The price on a Bali listing is not the cost of the deal. Between the asking price and the keys there are taxes, a notary, a title check and registration, and once you own the thing there are two more taxes a year. This guide lays out every payment, who owes it, and what the base is — because the base is where most published numbers go wrong.
On a transfer of ownership
BPHTB — 5%, buyer
Bea Perolehan Hak atas Tanah dan Bangunan, the acquisition duty. Five per cent, paid by the buyer, due before the deed is signed. The base is the transaction value or the government-assessed value NJOP, whichever is higher, less the NPOPTKP — a non-taxable threshold set by the regency. The threshold is small relative to Bali villa prices, so in practice budget close to a full 5%.
BPHTB applies to transfers of Hak Milik, Hak Pakai and HGB. It does not apply to a leasehold, because a lease transfers no ownership.
PPh final — 2.5%, seller
A final income tax of 2.5% of the sale price, owed by the seller. It matters to you as a buyer for one reason: in a soft negotiation sellers try to shift it, and it should be explicit in the deed who pays what. Assume nothing that is not written.
Notary and PPAT — roughly 0.5–1%
A PPAT is the land-deed official who executes the transfer. The fee is negotiable and usually lands between 0.5% and 1% of contract value. It covers the deed, the checks the PPAT is obliged to run, and registration at the land office. Translations and certificate issuance sit on top.
Legal due diligence — $800–2,000
Not a tax and not optional. An independent title and zoning check, separate from the notary, separate from the agent. On a $300,000 purchase this is the cheapest line on the page and the only one that can save the whole amount.
On a leasehold
No BPHTB. Instead a final tax of 10% on the lease amount, under the rules for land and building lease income. By default it is the landowner’s liability, as in most Bali deals — but the contract can put it on the lessee, and some do. Read the tax clause.
Notarisation of a lease is technically optional and practically mandatory: expect IDR 5–15 million. An unnotarised lease is a private agreement whose enforceability you will be discovering at the worst possible moment.
While you own it
PBB — 0.1% to 0.5% a year
Pajak Bumi dan Bangunan, the annual land and building tax. The rate is set by the local government inside that band. The base is NJOP, the government assessment, which on Bali sits substantially below market price — so the real figure is usually modest. It is not nothing: assessments get revised, and a revision can double the bill in one year.
Estate and service fees
Not a tax, but it recurs: security, road and drainage upkeep, sometimes water. On a villa in a managed complex, a few hundred dollars a year to a few thousand.
On guest income — the number people get wrong
This is where projections quietly break. The tax on income from short stays depends on your tax residency, not your nationality:
| Indonesian tax resident | 10% final tax on gross income from the property |
|---|---|
| Non-resident | 20% withholding under PPh 26, on gross |
A 12% gross yield at 10% tax and the same 12% at 20% tax are two different investments. If you will not be an Indonesian tax resident, model the 20%. Every income figure in our listings is stated gross, before tax and before management fees, and labelled as such — so that you apply your own rate rather than inherit ours.
Legality first, though: short-stay income is only lawful if the plot’s zoning permits it. Zoning is a separate field on every listing for exactly this reason.
Putting it together
Two worked shapes, using round numbers:
A $300,000 Hak Pakai purchase. BPHTB about $15,000, notary about $2,500, due diligence $1,500 — roughly $319,000 to own it, about 6.3% on top. Then PBB annually on an NJOP well below $300,000.
A $150,000 leasehold, 25 years. No BPHTB. Notarisation about $700, due diligence $1,200 — roughly $152,000, about 1.3% on top, with the 10% lease tax normally on the landowner. Cost per year of ownership: about $6,100 before the annual charges. That last number, not the headline price, is what compares a 25-year lease against a 17-year one.
The deal calculator on every listing runs this arithmetic on that specific property, with the rates editable, because notary fees are negotiable and the thresholds differ by regency. Final amounts are confirmed by the notary at signing — we are an agency, not your tax adviser, and rates in Indonesia change more often than most guides get updated.
Common questions
Do I pay BPHTB on a leasehold?
No. BPHTB is a duty on acquiring a right of ownership, and a lease does not transfer ownership. A 10% final tax on the lease amount applies instead, normally owed by the landowner. Check which party the contract names — it is not always the owner.
Is PBB calculated on what I paid?
No, on NJOP — the government’s assessed value, which on Bali is usually well below market price. That is why the annual bill looks small relative to the purchase. Assessments do get revised upward, so treat the current figure as current, not fixed.
Why is the tax on guest income sometimes 10% and sometimes 20%?
Because it follows tax residency. An Indonesian tax resident pays 10% final tax on gross. A non-resident has 20% withheld under PPh 26. If you plan to stay non-resident, model the 20% — a projection built on 10% will overstate your net by a wide margin.
Are your income figures net or gross?
Gross, before tax and before management fees, and every listing says so. We publish gross because your tax rate and your management arrangement are yours, not ours. Any agency quoting you a single net yield without asking about your residency is guessing.
How much should due diligence cost?
Roughly $800 to $2,000 for an independent title and zoning check. Use someone who is not the notary and not the agent — including not us. On a purchase of this size it is the cheapest protection available.