Rental contract in Bali: what to check before you sign

Nest team · Last updated: 6 October 2026

Baca dalam Bahasa Indonesia

A rental contract in Bali should say who is renting the home to you and by what right, which home it is and in what condition, how long the lease runs, what you pay, what that includes and how the deposit comes back. It should also settle who pays the bills and the repairs, and what happens if either side wants out early or the villa is sold.

Where Indonesian law sets a rule, this checklist quotes the official text as of October 2026, including the Civil Code (Kitab Undang-Undang Hukum Perdata) in the text published by the Sukoharjo district prosecutor's office. This is general information, not legal advice: check the contract with a licensed notary (PPAT) before you sign.

What should a rental contract in Bali include?

Who is renting to you, and by what right?

Name both parties exactly as on their ID (a KTP, the Indonesian identity card, or a passport), with the number and an address. If an agency or manager signs for the owner, ask for their written authority.

The contract should also show where the landlord's right to rent the home comes from:

• The owner. Their name should match the land certificate (sertifikat); writing its number into the contract ties the two together.
• A tenant who sublets. Attach their own lease, check it runs at least as long as yours, and attach the owner's written permission to sublet. Article 1559 of the Civil Code says a tenant without permission may not pass the lease on, on pain of cancellation, and the owner then "tidak wajib menaati persetujuan ulang sewa itu": isn't bound by the sublease.

Which home, and in what condition?

Describe the property (address, land, buildings, rooms, pool, parking) and attach an inventory with each item's condition and move-in photos, initialled by both sides. The Civil Code gives that list weight:

• With a description (pertelaan), the tenant returns the home as described, except what was lost or lost value through age or through accidental, unavoidable events (Article 1562).
• Without one, the tenant is presumed to have received it in good condition, as far as tenant upkeep goes, unless they prove otherwise, and must return it so (Article 1563).
• The tenant answers for damage during the lease unless they prove it wasn't their fault (Article 1564).

How long does it run, and how does it renew?

Write down the start, end and handover dates. A written lease ends by law when its term is over, without notice (Article 1570). If you stay on and the owner lets you, a new lease arises under the rules for unwritten leases (Article 1573), which end only after one side gives notice, as local custom requires (Article 1571).

A renewal clause avoids that grey zone: whether you can renew, how the new price is set, and by when each side must decide.

What do you pay, and what does it include?

The price clause should give:

• The total, in rupiah. Indonesia's Currency Law says rupiah "wajib digunakan" (must be used) in every transaction with a payment purpose made in Indonesia (Law 7 of 2011, Article 21). If a villa is advertised in dollars or euros, write the agreed rupiah amount into the contract.
• The schedule. One payment, instalments or monthly, with due dates and what happens when a payment is late.
• The account. One in the name of the landlord in the contract, with a receipt for every payment.

Inclusions vary from villa to villa, and Bali Home Immo's long-term rental guide advises confirming "inclusions in writing". List them: pool and garden visits, pool chemicals, cleaning, and which furniture stays.

How much is the deposit, and when does it come back?

There's no fixed standard, so the contract sets the terms: the amount; what it may cover (unpaid bills, damage beyond normal wear, missing items); how deductions are worked out, against the inventory; when and into which account it's paid back after you hand over the keys; and whether it may count towards the last month's rent.

Who pays the bills, the banjar and the repairs?

Bills and the banjar

For each bill, write who pays and in whose name it is: electricity from PLN, water from the mains (PDAM) or a well, internet, gas and rubbish collection. Note the meter reading or prepaid credit on move-in day.

A banjar is the local Balinese community council of a neighbourhood, and some banjars ask residents for a contribution (iuran banjar). Bali Home Immo notes it isn't always charged to tenants but can be. Amounts differ, so ask before you sign and write down who pays.

Repairs

The Civil Code sets defaults that a contract can change:

• The owner hands the home over well maintained, keeps it fit for its purpose and has necessary repairs done, except those that are the tenant's (Articles 1550 and 1551), and answers for defects that get in the way of using it (Article 1552).
• Small everyday repairs fall on the tenant: unless agreed otherwise, things like window shutters, inner locks and window glass. But the owner pays for them when they're needed because of damage to the rented property or force majeure (Article 1583).
• Keeping wells, rainwater tanks and cesspits clean falls on the owner unless agreed otherwise (Article 1584).
• If urgent repairs take more than forty days, the rent must be reduced; if they leave the home uninhabitable, the tenant may end the lease (Article 1555).

None of that mentions air-conditioning, pools or pumps, so write down who services and repairs them, how fast urgent faults are fixed, and whether you may fix and deduct.

Can you sublet, work from home or keep pets?

