Which Businesses Can Foreigners Still Open in Bali? PT PMA Closures Explained (2026)

Since the third week of May 2026, foreign-owned companies (PT PMA) can no longer apply for new business licences in Bali in 18 business lines, including small hotels, other accommodation, real estate, cafes, vehicle rental, management consulting and several retail categories.

The closure was announced by Bali Governor Wayan Koster on 23 July 2026 and is applied inside the OSS licensing system with the approval of the Ministry of Investment and BKPM. It affects new applications only. Companies that already hold these licences keep them, as long as they stay compliant.

Everything else that is open to foreign investment under national rules is still open in Bali.

Key takeaways

• 18 KBLI codes are closed to new PT PMA applications in Bali. The full list is below.
• The closure applies to new OSS applications in Bali only. It does not cancel existing licences and it does not apply in other provinces such as Lombok or Jakarta.
• Bali also no longer accepts a virtual office as the registered address of a PT PMA, so a physical business address is now needed.
• Before you commit to a company, a business name or a property, have the exact KBLI code checked in OSS. ILA does this as the first step of every company setup.

What happened

On 28 January 2026 the Governor of Bali wrote to the Minister of Investment asking for foreign investor access in OSS to be restricted for a group of low risk and medium-low risk business activities. The province had found that close to half of all foreign investment projects registered in Bali were low risk activities that only needed a business identification number (NIB), many of them run through virtual office addresses, and that they competed directly with local micro, small and medium businesses rather than bringing new investment.

The Ministry of Investment and BKPM approved the request and the restriction has been active in OSS since the third week of May 2026. The Governor announced it publicly on 23 July 2026. In practice, when a PT PMA tries to add one of the 18 codes to an application for a Bali location, OSS rejects it.

The 18 business lines closed to new PT PMAs in Bali

Source: ANTARA News Bali, 23 July 2026, reporting the Governor’s announcement. The list is the official one; some consultancies describe the closure more broadly, so always check the exact five digit code.

What this means if you already have a PT PMA in Bali

Existing licences are not cancelled. If your company already holds one of these KBLI codes with a Bali location, you can keep operating under it. Three things matter more than before:

1. Keep filing your quarterly investment activity report (LKPM). A company that stops reporting is the first one the authorities look at.
2. If your company is registered at a virtual office in Bali, plan a move to a physical address. Bali has stopped accepting virtual offices as a PT PMA domicile, and existing companies using them are under growing scrutiny.
3. Do not try to add a closed code to an existing NIB for a Bali location. The system will refuse it, and a half-finished amendment can block other changes to your company.

A company that is dormant, has no real activity at its address, or has never realised the investment it declared is at risk of its licence being reviewed even though the closure itself is for new applications.

What foreign founders can still open in Bali

The closure is a list, not a general ban. Any KBLI code that is open to foreign investment under the national Positive Investment List and is not on the list of 18 can still be registered by a PT PMA in Bali. Examples of activities foreigners still commonly set up in Bali include:

• Restaurants (as opposed to cafes and bars, which fall under 56303)
• Hotels with a building area of 6,000 m² or more
• Software development, IT consulting and other digital services
• Marketing, advertising, design and media production
• Export and trading of goods (wholesale, not the closed retail categories)
• Manufacturing and food production
• Education and training (subject to sector rules)
• Health and wellness services outside the closed gym and fitness centre code
• Construction, architecture and engineering (some with a local partner requirement)

Two cautions. First, “still open” means the code is accepted in OSS, not that the business will be easy. Medium and high risk activities need a standard certificate or a permit after the NIB, and some need a minimum building size or a specific zoning. Second, the OSS status of a code can change without a public announcement. ILA checks the live status in OSS for every client before anything is signed.

What if your business is on the list?

There are legitimate options, and there are shortcuts that will cost you the company.

Legitimate options include registering the business in another province where the code is open (Lombok, for example, is not covered by the Bali restriction), choosing a different but accurate KBLI code if your actual activity fits it, operating a larger format that falls outside the restriction (a hotel of 6,000 m² or more rather than a small one), or buying into an existing company that already holds the licence, after proper checks.

Shortcuts to avoid: registering a different code than what you actually do, which is a licensing violation that can lead to the NIB being revoked; using an Indonesian nominee to hold the company or the licence, which is illegal in Indonesia and leaves you with no enforceable rights; or keeping a virtual office address in Bali and hoping it is not noticed.

How ILA checks a business line before you commit

1. We take your real activity, not the label you have in mind, and map it to the correct five digit KBLI codes.
2. We check each code against the Positive Investment List for foreign ownership limits and partner requirements.
3. We check the live status of each code in OSS for your intended location, so a Bali closure or a provincial restriction shows up before you spend money.
4. We confirm the risk level, the licences needed after the NIB, and whether your address and zoning fit.
5. Only then do we draft the deed and start the registration.

If you are planning a company in Bali this year, send us your activity and your intended address and we will tell you whether it can be registered as a PT PMA before you commit. Book a consultation or read the step by step guide to setting up a PT PMA in Bali.

Frequently Asked Questions