Before you travel to Bali, you need to know that Bali is part of Indonesia. All foreign visitors must be able to present a passport that is valid for at least six months and the correct Indonesia visa that pertains to the reason for your visit. If you are planning to travel to Bali, the passport itself must be validated six months prior to the date you intend to apply for an Indonesian visa.
Once your date of departure is set, one of the first steps in the visa application process is to signify whether your trip to Bali will be for tourism, business, or student. You can contact the nearest Indonesian Embassy or Consulate in your region to obtain the correct application for visiting or staying in Bali for any length of time. You will find there is a big difference in documentation requirements depending on the nature of your stay.
If you intend to be a student or work in Bali there is a requirement that you must submit a written letter from a sponsor. Since the application must go through Jakarta, the waiting time is considerable. It can take as long as two months before any decision is made concerning your application for an Indonesian student or work visa. For most of the other various types of visa applications, it usually takes 24 hours before a decision is made.
If you are traveling to Bali as a tourist, you will most likely receive a 60-day visa to Indonesia that is only valid for a 60-90 day period. This is why you should be aware and plan your itinerary in accordance to your visa issue date. If you fail to visit or travel to Bali during that period, your Indonesian visa will no longer be valid and you will have to go through the process all over again in order to obtain another one.
If you intend to stay longer, getting an extension requires that you exit then re-enter Bali with your new Indonesian visa. If you are a tourist, and you want to travel to Bali and just stay for a few days or weeks, a good way of obtaining a visa is to take advantage of the "Visa on Arrival" (VOA) program.
Get a visa for Indonesia the quick and easy way.
The way this works is that you enter from a country where Bali does not require a visa from, such as the Philippines for example. You can purchase a 30 day visa for $25.00 or if you are planning just a 7 day visit the cost is only $10.00, but it is important to note that you must be a citizen of one of the countries that is on Bali's approved list submitted by the Minister of Law and Human Rights.
For a regular Indonesia tourist visa, since this visa is not extendable and you cannot exchange it for a different one, you must exit Bali, then re-enter again using the VOA procedure in order to extend your Bali visa as a tourist. Processing is fast, just a matter of minutes. It is advisable that you carry US currency to pay for the VOA. If you don't have US currency, you can easily exchange the currency on the spot making your entry and travel to Bali pleasant.
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