Finance Minister Purbaya Rules Out Third Tax Amnesty, Cites Risks to Credibility
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JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa says the government will not launch another round of tax amnesty, stressing that repeated forgiveness schemes erode compliance and undermine fiscal credibility. Speaking at the Ministry of Finance in Jakarta on Friday, Sept 19, 2025, he made clear that tax amnesty cannot be used as a recurring policy.
“If tax amnesty is carried out repeatedly, what will be the credibility of the amnesty?” Purbaya said. He warned that repeated amnesties encourage taxpayers to delay fulfilling obligations, waiting instead for the next opportunity to be pardoned.
The former Chairman of the Indonesia Deposit Insurance Corporation argued that rolling out new amnesties every few years would send the wrong message about government commitment to state revenue. “If there is an amnesty every year, everyone will just hide money and wait two or three years for the next program,” he said.
Instead, Purbaya emphasized that the government’s focus is on strengthening regulations, curbing tax evasion, and raising Indonesia’s tax ratio. “We should concentrate on that first,” he said, noting that a stronger economy would also support higher collections.
Deputy Finance Minister Anggito Abimanyu said the government would expand compliance, administration, and cooperation programs in 2026 while using this year’s tax target as a baseline. He explained that Indonesia has strategies for tax base expansion without adding burdens to compliant taxpayers.
One of the key measures is the broader rollout of Coretax, the government’s digital tax administration system. While currently applied to value-added tax (VAT) reporting, Coretax will be extended to income tax filings next year.
“We plan to include data on individual and corporate income tax. Hopefully, there will be no issues,” Anggito said during a hearing with the House of Representatives Commission XI in Jakarta on Thursday, Sept 19, 2025.
He added that the system’s integration of invoices, data, and transaction flows has worked well so far, laying the groundwork for a smoother transition. Deputy Finance Minister Suahasil Nazara also attended the session.
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