Local eCommerce Must Register to Government

Ilustrasi (Dok)

 JAKARTA (IndoTelko) - The government will require the local eCommerce players to register in order to receive protection and tax incentives.

 "One of the discussions on the eCommerce road map is a matter of registration obligation for local eCommerce. This is in compulsory to the regulation of Organizing the System and Electronic Transactions who public services organizer must register," said Director of e-Business of the Ministry of Informatics and Technology Azhar Hashim to IndoTelko when attending the TELIN-3 Data Center ground breaking in Singapore last week.

 He explained that if the local eCommerce has been registered, it is possible to get tax incentives from the government and users are protected in the transaction. "We'll also ask local eCommerce to place a data center in Indonesia," he said.

He also said that foreign eCommerce are not required to register to the government and could not prevent people not to make any transactions with foreign players.

 "How can it be arrested, it's all the borderless. We can filter it later at the Customs when the goods are shipped to Indonesia, "he explained.

 Further, the government will not insist to pursue the tax to the end eCommerce players because the tax has actually paid when the goods out of the manufacturers.

 "When a manufacturer sells to a distributor, the goods are already taxed, then distributors to eCommerce is also taxed. Thus, if forced to pursue the tax to the end even though there is a greater potential value but it could cause a loss," he said.

Previously, the government has prepared a national eCommerce roadmap. Several agencies who are involved including the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (Kemenkominfo), Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Transportation, the Investment Coordinating Board, and the Creative Economy Agency (BEK).

 In Indonesia, there are currently 73 million active users of the internet which 7% were familiar with eCommerce. The value of transactions in 2014 amounted to US $ 12 billion and 2016 is estimated to reach US $ 24 billion. (es)