Life in Bali: the pros and cons, listed honestly

How this piece is built

The easy way to write about Bali is to write a mood: sunsets, coffee, surf, cheap, hard, done with it. We are not going to do that. Every statement here about rules, money and nature rests on a publication by an Indonesian state body that we opened and read. Where no document exists, you will not get a carefully hedged sentence, you will get a plain admission: we do not have the number.

The second constraint is just as firm. We are an estate agency, and a piece about living on the island will carry no yield, no payback period and no promises of income. Tourism arrival figures appear here as context for density, not as an argument about demand.

How long you are actually allowed to stay

We start with the downside that upends half of everyone’s plans. Russia is on the visa-on-arrival country list published by the Indonesian immigration service. But the stay permit that comes with it is short. The immigration page “Izin Tinggal Keimigrasian” puts it this way: for an index B visa the permit is issued for 30 days and “dapat diperpanjang satu kali untuk 30 hari hingga masa tinggal keseluruhan paling lama 60 hari (2 bulan)”, extended exactly once for 30 days, for a total stay of no more than 60 days; for index F the same table row gives 7 days with no right of extension. The legal basis named on the same page is Regulation of the Minister of Law and Human Rights No. 22/2023.

The only extension available on a visa on arrival runs 30 days, and it costs Rp 500,000 per application: annex section C.1 of Government Regulation No. 45/2024. The 60 day and 180 day permit tariffs belong to other visa categories, and on the immigration service page they diverge from that annex, so we do not quote them. The application is filed no earlier than 14 days before the current permit expires and no later than the expiry date itself; if payment clears before that date, no overstay accrues. Living on a short permit is not a lifestyle, it is a calendar with dates you cannot sleep through.

The cost of getting it wrong is stated outright. An overstay of no more than 60 days costs Rp 1,000,000 per day: annex section VI, “DENDA ADMINISTRATIF”, item A.1 of Government Regulation No. 45 of 2024 (promulgated 18 October 2024); beyond 60 days there is no tariff at all. Article 78 of Law No. 6 of 2011 on Immigration completes the picture: someone overstaying by less than 60 days pays the fine; someone who does not pay the fine faces deportation and a re-entry ban; someone overstaying by more than 60 days faces deportation and a re-entry ban that a payment no longer settles, while lifting the ban itself is priced separately at Rp 90,000,000 (section VI, item E of the same annex). For an overstay of no more than 60 days, article 7 of Regulation No. 45/2024 allows a zero tariff on six grounds: a mental disorder requiring hospitalisation, force majeure, being in Indonesia without means, being in deportation proceedings, being in the hands of law enforcement, and carrying out a court decision.

The undramatic conclusion: a long stay in Bali is a question of status, not of how much you want it. Long-term grounds and how they relate to buying are covered in a separate guide article.

The tourist levy, the line everyone argues about

The province collects Rp 150,000 per foreign visitor. The official Love Bali portal makes the key point: the levy is paid once per trip, “the levy is paid only 1 (one) time while traveling in Bali, before the person leaves the territory of the Republic of Indonesia”, and cashless only, through the Love Bali system before arrival, at an airport or seaport counter, or through registered points. The legal basis named by the portal: Law No. 15/2023 on the Province of Bali plus regional instruments including Perda No. 2/2025 and Pergub No. 25/2025.

The upside here is targeted: the exemptions include, among others, KITAS and KITAP holders, holders of family reunification visas, student visas and the golden visa. For someone living on the island with a status, this line of spending simply never appears.

Weather: two seasons, and both are worth reading literally

The rainy season is real. The forecast “Prediksi Musim Hujan 2025/2026 di Indonesia” from the meteorological agency BMKG, published on 2 October 2025, describes the 2025/2026 season that has since ended: “333 ZOM (47,6%) di Indonesia diprediksi akan masuk musim hujan pada bulan September hingga November 2025”. The caveat is mandatory: these are nationwide figures by seasonal zones (ZOM), and the document carries no separate line for Bali.

