Before you start

KITAS or KITAP valid at least six months, plus passport and photocopies
SKTT or another accepted address proof — issued by the city or regency you actually live in
An employer introduction letter, which most branches want and which the payroll route supplies automatically
An NPWP tax number, increasingly requested as accounts are linked into the Coretax system

Step-by-step

1
Have Wise or Revolut working before you land
This is your first two months. Hold IDR, spend by card, withdraw cash at bank-branch ATMs. It also remains useful afterwards, because receiving foreign income into an Indonesian account triggers source-of-funds documentation that a multi-currency account does not.
Mobile appWho: Anyone, before arrivalSame day; card delivery takes 1–2 weeksFree to open; FX around 0.4–0.6%
2
Take the employer payroll account, even if it is not your preferred bank
Corporate payroll relationships bypass branch discretion because the bank already holds the company's file and has processed its foreign staff before. In Surabaya, where fewer branches deal with foreigners, this matters more than it does in Jakarta. Open your own second account later once you have an Indonesian banking history to point at.
Via employerWho: Your employer's HR or finance teamDays
3
If you go alone, choose a large branch and bring more paperwork than asked
Head-office branches and those in the western housing clusters and the CBD handle foreign customers more readily than small neighbourhood branches. Bring passport, KITAS, SKTT, employer letter, NPWP if you have it, and the opening deposit, and ask for customer service rather than the teller queue. Bringing a colleague who speaks Indonesian is not an admission of defeat — it is the practical difference between one visit and three.
In personWho: YouSame day if the branch is willingOpening deposit commonly IDR 500,000–1,000,000
4
Set up QRIS and expect to use it constantly
Bank Indonesia's single QR standard means one printed merchant code works with every bank app and e-wallet. In Surabaya, where card terminals are much less common outside malls than in Jakarta, this is how you pay for food, parking, small shops and services. Install a bank app or GoPay, DANA or OVO, and stop carrying large amounts of cash.
Mobile appWho: Anyone with a supported wallet or local accountImmediate
5
Plan cash around annual rent, not around daily spending
Surabaya landlords expect a year in advance, which for a family house is a large single transfer. ATM withdrawal caps are low — commonly IDR 2.5–3 million a time — so cash is the wrong instrument. Do it as a bank transfer from a local account with a written receipt, which also gives you the evidence trail that a cash handover does not.
OnlineWho: YouAt lease signing

Documents you’ll need

Passport valid six months or more, with photocopies
KITAS or KITAP
SKTT from your city or regency civil registry, or a stamped lease plus address confirmation
Employer introduction letter
NPWP once issued

Things most newcomers don’t know

The payroll account is worth more in Surabaya than in Jakarta, because branch discretion bites harder here.

National rules permit a foreigner with a stay permit and address proof to open an account, but the compliance officer at each branch decides what satisfies that. In a city with far fewer foreign residents, a given branch may never have done it. The corporate payroll relationship sidesteps the judgement entirely, which is why almost everyone here ends up at their employer's bank.

Source: OJK framework; consistent practitioner reporting

QRIS carries more of daily life here than a debit card does.

Bank Indonesia mandated one national QR standard, so any merchant code works with any app — and outside Surabaya's malls, card terminals are much less common than they are in Jakarta. Newcomers who set up cards and skip QRIS end up carrying cash for exactly the transactions the standard was built to handle.

Source: Bank Indonesia — QRIS

A year's rent moves by transfer, not by cash, and that decision protects you later.

Withdrawal limits make a large cash handover several trips and several fees, and it leaves you with no evidence of payment. A transfer from a named account with a written receipt is your only real protection in a country with no deposit-protection scheme and a tenancy framework that is essentially whatever the contract says.

Source: Indonesian Civil Code tenancy practice; practitioner guidance

Bank Jatim, the East Java regional development bank, sits behind a lot of provincial payments.

Regional development banks handle much of the provincial and municipal payments infrastructure in their province. You are unlikely to want it as your main account, but if you deal with provincial fees, school payments or local government transactions, you may find the counterparty account is at Bank Jatim and the transfer is simpler if you are too.

Source: Bank Jatim; East Java provincial administration

Common mistakes to avoid

Arriving at a small neighbourhood branch with only a passport and KITAS and being turned away for want of an address document.
Declining the employer payroll account on brand preference and then spending weeks on branch discretion.
Trying to open an account on a visit visa or visa-on-arrival, which does not work for a standard account.
Paying a year's rent in cash across multiple ATM withdrawals, with no receipt and no transfer record.
Delaying the NPWP and paying penalty-rate withholding on Indonesian employment income in the meantime.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.