Inspired by the motion picture How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, but governed by Indonesian citizenship law rather than Hollywood rules.
Let me start with the uncomfortable truth: you cannot simply decide to “break up” with Indonesian citizenship in 90 days and expect the government to process it like a streaming subscription cancellation. Indonesian citizenship is a legal status, and losing it requires a statutory basis, supporting documents, government verification, and, in some cases, a decision by the President.
Still, if you treated this like a legal checklist, the first 90 days could be used to prepare a valid application or report. The actual loss of citizenship may take longer, and there is no general rule promising completion within 90 days.
The main legal foundation is Law Number 12 of 2006 concerning Indonesian Citizenship, commonly called the Citizenship Law. Its procedures are further regulated by Government Regulation Number 2 of 2007, as amended by Government Regulation Number 21 of 2022. Administrative services are also handled through the Ministry of Law, including its Directorate General of General Legal Administration, or Ditjen AHU.
Day 1: Understand What “Losing Citizenship” Actually Means
Indonesian citizenship is not merely a passport, identity card, or place of residence. It is a legal relationship between an individual and the Republic of Indonesia. Losing citizenship means that this legal relationship ends, together with many rights and obligations attached to Indonesian nationality.
That can affect your Indonesian passport, identity documents, voting rights, access to certain public positions, immigration status, taxation, land ownership, inheritance planning, and your ability to enter or stay in Indonesia.
The Citizenship Law follows a limited approach to dual citizenship. Indonesian law generally does not allow an adult to freely hold Indonesian citizenship and another citizenship at the same time. Children in certain mixed-marriage or other legally recognized circumstances may hold limited dual citizenship, but they must later choose one nationality.
So, if you are thinking, “I have another passport, therefore I am no longer Indonesian,” slow down. That conclusion may be legally wrong or incomplete. The government may need to verify the facts and formally record the loss of Indonesian citizenship.
Day 7: Check Whether One of the Legal Grounds Applies
Article 23 of Law Number 12 of 2006 lists the circumstances in which an Indonesian citizen may lose Indonesian citizenship. These grounds include voluntary acquisition of another citizenship, failure to reject another citizenship when given the opportunity, voluntary service in certain foreign institutions, and other conduct showing a legal connection to a foreign state.
The principal grounds are as follows:
- First, an Indonesian citizen may lose citizenship by acquiring another citizenship voluntarily. This is covered by Article 23 letter a. The word “voluntarily” matters. A person should not assume that every foreign nationality obtained automatically, administratively, or by operation of another country’s law produces exactly the same result.
- Second, citizenship may be lost where a person does not reject or release another citizenship despite having the opportunity to do so, under Article 23 letter b. This is particularly relevant to people who have acquired another nationality through family status, residence, marriage, or another legal mechanism.
- Third, an Indonesian citizen may request that the President declare the person’s Indonesian citizenship lost. Article 23 letter c provides that this route is available when the person is at least 18 years old or already married, lives outside Indonesia, and will not become stateless as a result.
- That final condition is critical. Indonesia does not create a simple path for a person to make themselves stateless. If you would have no citizenship after losing Indonesian nationality, the application may fail.
Other grounds under Article 23 include entering a foreign military service without prior Presidential permission, voluntarily entering certain foreign government services, voluntarily taking an oath of allegiance to a foreign state, participating in certain constitutional elections in another country, holding a valid foreign passport or passport-like document, and living outside Indonesia for five (5) consecutive years without a valid reason while failing to declare the desire to remain Indonesian after proper written notification.
That last ground is not a 90-day rule. It is a five-year rule, followed by additional requirements involving notice and failure to make the required declaration.
Day 15: Do not confuse foreign residence with citizenship loss
Living overseas does not automatically mean that you lose Indonesian citizenship. Many Indonesians live, work, study, or run businesses abroad while remaining Indonesian citizens.
Article 23 letter i deals with a specific situation: residence outside Indonesia for five continuous years, not for government service, without a valid reason, combined with a deliberate failure to declare the wish to remain an Indonesian citizen before the period ends and during each later five-year period. The Indonesian representative must also have provided written notification, and the person must not become stateless.
This means that a person working in Singapore, studying in Australia, or managing a company in Europe should not panic simply because they have been abroad for several years. The facts, purpose of residence, notices, declarations, and citizenship status all matter.
A passport renewal, overseas address, or foreign tax residency is not automatically equivalent to a formal loss of Indonesian citizenship. Legal status should be confirmed through the proper government channel.
Day 30: Decide which legal pathway fits your situation
The procedure depends on how citizenship was lost or is expected to be lost.
If you are asking the President to declare your Indonesian citizenship lost based on your own application, the relevant route is connected to Article 23 letter c. The official AHU guidance describes this as an application for loss of Indonesian citizenship upon the applicant’s own request to the President.
If you already hold foreign citizenship or a foreign passport, your case may instead involve a report or request for a certificate confirming loss of Indonesian citizenship. The AHU citizenship system provides different service categories depending on the factual basis, including loss by operation of law and loss upon personal request.
This distinction matters because the legal route is not selected merely by preference. You cannot choose the fastest-looking menu if the underlying facts do not match it. The authority will examine whether the documents, foreign nationality, age, residence, passport status, and other conditions support the application.
Day 45: Prepare the evidence
The implementation rules in Government Regulation Number 2 of 2007 provide the procedural framework for acquiring, losing, cancelling, and regaining Indonesian citizenship. Government Regulation Number 21 of 2022 amended that framework and is currently listed as in force.
