A Week of Immigration Enforcement in Bali: Online Lending, Gambling and a Villa Marketed on a Tourist Visa

It has been a busy week for immigration officers in Bali. Two raids on rented homes led to 38 foreigners being detained, a woman was deported for marketing a villa while on a tourist visa, and an overstayer was picked up in Denpasar. Here is what the reports say about Bali immigration enforcement this week, and what it does and doesn’t mean for visitors.

The short version: 17 Malaysians and Singaporeans were detained over a suspected online lending operation run from a villa in Dalung, North Kuta, and 21 people from Myanmar, Vietnam and China over a suspected online gambling operation in Kuta. A Czech woman was deported for promoting a villa for sale on a visa on arrival, and two French nationals were flagged over an adult video filmed in Karangasem. No convictions have been announced in any of these cases.

The Online Lending Raid

According to The Bali Times (October 27), immigration officers raided a villa in Dalung, North Kuta, on October 22 and detained 17 foreign nationals, 15 Malaysians and two Singaporeans. Officials said the villa was being used as a temporary base for online personal loans aimed at customers outside Indonesia, with three people allegedly acting as managers and 14 as administrators. Loans were advertised on Facebook, with prospects directed to WhatsApp, and interest of 20 to 30 percent was reportedly charged.

Officers seized computers, phones, passports, documents and cash, and three people tried to escape over the back wall before being stopped. The report says there is no indication any Indonesian citizens were customers, and that the case concerns suspected misuse of stay permits and inaccurate information in visa applications. It hasn’t been described as fraud, and all 17 are in temporary immigration detention.

The Online Gambling Raid

On the morning of Thursday, October 29, officers raided two houses at a residential complex in Kuta after several days of surveillance, The Bali Times and ANTARA reported. They detained 21 people, 12 from Myanmar, eight from Vietnam and one from China, and seized dozens of phones and laptops. The group is suspected of running an illegal gambling website with payments processed through Alipay and WeChat Pay.

Initial checks showed some held pre-investment visit visas and others remote-worker stay permits. The outlets frame the permit question differently: ANTARA says the suspects entered and lived in Bali on valid immigration documents and were held over alleged stay-permit violations, while The Bali Times describes suspected misuse of the permits. ANTARA quotes the Director General of Immigration as promising “zero tolerance for stay permit violations.”

A Villa Marketed on a Tourist Visa

The case most relevant to villa owners concerns a 46-year-old Czech woman who entered Bali on a visa on arrival. According to The Bali Times (October 26), officers found she had been promoting a villa for sale in Abang, Karangasem, through her personal Facebook account, and a sale notice at the property listed her phone number. The Buleleng Immigration Office said this was not permitted under the conditions of her stay. She was deported through Ngurah Rai airport on October 16, and immigration proposed adding her to the entry-ban list. The office head said every foreign national must use a visa and stay permit in line with the purpose of their visit.

It echoes a case we reported earlier this month, when an American was among 10 foreigners deported partly for promoting a villa outside his permit.

Two Other Cases

On October 23, Denpasar immigration officers found a 28-year-old Nigerian man in West Denpasar whose stay permit had expired 155 days earlier; no sanction had been announced when The Bali Times reported it on October 28. And two French nationals who visited Bali in January on visas on arrival have been flagged in the immigration system after an adult video believed to have been filmed at a property in Karangasem was uploaded online in August. Both had already left Indonesia. The Bali Times reports that Governor Wayan Koster wrote to the immigration minister and French diplomatic representatives, saying Bali remains open to visitors but expects respect for local law and culture.

What It Means for You

This part is our reading. None of these cases involves an ordinary holiday. They concern people allegedly working, running businesses, or marketing property on permits that don’t allow it, overstaying, or filming content that breaches local law. If you’re visiting on a visa on arrival and simply staying in a villa, nothing in these reports changes anything for you. If you plan to work, promote or sell anything in Bali, check what your specific permit allows first. For context on the rules villas themselves must follow, see our report on the villa licensing push.

Quick Answers About Bali Immigration Enforcement

How many foreigners were detained this week? At least 38 in the two raids, plus one overstayer, according to the reports we read.

Have they been deported? Not as far as the reports say. The lending and gambling groups are in immigration custody while investigations continue. The Czech woman was deported on October 16.

Can I promote a villa while on a tourist visa? According to Buleleng Immigration, doing so was outside the conditions of the woman’s stay, which led to her deportation.

The Chimera Villas Take

Clear rules protect guests, owners and the island’s reputation, and this week shows officers are enforcing them. As always, we’ve stuck to what the reports say rather than guess at what lies behind each case. If you’re planning a stay in Seminyak, you can check our villa availability whenever you’re ready.