The Civil Code expects a tenant to use the home "sebagai seorang kepala rumah tangga yang baik" (as a good head of household) and for the agreed purpose (Article 1560). Another use, or one that could cause the owner a loss, can let the owner ask for the lease to be cancelled (Article 1561).

So get anything beyond living there in writing: a business, long-stay guests, pets. On subletting, Article 1559 lets a tenant who lives in a house rent part of it out at their own risk unless the contract forbids it, while passing on the whole lease needs permission. Your contract should say which applies.

What if you or the owner want to end it early?

An agreement made in line with the law binds its parties like a law, and can't be withdrawn except by agreement of both sides or for reasons the law sets (Article 1338). Leaving early is only as easy as your contract makes it, so it should state, for both sides, the notice period, any penalty, whether unused prepaid rent comes back, whether a replacement tenant is allowed, and what counts as a breach.

Also watch for a clause that lets the owner end the lease to use the home themselves: without one, they can't end it for that reason (Article 1579); with one, they must give notice as long in advance as local custom requires (Articles 1578 and 1580).

What happens if the villa is sold, or the owner dies?

A sale doesn't end your lease, unless that was agreed when the home was rented out (Article 1576), and nor does the death of the owner or the tenant (Article 1575). So look for a clause that lets a sale end the lease: if there is one, you can claim compensation only if the contract expressly provides for it (Article 1576). Ask instead for a clause that keeps the lease running for a buyer, or one with notice, a refund and compensation.

Which language, stamp and signatures does it need?

Language

Law 24 of 2009, Article 31, says Bahasa Indonesia must be used in agreements involving an Indonesian citizen or an Indonesian private body, and that with a foreign party they are also written in that party's national language and/or English. If the translation is read differently from the Indonesian, the language that applies is "bahasa yang disepakati", the one agreed in the contract (Presidential Regulation 63 of 2019, Article 26(4)). Neither says what happens to an English-only lease, so this is general information: ask a licensed notary (PPAT). In practice, ask for Indonesian and English side by side, and check that the contract names the language that prevails.

Stamp duty (meterai)

The tax office calls stamp duty "pajak atas dokumen", a tax on documents, including agreements. As of October 2026, its page on stamp duty gives the rate as Rp 10,000, charged once per document. It falls due when the agreement is signed, and with two parties, each owes it on the copy they receive (Law 10 of 2020, Articles 8 and 9).

What about a contract without a stamp? The Civil Code lists four conditions for a valid agreement: consent, capacity, a specific subject and a lawful cause (Article 1320); a stamp isn't one of them. Unpaid duty can be paid later through pemeteraian kemudian, plus an administrative sanction of 100% of the duty owed (Law 10 of 2020, Articles 17 and 18). That doesn't settle every dispute over an unstamped contract: general information only, so check with a licensed notary (PPAT). Stamp each signed original anyway: the duty is owed, and under the law's elucidation, a document whose duty was paid needn't be stamped again when it's used as evidence in court.

Signatures

Both parties sign, date and initial every page and annex, and each keeps a signed original. For a long or high-value lease, you can ask a licensed notary (PPAT) to draw up or review it.

Before you sign: a last check

• You've seen the home, and the inventory matches what's there.
• The landlord is the owner on the certificate, or has the owner's written permission.
• Every amount is in rupiah, with dates, and the deposit terms are written down.
• Each bill and each kind of repair has a name next to it, and leaving early, a sale and renewal are covered.
• You understand the version you sign, and you pay only after signing, into an account in the landlord's name.

Sources

1. Kejaksaan Negeri Sukoharjo: Kitab Undang-Undang Hukum Perdata (Burgerlijk Wetboek voor Indonesie), Staatsblad 1847 No. 23 (accessed 6 October 2026)
2. JDIH Kementerian Sekretariat Negara: UU Nomor 24 Tahun 2009 tentang Bendera, Bahasa, dan Lambang Negara, serta Lagu Kebangsaan (PDF) (accessed 6 October 2026)
3. JDIH Kementerian Sekretariat Negara: Perpres Nomor 63 Tahun 2019 tentang Penggunaan Bahasa Indonesia (PDF) (accessed 6 October 2026)
4. Direktorat Jenderal Pajak: Bea Meterai (accessed 6 October 2026)
5. JDIH Kementerian Sekretariat Negara: UU Nomor 10 Tahun 2020 tentang Bea Meterai (PDF) (accessed 6 October 2026)
6. JDIH Kementerian Sekretariat Negara: UU Nomor 7 Tahun 2011 tentang Mata Uang (PDF) (accessed 6 October 2026)
7. Bali Home Immo: Your guide to long-term rental in Bali today (accessed 6 October 2026)