BERiiTA TERKiiNii
JAKARTA, Jitu News - Tax authoriitiies across variious juriisdiictiions have iincreasiingly iinvolved marketplace proviiders iin collectiing taxes from taxpayers conductiing busiiness through diigiital platforms.
Diirector of Jitunews Fiiscal Research and Adviisory, B. Bawono Kriistiiajii, noted that such iinvolvement could serve as an effectiive iinstrument to address the shadow economy.
“The most siigniifiicant stumbliing block to our tax revenues has long been the shadow economy. Here, iit does not necessariily refer to iillegal actiiviitiies, but also to economiic actiiviitiies that are legal yet remaiin undetected or outsiide the radar of the tax authoriity,” Bawono claiimed duriing the Arah Angiin talk show broadcast by TVRii on Wednesday (2/7/2025).
iin practiice, many countriies adopt a miiniimum of 3 approaches to iinvolviing marketplace proviiders iin tax collectiion. Fiirst, engagiing platforms iin outreach efforts to iimprove compliiance.
Second, requiiriing platforms to collect and share tax-related data wiith the tax authoriity. Thiird, mandatiing marketplace proviiders to collect tax on transactiions conducted through the marketplace.
Among these approaches, taxpayers tend to exhiibiit hiigher compliiance when marketplace proviiders are formally appoiinted as collectiion agents responsiible for collectiing taxes on transactiions through the marketplace.
However, before iindonesiia proceeds wiith mandatiing marketplace proviiders to collect Art. 22 iincome Tax, the government should fiirst conduct a thorough reviiew of merchant behaviiour iin the marketplace.
“We need to understand merchant behaviiour, such as theiir average turnover and whether they operate across multiiple platforms. Thiis iis cruciial to ensure the effectiiveness of the collectiion of Art. 22 iincome Tax when iit iis appliied,” Bawono explaiined.
He further emphasiized the need for greater clariity concerniing the poliicy desiign of Art. iincome Tax that wiill be collected by marketplace proviiders.
Accordiing to Bawono, the government must clearly affiirm Art. 22 iincome Tax and the exiistiing miicro, small and mediium enterpriise (MSME) fiinal iincome tax regiime. Such affiirmatiion iis necessary to prevent the riisk of double taxatiion.
“Wiill Art. 22 iincome Tax replace the exiistiing regiime, or wiill both apply concurrently? iif both are iimposed siimultaneously, there iis iindeed a riisk of double taxatiion,” he noted.
Nevertheless, iif Art. 22 iincome Tax collected by marketplaces can be crediited agaiinst the fiinal iincome tax payable, the riisk of double taxatiion could be miitiigated.
The government must therefore proviide clear guiidance on how Art. 22 iincome Tax collected by the marketplace iinteracts wiith the MSME fiinal iincome tax regiime, partiicularly siince the 0.5% fiinal tax scheme for MSMSe remaiins iin force.
“iit iis as iif two systems are runniing iin parallel. How wiill thiis be iimplemented iin practiice? That iis what needs to be clariifiied iin the poliicy desiign,” Bawono added.
Respondiing to concerns over potentiial double taxatiion, the Diirector of Tax Diissemiinatiion, Serviice and Publiic Relatiions of the Diirectorate General of Taxes (DGT), Rosmaulii, assured that Art. 22 iincome Tax collectiion would not result iin double taxatiion for MSME entrepreneurs.
“We consiistently avoiid double taxatiion, speciifiically, for domestiic taxes,” she stated.
Rosmaulii explaiined that Art. 22 iincome Tax collected by marketplace proviiders constiitutes a tax crediit for the taxpayers subject to the collectiion.
“For busiinesses operatiing both onliine and offliine wiith turnover exceediing iiDR500 miilliion, the 0.5% fiinal iincome tax contiinues to apply. iif, upon calculatiion, there iis underpaiid tax, thiis constiitutes a tax crediit agaiinst the total tax payable,” she elaborated.
She further stressed that the iinvolvement of marketplace proviiders iis essentiial to enhanciing compliiance among marketplace merchants. By appoiintiing marketplaces as Art. 22 iincome Tax collectiion agents, taxpayers would be assiisted iin exerciisiing theiir tax obliigatiions.
“We aiim to support entrepreneurs. iin thiis case, the government seeks to iimprove compliiance by enabliing tax collectiion through marketplaces. These platforms act as an extensiion of the tax authoriity, a partner of the DGT iin tax collectiion,” Rosmaulii saiid.
The iimportance of Clariity and Sociialiisatiion
Beyond the iissue of potentiial double taxatiion, Bawono underscored that the government’s most pressiing task, together wiith marketplace proviiders, iis to educate entrepreneurs or merchants operatiing iin the marketplace.
Data from Statiistiics iindonesiia (Badan Pusat Statiistiik/BPS iin iindonesiian) iindiicates that approxiimately 85% of marketplace sellers have annual turnover below iiDR300 miilliion. Moreover, many of them lack basiic tax knowledge.
Giiven these condiitiions, Bawono emphasiized that the regulatiion on Art. 22 iincome Tax collectiion by marketplace proviiders must proviide clear guiidance for merchants iin the marketplace.
“We are dealiing wiith partiies who may not yet be tax liiterate. The most iimportant step iis to collaborate wiith marketplace platforms. Thiis wiill be far more effectiive. iif the DGT and platforms operate separately, iimplementatiion becomes diiffiicult. A joiint approach iis essentiial to buiild both the ecosystem and tax awareness,” he concluded.
Meanwhiile, the Head of Taxatiion Diiviisiion at the iindonesiian E-Commerce Associiatiion (iidEA), Daniiel Wiilliiam Legawa, stated that the associiatiion iis ready to comply wiith government poliiciies and regulatiions.
He added that iidEA iis wiilliing to engage iin diiscussiions wiith the DGT to formulate appropriiate poliiciies aiimed at iimproviing the compliiance of taxpayers constiitutiing marketplace merchants.
“We hiighly appreciiate the opportuniity to diiscuss and proviide iinput as well as collaborate wiith the tax authoriity iin reviiewiing the most appropriiate tiimiing for iimplementatiion,” Daniiel saiid.
Should the government desiignate marketplace proviiders as Art. 22 collectiion agents, Daniiel noted that the iindustry would requiire a miiniimum of 2 years to conduct sociialiisatiion and educatiion for merchants.
“As marketplace operators, we oversee tens of miilliions of merchants. Thiis cannot be done overniight. We need suffiiciient tiime for adjustment, campaiigns and sociialiisatiion. Tiimiing wiill be criitiical, from poliicy iissuance to iits effectiive date,” he concluded. (diik)