The dry season is described by the same agency with the same caution. The forecast “Prediksi Musim Kemarau Tahun 2026 di Indonesia (Pemutakhiran Juni 2026)”, published 19 June 2026, states that 198 ZOM, 31.60 percent of Indonesia’s land area, enter the dry season in June 2026 and another 66 zones (7.28 percent) in July; the peak is August 2026 across 369 zones, 48.84 percent of the land area. The same document rates El Nino probability by intensity: 100 percent for a weak event, 98 percent for a moderate one and 62 percent for a strong one. Zones again, not Bali on its own line.

The one Bali specific source we could open breaks the postcard from the other side. In the BMKG section “Peringatan Dini Kekeringan Meteorologis”, the warning for the third ten-day period of August 2026 places Badung, Gianyar, Karangasem, Denpasar and Tabanan in the “Waspada” category, Bangli and Jembrana in “Siaga”, and Buleleng in “Awas”. That is a warning for one specific ten-day period, and it should be read on the BMKG portal rather than in an article.

We publish no average rainfall in millimetres, no count of rainy days and no temperatures for Bali: the BMKG climate normals sit behind a login.

Volcanoes: a status on a date, not a guarantee

As of 30 August 2026, both Agung and Batur are listed at Level I (Normal) on the MAGMA Indonesia portal run by the Geological Agency; 43 of the country’s volcanoes sit at that level. Four volcanoes were at Level III (Siaga) on the same day, among them Lewotobi Laki-laki on Flores, and on Level IV the portal is blunt: “Tidak ada gunung api berstatus Level IV - (Awas)”. That is a calm backdrop, but a backdrop on one specific date: the status is reviewed, and it should be checked on the portal rather than in an article.

Roads: licences, helmets, and what we will not publish

This downside is measurable and almost always underestimated. Article 77(1) of Law No. 22 of 2009 on Road Traffic and Transport requires every driver to hold an Indonesian SIM licence of the right category, and article 281 sets the penalty for driving without one at up to 4 months detention or a fine of up to Rp 1,000,000. A SIM is valid for 5 years (article 85(2)). The most awkward part for a newcomer is article 85(4), and it does not work the way people assume: where a bilateral or multilateral agreement exists between Indonesia and another country, a licence issued by that country is valid in Indonesia; what happens in the absence of an agreement the law does not spell out, and article 85(5) provides for an international licence issued by the Indonesian police.

Helmets get their own article. Article 291(1): riding a motorcycle without a helmet meeting the Indonesian SNI standard carries up to 1 month detention or a fine of up to Rp 250,000, and part 2 extends liability to the rider who carried a passenger without one.

Now traffic, the subject every conversation about Bali starts with. We will not quote a single figure: we found no verifiable data on road congestion across the island. The only thing we are willing to say about density comes from our own Canggu area guide: traffic and density change street by street. That is exactly where our working method comes from, look at the specific lane and the specific exit, not at the name of the area on a map.

Money: the rupiah is mandatory inside the country

Transactions inside Indonesia are settled in rupiah, and that is a rule rather than a habit. Article 2(1) of Bank Indonesia Regulation No. 17/3/PBI/2015 reads: “Setiap pihak wajib menggunakan Rupiah dalam transaksi yang dilakukan di Wilayah Negara Kesatuan Republik Indonesia”, and article 3 extends the requirement to both cash and non-cash transactions. The exceptions are listed in articles 4 and 5, from state budget operations through to banks’ foreign currency business, and the list is not closed: article 5 ends with a clause covering other foreign currency transactions permitted by separate laws. Currency exchange through a licensed operator is taken out of the requirement separately, by article 14. Breaching the rule on non-cash transactions carries an administrative sanction: 1 percent of the transaction value, capped at Rp 1,000,000,000, plus a written warning and a ban on taking part in payment traffic. Article 17 of the same regulation refers cash settlement and refusal to accept the rupiah to the criminal provision: article 33 of Law No. 7 of 2011 on Currency provides for up to 1 year of detention and a fine of up to Rp 200,000,000, while the 1 percent sanction applies to non-cash settlement only (article 18).

On how specific banks’ cards work here and at what rate transfers land, this article says nothing: we did not open a primary source. The mechanics of the cross-border payment for the purchase itself are covered in a separate guide article.

