Indonesia's visa outcry

Indonesia withdrew the seven-day VOA on January 26 but allowed greater leeway for those with the 30-day VOA, who are now allowed a one-time extension of up to another 30 days. But the extension is irrelevant for the shorthaul markets, whose average length of stay is no more than a week. In fact, these markets were being penalised, argued operators.

While the extension might be good news for longhaul operators, regional operators said doing away with the seven-day VOA might affect overall volume as regional travellers needed to pay an extra 150 per cent on visa charges even if they stayed a week or less.