Indonesia to Tax Heavy Gold Jewelry to Combat Evasion

Indonesia's Finance Minister, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, announced plans to introduce export duties on gold jewelry exceeding specific weight limits. This move aims to close loopholes exploited by exporters who convert raw gold into jewelry to avoid existing tariffs, a practice that has significantly reduced state revenue. "We will tighten rules by revising the Finance Ministry Regulation (PMK) so that jewelry of a certain weight will also be subject to export tax," Purbaya stated at a press conference.

The minister highlighted that gold smuggling has surged since export duties were implemented in December 2025, suspecting a link to unlicensed gold mining operations. He lamented that these evasion schemes have driven government revenue from gold export duties to "almost zero." This situation underscores the challenges in regulating the lucrative gold trade.

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We will tighten rules by revising the Finance Ministry Regulation (PMK) so that jewelry of a certain weight will also be subject to export tax.

Recent enforcement actions underscore the scale of the problem. The Directorate General of Customs and Excise intercepted a total of 23.79 kilograms of gold, valued at approximately Rp63 billion, in two separate smuggling attempts at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on August 11, 2026. The methods employed by the smugglers were elaborate, including concealment within body cavities and the use of airport operational zones with the assistance of ground handling staff.

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Because of export duties, there are almost no gold exports through standard routes. So, if we look at state revenue from it, it's almost zero.