In practical terms, you should expect to provide documents proving your identity, Indonesian citizenship, residence outside Indonesia, foreign citizenship or legal ability to obtain it, and your personal circumstances.
The AHU online guidance for an application based on personal request asks for information such as your full name, date and place of birth, marital status, occupation, Indonesian citizenship, foreign citizenship, reason for the application, overseas address, birth certificate details, Indonesian passport details, and, where relevant, marriage documents and spouse information.
Supporting documents may need to be copied, legalized, translated, or verified by the Indonesian representative or the issuing authority. The current AHU portal also warns applicants to attach complete copies of required documents and to ensure that legalization requirements are satisfied.
This is the part where many applications go wrong. A missing legalization stamp, inconsistent spelling between documents, expired passport, incomplete marriage record, or unclear evidence of foreign nationality can delay verification.
My advice is simple: do not begin with the form. Begin with a document audit. Compare your name, birth details, marital status, passport numbers, and addresses across every document. Fix inconsistencies before you submit.
Day 60: Submit through the official system
The AHU guidance describes an electronic process through the citizenship administration system. You generally need to register an account, activate it through email, log in, select the appropriate citizenship service, complete the applicant information, review the declaration, and upload the required documents.
The process may include a government fee or payment voucher. Keep every receipt, confirmation email, uploaded file, and verification notice.
Submitting an online application does not itself cancel your citizenship. It begins an administrative review. The authority may request corrections, additional evidence, clarification, or legalized documents.
For applications that require Presidential action, the Ministry reviews and processes the application before it reaches the decision-making stage. The President’s decision is the legally significant event. An applicant should not treat a submission receipt as proof that citizenship has already ended.
This is why the title’s 90-day promise is deliberately misleading. In a movie, the plan has a deadline because the plot needs one. In citizenship law, the timeline depends on document completeness, verification, inter-agency clearance, the type of application, and the required decision.
Day 75: Understand what happens if the application succeeds
If the application is approved or the loss is legally established, the consequences can be substantial.
You may no longer use an Indonesian passport as an Indonesian citizen. Your Indonesian identity documents may need to be updated or surrendered according to the applicable administrative process. Your future entry into Indonesia may be treated under immigration rules applicable to a foreign national.
You may also lose eligibility for rights reserved for Indonesian citizens. Depending on the circumstances, this can affect public office, voting, certain professions, government services, and ownership or control of assets subject to Indonesian nationality restrictions.
Land ownership deserves special attention. Indonesian agrarian law distinguishes between rights available to Indonesian citizens and rights available to foreigners. If you own land or other assets in Indonesia, you should obtain advice before finalizing a citizenship-loss application. Losing citizenship may create deadlines, restructuring needs, tax consequences, or disputes involving property and family members.
Business interests also require planning. A foreign national may still own or operate a business in Indonesia, but the structure, licensing, investment classification, work authorization, and immigration position may change.
Bank accounts, securities, insurance policies, pension rights, inheritance arrangements, and social-security records should also be reviewed. Citizenship loss is not just a passport issue. It can be a cross-border legal event affecting your entire personal and financial position.
Day 90: Do not assume you can change your mind
The most dangerous misconception is that losing Indonesian citizenship is reversible whenever you feel nostalgic for nasi goreng, family gatherings, or your old KTP.
Regaining Indonesian citizenship is a separate legal process. Article 32 of Law Number 12 of 2006 and the implementing regulations provide a framework for regaining citizenship, but approval is not automatic. Depending on the circumstances, a former Indonesian citizen may need to apply through the relevant procedure and satisfy statutory requirements.
The authority may examine your identity, previous citizenship, residence, criminal record, family situation, loyalty, and other legal requirements. The fact that you were previously Indonesian does not necessarily mean you can return immediately to the same status.
That is why I would treat citizenship renunciation as a permanent strategic decision, not a dramatic 90-day challenge. If your real goal is to obtain a foreign passport, simplify travel, or resolve a dual-nationality problem, you should first compare alternatives such as retaining Indonesian citizenship, making a required nationality choice, seeking a certificate of status, or obtaining an immigration solution.
The Real Lesson from the Movie
The movie How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days is built around exaggerated behavior, misunderstandings, and a deadline. Indonesian citizenship law is much less entertaining and much more expensive to get wrong.
You do not lose Indonesian citizenship merely because you dislike bureaucracy, move abroad, obtain a residence permit, or submit an online form. You need a legal ground under Article 23 of Law Number 12 of 2006, compliance with the applicable procedures under Government Regulation Number 2 of 2007 as amended by Government Regulation Number 21 of 2022, and, where required, a formal government decision.
So, can you lose Indonesian citizenship in 90 days? Possibly, in an individual case with clear facts, complete documents, and an efficient administrative process. But the law does not guarantee that result, and no responsible adviser should promise it.
The better 90-day plan is this: confirm your citizenship position, identify the correct legal ground, verify that you will not become stateless, prepare legalized documents, obtain tax and asset advice, submit through the official AHU channel, and wait for the legally competent authority to decide.
That may not make a blockbuster romantic comedy. It will, however, keep you from turning a paperwork problem into a citizenship disaster.
My name is Wijaya, writing for Wijaya & Co. We orchestrate to assist you navigate. Thank you for reading my posts.
Legal note: This article is general information, not legal advice. Citizenship, immigration, tax, property, and family consequences should be reviewed with an Indonesian citizenship lawyer like Wijaya & Co before you submit anything.