Regulation Watch · Tax Compliance · Indonesia, for exports during October 2026 of CPO, cocoa beans, specified leather, wood and pine-resin products, and branded RBD palm olein in packages with a net weight of no more than 25 kilograms, including exports by eligible PT PMA and PT PMDN companies.
October Export Charges Rise for CPO and Cocoa
Kepmendag 1921/2026 raises October's CPO reference price to USD 1,042.15 per metric ton and cocoa's export benchmark to USD 5,686, while Kepmendag 1922/2026 refreshes the packaged palm-olein brands eligible for the USD 48-per-ton export-duty treatment.
- Published
- Kepmendag 1921/2026 and Kepmendag 1922/2026 were established on 29 September 2026. The Ministry of Trade JDIH records the ministerial decisions without a separate State Gazette promulgation date, and the Ministry published its implementation release on 1 October 2026.
- Effective
- The benchmark prices and packaged palm-olein brand lists apply to exports from 1 through 31 October 2026.
- Added to Watch
- 4 October 2026
Who is affected
Indonesian exporters of CPO, cocoa beans, specified leather, wood and pine-resin products, and branded packaged RBD palm olein; their foreign and domestic shareholders; directors; customs brokers; and finance, tax, trade-compliance, treasury, logistics and sales teams responsible for export declarations, pricing and margin control.
Practical impact
For October, the CPO reference price rises 3.44% to USD 1,042.15 per metric ton. Under the applicable Ministry of Finance schedules, this produces a CPO export duty of USD 178 per metric ton and an export levy equal to 12.5% of the reference price, or USD 130.269 per metric ton. The cocoa reference price rises to USD 6,057.87 and its export benchmark to USD 5,686 per metric ton, resulting in a 7.5% export duty and a 7.5% export levy under the cited tariff schedules. Branded RBD palm olein in packages up to 25 kilograms carries an export duty of USD 48 per metric ton only where the brand, owner and producer are listed in Kepmendag 1922/2026. Pine-resin and several wood benchmarks fall, other wood benchmarks rise, and leather and specified wood benchmarks remain unchanged, so exporters must use the exact commodity and tariff-line value in the official attachment rather than applying a headline rate across a product group.
The Ministry of Trade established Kepmendag 1921/2026 and Kepmendag 1922/2026 on 29 September for exports during October. The first decision sets the monthly export benchmark and reference prices for covered agricultural and forestry products. The second lists the domestic and foreign brands, brand owners and Indonesian producers of packaged RBD palm olein that qualify for the specified export-duty treatment. The JDIH records the ministerial decisions without a separate State Gazette promulgation date.
For CPO, the October reference price is USD 1,042.15 per metric ton, USD 34.64 or 3.44% above September. Applying the Ministry of Finance schedules cited by the Ministry of Trade gives an export duty of USD 178 per metric ton and an export levy of 12.5% of the reference price, equivalent to USD 130.269 per metric ton. Exporters should incorporate both charges into shipment costing rather than treating the reference-price increase as market information only.
The cocoa reference price rises to USD 6,057.87 per metric ton and the export benchmark to USD 5,686, increases of 7.49% and 7.88% respectively. The Ministry's release states that the resulting October export duty and export levy for cocoa beans are each 7.5% under the applicable Ministry of Finance schedules. Product classification and shipment timing therefore determine the amount payable and should be checked before the export declaration is filed.
For branded RBD palm olein in packages with a net weight of no more than 25 kilograms, the stated export duty is USD 48 per metric ton. Eligibility depends on the detailed October list in Kepmendag 1922/2026, which identifies the brand, owner and Indonesian producer. A matching product description alone is not enough where the commercial brand or production entity does not match the attachment.
The October decision also changes several forestry benchmarks. Pine-resin HPE falls to USD 1,020 per metric ton, some veneer, plywood, wood-chip and processed-wood benchmarks fall, and other processed-wood benchmarks rise. Leather and specified wood benchmarks remain unchanged. Exporters must therefore use the line-level attachment for the exact product and HS classification rather than generalising from the direction of one commodity group.
The immediate compliance task is a shipment-by-shipment October review. Finance and customs teams should align the HS code, quantity, shipment date, reference or benchmark price, tariff schedule, brand eligibility, declaration, payment and customer invoice. They should also review Incoterms and price-adjustment clauses so the increased CPO and cocoa charges do not become an unplanned margin loss, then replace the October parameters when the Ministry issues the November decisions.
Required action
- Identify every export scheduled from 1 through 31 October 2026 that falls within the agricultural or forestry tariff lines covered by Kepmendag 1921/2026, and map the exact HS code, product specification and shipment date to the official attachment.
- Recalculate export duty, export levy, selling margin and customer quotation for CPO and cocoa shipments using the October reference and benchmark prices together with the applicable Ministry of Finance tariff schedules.
- For RBD palm olein in branded packages of no more than 25 kilograms, verify that the brand, brand owner and producing company match Kepmendag 1922/2026 before applying the USD 48-per-metric-ton duty treatment.
- Update customs-declaration instructions and broker worksheets, and reconcile the declared quantity, customs value, export duty, export levy and payment evidence before goods are released for export.
- Review contracts with foreign buyers for tax, duty, price-adjustment and Incoterms clauses so the October cost change is allocated correctly and does not create an unplanned exporter margin loss.
- Keep both ministerial decisions, their attachments, calculations, payment evidence, sales documents and export declarations in the October shipment file, and monitor the Ministry of Trade for the replacement November decisions.