If your plan was Bali
In the third week of May 2026, Bali stopped accepting new foreign-investment licence applications in eighteen business categories — among them villas, small hotels, cafés and consulting. If you already run one there, nothing was taken from you. If you were about to, that is the part that changed.
The Provincial Government of Bali stopped accepting new PT PMA licence applications through the OSS system in 18 KBLI classifications. It comes from Governor of Bali letter No. B.27.000/642/PM/DPMPTSP dated 28 January 2026, took effect across the province in the third week of May 2026, and was announced publicly on 23 July 2026 — approved in advance by Indonesia's Ministry of Investment. Indonesia's stated reason is to protect local micro, small and medium enterprises.
Existing licences were not revoked. You will see this reported as foreigners being "locked out" of Bali. That is not what the measure says, and we would rather you heard the accurate version from us than the loud one from somewhere else.
The classifications identified publicly. These are, almost exactly, the businesses foreign arrivals in Bali actually start.
| KBLI | What it covers |
|---|---|
| 55110 · 55120 | Hotels under 6,000 m² — star-rated and budget |
| 55900 | Other accommodation — the villa-rental and short-stay category |
| 56303 | Cafés and drinking houses |
| 47249 | Other food retail |
| 68111 | Real estate operations — owned or leased |
| 70204 · 70209 | Management and business consultancy |
| + 11 more | Further low and lower-medium risk classifications in the same list |
The licensing change is recent and could change again. This has been true the whole time, and it is the thing worth deciding on.
Indonesia — Bali
You hold a lease
Nicaragua — San Juan del Sur
You hold the deed
Outside restricted border and certain coastal strips. A lease that runs out in twenty-five years and a deed that does not are different assets, whatever the brochure rate of return says.
The same questions asked of both places.
| Bali, Indonesia | San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua | |
|---|---|---|
| What a foreigner can hold | Leasehold (Hak Sewa), Hak Pakai, or a PT PMA holding Hak Guna Bangunan. Freehold (Hak Milik) is not available to a foreigner under any structure. | A fee-simple deed in your own name, with the same rights as a citizen. |
| How long it lasts | Lease typically 25–30 years with extensions · Hak Pakai about 30 years with renewals · HGB up to 80 years. | No expiry and no renewal. |
| Residency needed to hold it | Hak Pakai requires a KITAS or KITAP. | No. |
| Company needed | A PT PMA for HGB and for operating. | No. |
| Nominee arrangements | Putting title in a citizen's name for a foreigner's benefit is legally void. | Not needed — you are on the deed. |
| Annual property tax | PBB, roughly 0.1%–0.3% of the assessed NJOP value, set locally; 0.1% is the figure commonly cited in Bali. | About $800–$1,000 a year on a $300,000 home. |
| HOA / community fees | Varies by development; no standard figure we can source. | $0–$3,000 — many homes carry none at all. |
| Insurance | Varies; no standard figure we can source. | About $800–$1,800 a year. |
| Buyer transaction costs | About 2–4% on a leasehold · about 6–7% where BPHTB and notary apply · 10–15% or more through a PT PMA structure. | Roughly 5–7% all in. |
| Transfer tax | BPHTB at 5% on transfers of registered land rights. It does not fall on a leasehold, which is a contract rather than a land-right transfer. | Inside the 5–7% above. |
| Foreign investment licence to hold it | Closed to new applications in 18 KBLI categories since May 2026 — villas, small hotels, cafés, consulting. | Not needed. Fee-simple ownership — nothing sits between you and the deed. |
Indonesian tax and fee figures are ranges reported by Indonesian property and tax advisers in 2025–2026 and depend on assessed value, structure and regency; treat them as orders of magnitude and confirm with your own counsel. Nicaraguan figures are for a $300,000 home. Where a line says we cannot source a figure, that is exactly what it means — we have not put a number there rather than guess one.
Nicaragua is not a straight upgrade. Here is where it loses.
Five, from $194,000. Every one of them held fee simple.
The Provincial Government of Bali stopped accepting NEW foreign-investment (PT PMA) licence applications through the OSS system in 18 KBLI business classifications. It runs from Governor of Bali letter No. B.27.000/642/PM/DPMPTSP dated 28 January 2026, took effect across the province in the third week of May 2026 and was announced publicly on 23 July 2026, having been approved in advance by Indonesia's Ministry of Investment (BKPM). The stated purpose is to protect local micro, small and medium enterprises.
No. It applies to new licence applications. Reporting on the measure states that licences already issued in the affected classifications are not automatically revoked, and existing PT PMA companies continue to file their investment activity reports as normal. If you already operate in Bali, this is not a shutdown notice — it is a closed door behind you.
Eighteen low and lower-medium risk classifications. The ones identified publicly include hotels under 6,000 m² (KBLI 55110 and 55120), other accommodation (55900), cafés and drinking houses (56303), other food retail (47249), real estate operations (68111) and management consultancy (70204 and 70209). In short: the villa-rental, small-hotel, café and consulting businesses most foreign arrivals set up.
Not freehold. Hak Milik — the freehold title — is available only to Indonesian citizens, and a foreigner cannot hold it under any structure. Foreign buyers use leasehold, typically 25 to 30 years with extensions; Hak Pakai, which requires a KITAS or KITAP and runs to about 30 years with renewals; or a PT PMA holding Hak Guna Bangunan, the right to build, for up to 80 years. Nominee arrangements — putting a freehold title in an Indonesian citizen's name for a foreigner's benefit — are legally void.
A fee-simple deed in your own name, with the same rights as a Nicaraguan citizen, outside restricted border and certain coastal strips. Not a lease, not a right to use, not a company holding a right to build. Closings typically complete in about 30 days with buyer closing costs of roughly 5 to 7% all in.
No. You buy it fee simple in your own name, with the same rights as a Nicaraguan citizen. There is no equivalent of a PT PMA between you and the deed, and no category list that can be closed to you. That is the whole difference.
Operating a commercial business anywhere involves registration and permits, and what that takes in Nicaragua is a question for a Nicaraguan lawyer rather than a listing agent — we would rather introduce you to counsel than guess on your behalf. Owning the property is the settled part; that needs no licence at all.
Sources on the Indonesian measure: Governor of Bali letter No. B.27.000/642/PM/DPMPTSP (28 January 2026), reported by Bali Discovery, VOI, Lexeron Advocates and LMI Consultancy, July–August 2026. Indonesian land-tenure descriptions follow Indonesia's Basic Agrarian Law as summarised by Emerhub and other Indonesian corporate advisers. Regulations change — verify anything here with your own counsel in both countries before you act on it. Read 2026-08-23.
Also worth reading: Costa Rica vs. Nicaragua → · The surf corridor map →
Christina lives in San Juan del Sur and shows these herself. Tell her which one and she will send photographs, the deed position and what the closing actually costs.
Rather just message? WhatsApp +1 (361) 215-0088