Moving from Germany to Bali

    Hi there! I usually don't write here but kept an eye on this forum for some time now since my mom and I plan to move to Bali.
A little bit about us: My mom (retired) and I (freelancer/digital nomad/whatever you want to call it) have been thinking about leaving Germany for quite some time now since we don't feel at home here. I first travelled to Bali 5 or 6 years ago. Last year, I was finally able to show my mom the island and we travelled a lot, staying at different areas of the island so she could get a first impression of the island as well as meeting some local friends of mine and she loved it!

Visa wise, as far as I know, we can't get the visa on arrival if we want to apply for a retirement visa for my mom. We were told that both of us would have to apply for a social visa (a friend of mine would act as sponsor) and then apply for the retirement visa for her when in Bali. As for me, I'd have to stay on the social visa (unless there is another option that doesn't involve investing) and leave Indonesia every 180 days. During that time I'd keep working online as a freelancer since I know that I am not allowed to 'physically' work in Bali. Doing freelance work online seems to be fine though. If you have information on that, I'd appreciate it a lot.

I also know that my mom will have to hire a maid, that her rent needs to be a minimum of $500 or so and that she needs a certain amount of incoming funds as well as insurance.

Is there anything else in terms of visa or paperwork that I should be aware of? Or do you have any other helpful tips or potential hurdles I should be aware of?

Thank you very much in advance!
   

    -@Yunchen

Hi @yunchen

Sometimes I'm confused, many of my fellow citizens want to live abroad or leave Indonesia.  The most basic thing is due to economic conditions.  But there are also many people from other countries who want to live in our country, Indonesia.  😁

Actually, most of us are open people & will be friendly towards foreigners.  I think your choice to write on this forum is right, because there are so many members who have lived in Indonesia for a long time.  They definitely have a lot of experience.  As a local, I can only say thank you for loving one of our islands.  Also help us to always preserve our culture.

My advice is to still prepare well, so you don't make the wrong decision.  I think it's like human nature, there are good people & there are bad people.  However, I have to admit that not all of our local people are good.  There are also many fraudsters circulating.  So just stay alert.

Another thing, if you want to stay for a long time, you should marry an Indonesian.  So you can have a permanent residence permit.  Another way is to work in one of the foreign companies in Indonesia or often called PT PMA (Foreign Capital Company).  My co-worker who is a Japanese citizen, she has lived in Indonesia for a very long time.  It's almost rare to go back to Japan.  She has moved several times to Japanese companies in Indonesia.  The main purpose is for the residence permit & secondly for the income.  & actually it's quite profitable.  Because as far as I know, Japanese citizens who work here get fairly guaranteed facilities from the company, starting from housing & vehicles.

If there is another way, sorry I don't know.  But there are definitely many members who can provide input for you.

😊

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Hello

i am Sarah.  i rent my villa to a german couple in North Bali

Your post has caught my attention. 

i thought i could maybe help you

Can you email me at ***

so i can contact you privately?

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Thank you,

Sarah