Regulation Watch · Business Licensing · Indonesia, for exports of specified fresh bananas and pineapples to Japan under the Indonesia-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (IJ-EPA), including exports by PT PMA and PT PMDN businesses.
Japan Export Quotas Expand for Bananas and Pineapples
Permendag 21/2026 raises Indonesia's IJ-EPA duty-free national quota to 4,000 metric tons of bananas and 800 metric tons of pineapples a year, updates eligible tariff lines, and moves exporter eligibility to NIB-based documentation.
- Published
- Established on 30 July and promulgated on 31 July 2026 in State Bulletin 2026 No. 538.
- Effective
- The regulation took effect on 1 August 2026. Export-quota documents issued under applications for the updated national quota apply from 1 October 2026; the pre-existing first-stage 2026 quota documents expired on 30 September 2026.
- Added to Watch
- 2 October 2026
Who is affected
Indonesian exporters of qualifying fresh bananas or pineapples to Japan, including PT PMA and PT PMDN agribusinesses; growers and packers in their supply chains; Japanese buyers and importers; directors and trade-compliance teams; customs brokers; and advisers responsible for tariff classification, export quota, Quota Certificate, origin and shipment documentation.
Practical impact
The amendment replaces the annual national quota with 4,000 metric tons for the listed fresh-banana tariff lines and 800 metric tons for qualifying fresh pineapples weighing under 900 grams, whether or not crowned. The quota supports Japan's 0% preferential import-duty treatment under IJ-EPA but is not self-executing: the exporter still needs an allocated Export Quota and a Quota Certificate for each shipment. For a first-stage allocation, or for a new applicant seeking a second-stage allocation, the legal-document package is now NIB, NPWP and the Japan export contract instead of SIUP, TDP, NPWP and contract. An exporter continuing into the second stage reapplies with its export contract. The 2026 transition makes the updated quota documents operative from 1 October.
Permendag 21/2026 was established on 30 July and promulgated on 31 July 2026 in State Bulletin No. 538. It took effect on 1 August and implements the amended Indonesia-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement protocol ratified by Presidential Regulation 32/2026. The change is operationally important for businesses seeking Japan's 0% preferential import-duty treatment for qualifying banana and pineapple shipments.
The replacement attachment sets the annual national quota at 4,000 metric tons for the listed fresh-banana tariff lines and 800 metric tons for fresh pineapples under 900 grams, whether or not crowned. The banana schedule now expressly lists fresh plantain, lady's finger, cavendish, chestnut or berangan and other covered fresh-banana lines. Product identity, weight and tariff classification should therefore be checked before the export contract and quota application are finalized.
The amendment also modernizes the first-stage allocation file. An exporter now attaches its NIB, NPWP and Japan export contract, replacing the earlier SIUP and TDP documents. A continuing exporter seeking the second-stage allocation reapplies with its export contract, while another exporter may enter the second stage using the full NIB, NPWP and contract package. The allocation remains a written application to the Director General of Foreign Trade rather than an automatic benefit of holding an NIB.
Quota allocation and shipment documentation remain separate controls. The exporter must receive an Export Quota allocation and then obtain a Quota Certificate for each shipment using the pro forma invoice and prescribed form. Exporters should reconcile the seller and buyer identities, HS code, contract, invoice, certificate, origin documentation and shipped quantity, and must continue reporting export realization within ten working days after export.
The 2026 transition has now completed. First-stage quota documents issued before the amendment remained valid only through 30 September. Applications for the updated national quota could be submitted from 1 August, and the resulting quota documents apply from 1 October, which is also the start of the second allocation stage. Exporters that did not complete the transition should not assume that an expired first-stage document supports a shipment after 30 September.
The regulation does not waive other Indonesian or Japanese requirements. Exporters still need to coordinate origin, customs, phytosanitary, product-quality, food-safety, labelling, packing and logistics controls with the buyer and service providers. A missing or inconsistent quota document can remove the intended 0% tariff benefit even where the goods themselves are commercially acceptable.
Required action
- Confirm that the product and exact HS line fall within the replacement attachment: the banana schedule covers the listed fresh-banana lines, while qualifying pineapple is fresh, under 900 grams and within ex 0804.30.00.
- If applying for the first-stage allocation, or entering the second stage as a new exporter, submit the written application to the Director General of Foreign Trade with copies of the active NIB, NPWP and Japan export contract; a continuing second-stage exporter must reapply with the export contract.
- Obtain a Quota Certificate for each shipment after the Export Quota allocation is issued, using the required pro forma invoice and completed certificate form, and align the exporter, importer, HS code and shipment quantity across all documents.
- Coordinate the IJ-EPA origin, Japanese import, customs, phytosanitary, product-quality, labelling, packing and logistics documents with the buyer before loading; the quota instrument does not replace those separate requirements.
- Track allocation use against the annual and stage limits, prevent shipments from exceeding the approved quantity, and retain the application, allocation, certificates, contracts, invoices, origin evidence and customs records in one audit file.
- Submit the export-realization report to the Director General or appointed official within ten working days after each export, as required by the continuing underlying regulation.