The Indonesian Directorate General of Immigration and the Australian Department of Home Affairs have entered into a collaboration to develop digital innovation in immigration services. The agreement was initiated in Jakarta by the Director General of Immigration, Ronny F. Sompie, and Associate Secretary of Immigration for Australia, Stephanie Foster. The two intend to establish a technical group to facilitate architectures and exchange of data of the service systems between the two countries. Both sides believe that it will greatly support and foster the improvement of intelligence sharing and security of their respective borders. Several so-called “key agreements” were made during the meeting, including implementing SmartGates access for Indonesian E-passport holders, forensic immigration backup documents for passport forgery and a Border Operations Center. Furthermore, the agreement includes the introduction of the Airlines Liaison Officer Program and the management of illegal migration in work and tourist visas, as well as the prevention of transnational crimes.
Silmy, the Director General of Immigration, revealed that the government was in the process of simplifying some visa processes for Indonesians, such as golden visas, sports visas and diaspora visas, among others. Silmy also shared how they had learned from Australia about stopping the free-visit visa application for 168 countries and moving to apply a visa-on-arrival instead, which became one of his learning points from Australian Immigration. This new regulation is aimed at disciplining everyone’s visas before entering Australia, to minimize barriers within the immigration process. Stephanie Foster remarked that Australia is happy to support Indonesia’s initiative towards securing borders and containing foreigners who are not beneficial for the country. Australian Immigration also advised Indonesian Immigration to conduct security checks on foreign visitors as soon as possible to prevent persons of concern from entering Indonesian territory. Overall, both sides agree that the agreement will benefit both countries and facilitate better immigration services for all.
