Buying in Bali vs Australia: costs compared

In Bali you're buying a right to use land for a set period, not freehold. Back home, an Australian citizen buys freehold with ordinary stamp duty. Get that difference clear before you look at a single sunset photo.

The short version

Foreigners can't hold Hak Milik, Indonesia's freehold title. They can hold Hak Pakai (right of use) on a house or a strata unit, subject to minimum prices: IDR 5 billion for a house and IDR 2 billion for an apartment in Bali [1][2].
Many Australians in Bali instead sign long leases. Smartraveller warns that legal disputes over land and villas happen and that you should get legal advice before acquiring property [7].
The single biggest cost difference: what you own at the end. A Hak Pakai title runs for a fixed term, while an Australian purchase is yours indefinitely.
Buyers in Bali pay BPHTB acquisition duty of 5%, plus notary (PPAT) fees capped at 1%; new homes from a developer also carry VAT [3][5][6].
Indonesian mortgages for foreigners are rare and need a KITAS; most Bali buyers pay cash [2].

Can an Australian buy in Indonesia?

What foreigners can hold

Under Government Regulation 18 of 2021 and its implementing rules, a foreigner who holds Indonesian immigration documents can own a home [1]:

A house on land under Hak Pakai (right of use), or a right of use granted over someone else's freehold or over management-right land.
An apartment (strata unit) in a commercial-category building, under Hak Pakai or Hak Guna Bangunan (right to build).

There are limits. A house must be in the luxury category, one plot per person or family, up to 2,000 square metres [1]. A 2022 ministerial decree sets minimum prices by province. In Bali, that's IDR 5 billion for a house and IDR 2 billion for an apartment, with former Indonesians in the diaspora paying 75% of those minimums [1].

A Hak Pakai title on a house typically runs for an initial 30 years, extendable by 20 and renewable for another 30 [2]. Freehold (Hak Milik) remains reserved for Indonesian citizens [2].

Leases and nominees

Lots of Bali "villa sales" are really leaseholds: you pay upfront for, say, 25 or 30 years of use, with options to extend. That can be legitimate, but it's a contract right, not a title in your name, and its value falls as the lease runs down.

Then there are nominee arrangements, where an Indonesian holds freehold "on your behalf". These sit outside the law's intent, and you have very little protection if things go wrong. Smartraveller's advice is blunt: property laws are strict, so get legal advice before acquiring property in Indonesia [7].

Indonesian family or citizenship

Indonesia generally doesn't allow adults to keep dual citizenship. If you're married to an Indonesian, how you hold property can depend on your marriage arrangements, including whether you have a prenuptial agreement. Talk to an independent Indonesian lawyer and a notary before signing anything.

Upfront costs side by side

Rates as at November 2026. Indonesian amounts in rupiah, with AUD at the RBA rate of IDR 12,694 on 5 November 2026.

Cost	Bali	Buying back home (as an Australian living abroad)
Purchase tax / stamp duty	BPHTB acquisition duty of 5%, paid by the buyer, on the transaction value less a small regional tax-free allowance [3]	NSW transfer duty: A$11,602 plus 4.5% above A$387,000, up to A$1.29 million (2026–27) [8]. Other states differ
Foreign buyer surcharge	No surcharge, but minimum purchase prices for foreigners: IDR 5 billion (about A$394,000) for a house in Bali [1]	None for Australian citizens buying in NSW, wherever they live
VAT on new property	New homes bought from a VAT-registered developer attract VAT, effectively 11% for most homes and 12% for luxury housing [6]	GST is generally built into the price of new homes
Notary / legal fees	PPAT (land deed official) fee capped at 1% of the transaction price [5], plus your own lawyer for due diligence	Conveyancer or solicitor, usually a few thousand dollars
Agent's commission	Usually paid by the seller	Usually paid by the seller; buyer's agent optional
Registration and other fees	Land office (BPN) registration and certificate checks	Land registry fees of a few hundred dollars
Loan fees	Rarely relevant; most buyers pay cash	Application, valuation, possibly lenders mortgage insurance

The seller pays a 2.5% final income tax on the transaction value, which is their cost, not yours [3].

Getting a loan

In Indonesia

A few Indonesian banks offer home loans (KPR) to foreigners, but only to people who live and work there. You'll need a valid KITAS (limited stay permit), and lenders look for two years or more of employment or business history in Indonesia. One published example caps lending at 60% of value, and the loan term is usually kept within your work contract or KITAS [2].

