally permitted to work, though a 2023 Ministry of Manpower circular allows them to join skills training at government centres. Children can attend accredited national primary and secondary schools under a Ministry of Education circular, which requires a valid UNHCR document and Indonesian language proficiency.

Children born in Indonesia can obtain birth certificates under Presidential Regulation 96/2018. UNHCR and its partners provide limited cash assistance to the most vulnerable, case management for children and survivors of gender-based violence, and legal support.

Refugees in Indonesia rely mainly on durable solutions abroad, such as resettlement and complementary pathways, for which UNHCR may conduct status determination. UNHCR runs a country office in Jakarta and field locations in Aceh, Medan, Pekanbaru and Makassar.

UNHCR operates a legal protection hotline for people at risk of refoulement, arrest or detention, and a 24-hour hotline with its partner YCWS for survivors of gender-based violence. Official contact details are on UNHCR's Indonesia help website.