Schools: the SPK regime and what it means for a family

A school teaching a foreign programme that also admits Indonesian children operates as an SPK (Satuan Pendidikan Kerja Sama), a joint institution formed by an accredited foreign school and an Indonesian one. Separately, article 160 of Government Regulation No. 17 of 2010 allows a foreign state’s mission to run a school for its own nationals under its own country’s system, and such a school is barred from admitting Indonesian citizens. For formal education the Indonesian initiator must hold accreditation “A” (article 4(2) of Regulation of the Minister of Education and Culture No. 31 of 2014), and article 4(4) declares cooperation in early childhood and formal education non-profit. The regulation was promulgated on 29 April 2014 and is listed as in force in the peraturan.go.id database.

• Foreign pupils must be taught Indonesian language and Indonesian culture: article 11(4), “Bagi peserta didik WNA wajib diajarkan Bahasa Indonesia dan Budaya Indonesia (Indonesian Studies)”.
• At least 30 percent of the teaching staff must be Indonesian citizens (article 9(2)).
• At least 80 percent of support staff, the head of the institution aside, must also be Indonesian citizens (article 10(4)).
• An SPK school may not refuse an applicant who holds Indonesian citizenship (article 8(2)).
• Every SPK pupil must hold the national student number NISN (article 8(4)).

For a family that is both an upside and a downside: the programme is built into a national frame rather than being a self-contained foreign enclave. We deliberately publish no fee figures, since schools revise their price lists for every academic year.

The island is changing, and the government says so itself

The scale of the flow: according to the Bali Government Tourism Office release for June 2026, January to June 2026 inclusive brought 3,203,156 direct foreign arrivals against 3,282,747 in the same period of 2025, down 2.42 percent. The leading market is Australia with 802,837 people, 25.06 percent. Russians in the same table: 109,595 arrivals, seventh place, a 3.42 percent share; a year earlier 110,078 and ninth place, down 0.44 percent. But these are tourist arrivals: they are not the number of people living here, and they are not an argument about demand for property.

A downside the provincial government acknowledges itself. A publication dated 27 August 2026, citing the statistics service, reports rice field area on Bali falling from roughly 78,626 hectares in 2017 to roughly 68,078 hectares now, with conversion pressure strongest in the tourism growth districts: Badung, Denpasar, Gianyar and Tabanan. The governor is quoted there: “Lahan produktif kita semakin berkurang. Subak mulai terancam”. The same publication names two instruments in force: provincial Perda No. 4 of 2026 on controlling the conversion of productive land and prohibiting the transfer of land ownership through a nominee, and Governor’s Instruction No. 5 of 2025 banning the conversion of agricultural land to other sectors. We could not find the text of that Perda in any official database, so we describe none of its articles or sanctions here.

Energy. On 28 August 2026 the provincial government site published the governor’s statement on a 1,000 MWp solar programme plus 1,550 MW of additional gas generation, phrased as “Bali ditargetkan tidak lagi bergantung secara berkelanjutan pada sumber energi dari luar Bali”: the target is for the island to stop depending on energy sources outside Bali on a sustained basis. The same piece names the policy in force since 2019, Governor’s Regulation No. 45/2019 “Bali Energi Bersih”. Note the genre: that is a stated target, not a measured share of imported energy. We publish no data on power interruptions.

What this article deliberately leaves out

Cost of living in figures: housing, groceries, cafes, fuel, internet, kindergarten, insurance. Medical infrastructure in numbers: hospitals, beds, doctors, waiting times, evacuation. Rabies and dengue statistics. Internet speed and mobile coverage. Water tariffs and availability. Waste volumes and air quality. Power outages. Air links with Russia and consular presence. How Russian cards, transfers and exchange rates work. Crime, road accident and drowning statistics. The island’s population and the size of the Russian speaking community. For each of these we found no primary source we would be willing to cite as of 30 August 2026, and we chose a blank space over a plausible invention.

How this connects to buying

None of the above settles the question of whether you like the place. It settles whether the decision survives a second year. The stay permit calendar decides how often you are physically at the property. Dry spells decide the water and how the plot looks in August rather than in a January photograph. Density on your street, not in your area, decides every school run. And the loss of farmland the government acknowledges is exactly why checking land status and zoning on the specific plot matters more than any view from the window.

We work from a brief: you describe how you intend to live here, we assemble a short list from the catalogue and set out, object by object, what has been checked and what has not. The catalogue is open, the ownership page explains how a foreigner holds property here, and the form at the foot of this page is the shortest route to a real conversation.