For a digital nomad, retiree or anyone without Indonesian income, that effectively means no local loan. Bali purchases are overwhelmingly cash.

Back home

Australian lenders can lend to Australians living in Bali, but rupiah income is unlikely to be counted as generously as income in a major currency, and the expat lender panel is smaller. If you work remotely for an Australian employer while living in Bali, your situation may look different again. Our foreign income guide covers how lenders treat this.

Some people borrow against an Australian home to fund a Bali purchase. That puts Australian debt against an Indonesian asset you can't easily borrow against, and the property can't be offered as security to an Australian bank. Model the repayments with a rate buffer.

Holding costs

	Bali	Australia (NSW example)
Annual property tax	PBB land and building tax, paid yearly to the regency and based on the government's NJOP valuation [3]. Rates are a small fraction of a percent and vary by regency (Badung and Denpasar set their own)	Council rates; land tax on investment property once total land value passes A$1,075,000
Maintenance	Pool, garden, staff and humidity repairs; budgets vary hugely by villa	Strata levies or building upkeep
Title renewal	Hak Pakai extensions and renewals cost fees and need paperwork before expiry	None for freehold
Tax on rent	Indonesian rent from land and buildings is subject to a final 10% income tax on the gross amount [4]	Foreign residents pay 30% from the first dollar on Australian rent up to A$135,000 (2025–26 rates)

If you rent your villa to holidaymakers, separate tourism licensing and local taxes apply. Get a local adviser to check what your title and zoning allow before you list it.

On the Australian side: if you're still an Australian tax resident while living in Bali, Australia taxes you on worldwide income, including Indonesian rent, with credits for tax paid there. Plenty of Australians in Bali come and go often, so check your residency carefully.

Selling and tax

Indonesia

When you sell, you pay the 2.5% final income tax on the transaction value [3], and the buyer pays their 5% BPHTB. A foreign seller is limited in who they can sell to: another qualifying foreigner (above the minimum price), or an Indonesian buyer, who may convert the title. Resale markets for foreign-held villas can be thinner than you'd expect.

With a lease, there's often no title to sell at all. You sell the remaining years of the lease, if the lease allows it.

Australia

If you sell an Australian property while you're a foreign resident, you generally can't claim the main residence exemption, even for the years you lived in it, unless you pass the life events test [9]. Buyers of all Australian property must withhold 15% of the price unless the seller provides an ATO clearance certificate by settlement [10].

Currency

The rupiah has a long history of weakening against the Aussie dollar. A Bali property priced in rupiah can hold its value locally and still return fewer Australian dollars when you sell. Some villas are marketed in US dollars, which shifts the risk rather than removing it.

A worked example

Illustration only. A budget of about A$1 million in both places: IDR 12.7 billion (about A$1,000,500) for a new house on Hak Pakai bought from a developer, and A$1,000,000 for a NSW home. We ignore Bali's small BPHTB allowance and assume the notary charges the maximum.

Upfront cost	Bali, foreign buyer	NSW, Australian citizen abroad
Purchase duty	BPHTB 5% = IDR 635 million (about A$50,000) [3]	Transfer duty A$11,602 + 4.5% × A$613,000 = A$39,187 [8]
Notary fee	Up to 1% = IDR 127 million (about A$10,000) [5]	Conveyancing fees (quotes vary)
VAT (new build from a developer)	11% = about IDR 1.4 billion (about A$110,000), usually built into the developer's quoted price [6]	GST generally included in the price
Foreign buyer duty	Nil	Nil
Duty plus notary fee	About A$60,000	A$39,187 plus conveyancing

And remember the different end point: the Bali buyer holds a 30-year right of use with options to extend [2]; the NSW buyer holds freehold.

Which suits whom

No recommendation, just the factors to weigh up:

Lifestyle or investment? A Bali villa you live in is a different proposition from one you rent out to tourists.
Time horizon. Fixed-term rights and leases lose value as they run down. Freehold in Australia doesn't.
Visa security. Your Hak Pakai depends on holding the right immigration documents. If your plans in Indonesia change, so does your position.
Cash versus leverage. Bali is almost always a cash purchase.
Currency. Earnings, savings and the property's currency rarely line up neatly.
Inheritance. Whether heirs can take over a Hak Pakai or a lease depends on their own status and the documents. Make sure your will works in Indonesia as well as Australia.

Plenty of Australians in Bali have been through it. Join Cooee Indonesia, our Facebook group for Australians in Indonesia, at /join/.

Buying in Bali vs back home: what your villa money really buys