How to register an import company in Indonesia

For e-commerce brands and trading businesses, importing into Indonesia used to mean juggling separate import licences. Under the modern OSS-RBA system, the core import rights are now built into the NIB itself — which is good news, but it doesn’t mean importing is automatic. The KBLI you choose, the import identification number, and the product-level approvals all have to line up. Here’s how an import company actually comes together.

Step 1 — A trading PT PMA with the right KBLI

You import through a company, and as a foreigner that means a PT PMA. The decisive choice is the KBLI — wholesale/trading codes determine both your foreign-ownership ceiling and your import rights. Some distribution lines carry conditions, so confirm the KBLI and ownership before you incorporate. Get this wrong and you can end up with a company that legally can’t import what you intend to sell.

Step 2 — Import rights (API) inside the NIB

When you obtain your NIB on OSS, the system can assign your import identification number (API — Angka Pengenal Impor):

• API-U (Umum) — for general traders importing goods to sell on. This is what most trading and e-commerce importers need.
• API-P (Produsen) — for producers importing goods for their own production process, not for resale.

Your NIB also serves as your customs access (hak akses kepabeanan) identifier, the basis for clearing goods through Indonesian customs. So a single OSS registration, done correctly, gives you the company ID, the import right and customs access together.

Step 3 — Product-level approvals

This is where importers underestimate the work. The NIB lets your company import; it doesn’t automatically clear every product. Depending on what you bring in, you may need:

• BPOM registration for food, drinks, cosmetics and health products.
• Halal certification for food, beverages, ingredients and cosmetics — and note the 17 October 2026 deadline for imported products. See foreign halal / BPJPH.
• SNI (Indonesian National Standard) for regulated goods.
• Specific import approvals (Persetujuan Impor) for restricted commodities.

Step 4 — Compliance once you’re live

A trading PT PMA still has the standard obligations: quarterly LKPM reporting and the capital lock-up, and KITAS for any foreign staff. Importers carrying inventory should plan working capital around the lock-up rules from the start.

The close

Setting up an import company is really two projects stitched together: the right corporate-and-import structure, and the product approvals for your specific catalogue. Send us your product list and target volumes, and we’ll configure the full trading entity — PT PMA Company Setup — with the correct KBLI and API from day one.