The Directorate General of Immigration under the Ministry of Law and Human Rights, Indonesia has appointed VFS Global, the world’s largest outsourcing and technology services specialist for governments and diplomatic missions, as the exclusive private service provider for Electronic Visa on Arrival (e-VoA).
In a press statement, VFS Global says that this comes as a move to make the process seamless, promote inbound tourism, increase investments into Indonesia and enhance overall traveller experience.
VFS Global says that this new e-VoA platform, set to commence in the first half of December 2024, will be available for nationals of the 97 countries eligible for e-VoA, including India.
The statement adds that travellers will soon be able to enjoy a quicker and smoother visa application journey through VFS Global by completing the entire process online before departure and receiving a pre-approved e-VoA.
It says that the e-VoA can be easily obtained by visiting VFS Global website, submitting all the required documents, and paying the necessary fees online prior to travel. Once the application is submitted, travellers can receive their visas on their email before departure.
With the payment having been made online, travellers can enjoy a smoother and faster entry through E-gates or immigration counters, the statement adds.
“The Directorate General of Immigration offers the latest digital solutions that enhance the experience for foreign nationals who wish to visit Indonesia. In our collaboration with VFS Global, we aim to effectively contribute to increasing the arrival of foreigners, taking into account the network and digital platform owned by our partners,” says Silmy Karim, Director General of Immigration, Indonesia.
Travellers applying for Indonesia e-VoA via VFS Global will get a dedicated email and live support in seven languages namely English, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, German, and French to help them with their queries. VFS Global will add more language support in due course of time for key markets.
“Indonesia is a very popular destination for travellers across the globe, and we are excited to unveil a service that will make their visa application process quicker, simpler and much more convenient. This user-friendly and highly secure digital e-Visa on Arrival (e-VoA) service will considerably enhance the visa application experience, thereby facilitate increase in tourism to the country,” says Zubin Karkaria, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, VFS Global Group.
“We are honoured to partner with the Directorate General of Immigration under the Ministry of Law and Human Rights and the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy of the Republic of Indonesia for this service,” Karkaria adds.
The statement adds that VFS Global’s new e-VoA platform will ensure all the documents applicants submit are complete and error-free. It also offers OCR technology which will enable applicant details to be auto populated, thereby saving time and effort for applicants.
The new platform will also provide group booking facility which could be beneficials for travel trade and conventions.
VFS Global says that Indonesia has set an ambitious target of welcoming 14 million visitors in 2024 and has already achieved 9.92 million arrivals from January to August 2024.
The user-friendly eVoA solution aligns with Indonesia’s ongoing efforts to enhance its tourism infrastructure and services.
To further support this initiative, VFS Global has tied up with Emirates Airlines to make Indonesia e-Visa on Arrival (e-VoA) application service seamless for its passengers.
The statement adds that VFS Global has established dedicated Indonesia counters at its offices in Dubai, Mumbai and Shanghai, with plans to open another in Australia soon.
Through its extensive network of offices, VFS Global says it aims to promote Indonesia in key markets such as India, China, Australia, Korea, Japan, and the Middle East.