2025 Fiscal Stimulus Package
Just a day after his inauguration on September 9, 2025, the new Minister of Finance was immediately confronted with pressing fiscal challenges, ranging from stagnant economic growth and high unemployment to persistent inequality reflected in the Gini ratio.
According to Statistics Indonesia (2025), Indonesia’s economy grew 5.12% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2025. On a quarter-to-quarter basis, growth reached 4.99%.
From a labor market perspective, Statistics Indonesia also reported that the open unemployment rate in February 2025 stood at 4.76% of the total workforce. This marked a slight decrease of 0.06% compared to the same period in the previous year. However, when compared with other Southeast Asian countries, Indonesia’s unemployment rate remains relatively high.
Malaysia, for instance, recorded an unemployment rate of 3% in June 2025. Vietnam and Singapore reported lower figures at 2.24% and 2.1%, respectively. Meanwhile, Laos and Thailand posted the lowest unemployment rates in the region, at 1.2% and 0.89% (Tempo, 2025).
To address these socio-economic and labor challenges, the new Minister of Finance, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, announced plans to introduce a fiscal stimulus package. The package will include a paid internship program for fresh graduates as well as an expansion of government-borne tax incentives for the hotel, restaurant, and catering sectors (Antara, 2025).
Earlier this year, under Minister of Finance Regulation Number 10 of 2025, the government had already introduced fiscal incentives in the form of government-borne Article 21 income tax for labor-intensive industries.
These incentives applied to workers who met specific criteria. First, those who work in the footwear, textile, apparel, or furniture industries. Second, those with a registered taxpayer identification number (Nomor Pokok Wajib Pajak/NPWP) or national identification number (Nomor Induk Kependudukan/NIK) in the Directorate General of Taxes system. Third, those earning a fixed gross income of less than IDR 10,000,000 per month or a non-fixed income of less than IDR 500,000 per day.
The regulation states that one of the objectives of these incentives is to preserve household purchasing power while fulfilling the broader role of economic and social stabilization. In this context, the government has recognized the need to design an economic stimulus package aimed at safeguarding public welfare, particularly through government-borne tax incentives.
That said, the design of fiscal stimulus must adhere to three principles. It must be timely, targeted, and temporary. Timely means the stimulus must be introduced when the economy shows signs of slowing down, ensuring it effectively supports growth momentum. Targeted means incentives should be directed only to industries most in need of support, as providing them to sectors already growing rapidly could instead lead to market saturation or stagnation. Finally, temporary means incentives should be phased out once the intended growth targets are achieved. Otherwise, industries may become dependent on them.
If implemented consistently, these principles could ensure that the fiscal incentives for the hotel, restaurant, and catering industries catalyze both national and regional economic growth.
References
- AntaraPaket stimulus ekonomi mencakup program magang hingga insentif pajak
- Badan Pusat Statistik2025Berita Resmi Statistik: Keadaan Ketenagakerjaan Indonesia Februari 20252025Badan Pusat Statistik
- Badan Pusat Statistik2025Pertumbuhan Ekonomi Indonesia Triwulan II-2025JakartaBadan Pusat Statistik
- TempoIndonesia Unemployment Rate Remains Highest in ASEAN in 2025
