Jakarta. The Immigration Office Directorate General urges all Indonesians who wish to travel abroad to follow the immigration rules starting from prior to their departure to once they arrive in the destination country. 

According to the director for immigration supervision, Saffar Muhammad Godam, Indonesian travelers must make sure that their passport is valid to obtain a visa from the destination country.

"Data such as full name, nationality, place and date of birth, gender and photo must all be correct and appropriate. This is very important so there will be no problems when Indonesians travel abroad,” Godam said.

According to the 2011 Law on Immigration, an Indonesian passport is a document issued by the Indonesian government for citizens to travel abroad and is only valid for a certain period of time. Indonesian citizens are also required to provide truthful information during passport profiling (interviews) at the immigration office.

The 2014 Human Rights Ministry regulation states that a passport can be canceled if the holder is proven to have provided incorrect information to obtain a passport.

"Immigration in each country determines in detail the visa classification, adjusted to the activities of foreigners while in their country. For example, Saudi Arabia strictly enforces the rule that pilgrims must use a Hajj visa. There has even been a fatwa from the Saudi Arabian Senior Ulema Council supporting this rule for the sake of for the benefit of all Hajj pilgrims," Godam said.

The Saudi Arabian government also imposes sanctions in the form of fines for those who violate the Hajj rules. On May 7, 2024, Saudi Arabia's Home Affairs Ministry issued a statement that people who perform Hajj without a taste (valid permit) will be subject to a fine of 10,000 riyals. The person will also be deported to their country of origin and prohibited from entering Saudi Arabia according to the legally stipulated time limit. The fine may double to 50,000 riyals in case of a repeated offense.

Anyone proven to be helping people violate permits for Hajj can be subject to imprisonment for six months. To ensure the validity of permits for Hajj pilgrims, Saudi Arabian authorities regularly carry out Tasreh checks on the main roads leading to Mecca.

"Obey the existing rules. Don't let the good goals of traveling end up being lost because we took incorrect shortcuts," Godam said.

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