How to Open a Bank Account in Indonesia?

Contributing Advisor

Hardy Salim

Manager, Business Advisory Services

Corporate bank accounts are essential for any company in Indonesia to operate, and is also a part of the incorporation process. A company must use its own bank account only and cannot share a corporate account with another company.

Documents required to open a bank account  

• The company itself requires the following documents:
  • Deed of Establishment;
  • Decree of Ministry of Law and Human Rights;
  • Business Identification Number;
  • Tax Card; and
  • BKPM Approval.
• Shareholders
  • Individual:
    
    • Passport; and
    • Proof of address.
  • Entity:
    • Certificate of Incorporation;
    • Memorandum & Articles of Association;
    • Latest Profile/Company Extract (which indicates the structure of Company: Shareholders, Director, Address, etc);
    • Company structure (which indicates the Ultimate Beneficial Owner/Individual ownership with ≥ 10% shares of the Company); and
    • Passport of each individual Shareholder.
  • Director
    • Passport of all Directors and the signature page on the passport to validate their signature on the resolution; and
    • Details of the Director: email, mobile number, and address.
  • Commissioner
    • Passport of all Commissioners and the signature page of their passports to validate their signature on the resolution.

Procedure for opening a corporate bank account

The procedure of opening a corporate account is as follows:

• Send all the required documents (see above section) to the bank, noting your company's intention to open a bank account, for their review;
• After sending all the aforementioned documents to the bank, the bank will send a Board Resolution back to you, which is a document that states the appointment of the authorized person to open, operate, maintain, appoint account signatory(ies), and close the bank account.
• This Bank Resolution document must be signed by the applicant and sent back to the bank for their review via email;
• The bank will send the account opening form to be filled by the Company;
• Once the account opening form is completed, scan and send it back to the Bank for their review;
• If the bank review finds all the documents are in order, then the process of opening the account will take no longer than one working day.
  1. The bank will need the company to send all original signed documents (Board Resolution and Account Opening Form) to the Bank for their records;
  2. The company must make an initial deposit of no less than 100 million rupiah (US$6,929) for each account;
     1. The Company can have as many accounts with different currencies according to their needs but must have the equivalent of the minimum deposit.
     2. If there are no transactions within 6 months, the account will be deactivated automatically.
• Apply for internet banking and other banking services, if needed.

Common types of bank accounts

There are three common types of bank accounts, these are:

• Checking account – Payments can be made through cheques or demand deposit (GIRO);
• Savings account – The most frequently used account that allows for real-time transfers; and
• Deposit account – Offers higher interest rates and the deposits can only be withdrawn based on an agreement with the bank.

Most Indonesian banks offer both rupiah and foreign currency saving accounts such as for US Dollar, Singapore Dollar, Japanese Yen, Euro, Hong Kong Dollar, Swiss Franc, and the Australian Dollar. The most common foreign currency used by businesses in Indonesia is the US Dollar.

Banking fees

Most banks in Indonesia will have a monthly administrative fee ranging from 12,500 rupiah (US$0.84) to 15,000 rupiah (US$1) per month. This is dependent on the type of account. Most banks will allow free cash withdrawals at their ATMs, although there is normally a charge for using another bank’s ATM of up to 6,500 rupiah (US$0.44) per transaction.

Major Indonesian banking institution

• Bank Mandiri;
• Bank Central Asia; and
• Bank Negara Indonesia.

Common international banks in Indonesia

• Bank of America;
• Bank of China;
• Deutsche Bank; and
• JPMorgan Chase.

Opening bank accounts in Indonesia can be a relatively quick and smooth process, if all necessary documents are prepared and the other requirements are met. For newly establishing companies, a helpful prerequisite is for your incorporation process to be well managed and at the right step.