Safeguarding international schools in Indonesia: country guide

A school that teaches a foreign curriculum in Indonesia usually runs as a cooperation education unit, called satuan pendidikan kerja sama (SPK), under Education Ministry Regulation 31 of 2014. The regulation bars the word "international" from an SPK's name.

An online legal database summarises the rules and lists them as in force but marks that status as unreviewed. The education minister, or a person the minister names, issues the permit. The school needs a foreign partner accredited in its home country, and Indonesian students must study religion, civics and Indonesian.

Primary and secondary schools now sit under the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education (Kemendikdasmen). Ask your Head which office holds your permit, and keep a copy in the safeguarding file.

Accreditors sit on top of the licence. Each keeps its own directory, so check the current list for your school.

• IB: the IB country page shows 83 IB World Schools in Indonesia.
• CIS: publishes child protection standards on allegation management, staff selection and reporting abuse.
• ACS WASC: its school directory lists accredited schools across Indonesia.
• COBIS: lists a Jakarta school among its provisional schools.

The main law is Law 35 of 2014, which amended the 2002 Child Protection Law. It defines a child as anyone under 18, as the law's text on pasal.id shows.

Article 54 says children in and around schools must be protected from physical and psychological violence, sexual crimes and other crimes. The protection covers harm by educators, school staff, other students and outsiders. Educators, staff, officials and the community carry it out.

Article 76C bans anyone from placing, allowing, committing, ordering or joining in violence against a child, as quoted by Hukumonline. The word "allowing" matters for any adult who sees harm and says nothing.

Law 12 of 2022 on Sexual Violence Crimes adds reporting routes and penalties. Article 19 sets a prison term of up to five years for knowingly obstructing an investigation, prosecution or trial in such a case. Read the unofficial English translation.

The new Criminal Code came into force on 2 January 2026, according to Indonesia Business Post. A legal database flags that it revokes some provisions of Law 35 of 2014 and does not say which, so ask counsel which penalties now apply.

For sexual violence, Article 39(1) of Law 12 of 2022 says the victim, or a person who knows of, saw or witnessed it, files a report. The report goes to a regional women and child protection unit (UPTD PPA), a social affairs unit, a community provider or the police.

The unofficial English translation gives no "must" to ordinary witnesses. It does say medical and healthcare staff "must notify" the same bodies when they find signs. A lawyer should read the Indonesian text before you decide whether your staff owe a duty.

For other abuse, the laws reviewed for this guide set no single reporting duty for teachers or schools. Article 54 gives educators and staff the task of protecting children, and Article 76C bans allowing violence. Ask counsel how courts read the two together.

Ministry rules add a school layer. Regulation 6 of 2026 on a safe and comfortable school culture covers formal early years, primary and secondary schools. Legal commentary says it replaced the 2023 school violence rule, so ask counsel whether it reaches your SPK.

Your own policy fills the gap. Every adult tells the DSL the same day, and the DSL decides on any outside referral with the Head. Mandatory reporting laws in international schools shows how to write that rule.

If a child is in immediate danger, call 112 or the police contact centre on 110. Then follow your school's child protection procedure and tell your DSL the same day.

Confirm each number before you print it. The Child Helpline International listing for TePSA was last edited in May 2022.

• 112: the national emergency number. It covered 141 regencies and cities in March 2025, so test it.
• 110: the Polri contact centre, free from mobile and landline phones.
• 129: SAPA 129. Anyone can call, WhatsApp 08111-129-129 or use the online form.
• 1500-771: TePSA, the Ministry of Social Affairs child line, listed by Child Helpline International.
• KPAI, the Indonesian Child Protection Commission, takes complaints through its contact page.
• Your DSL: tell them the same day, every time.

Accreditation standards expect a DSL, written procedures and staff who pass on every concern. The expectations of the International Task Force on Child Protection (ITFCP) sit behind them. The Indonesian laws reviewed do not name a DSL.

One procedure can serve both rulebooks. Staff tell the DSL the same day. The DSL records the concern, decides with the Head and counsel on any outside referral, and keeps the record.

• Reporting: accreditor standards ask every adult to report every concern, while the statutes reviewed set narrower duties.
• Referral: UPTD PPA, social affairs units and the police replace the English local authority routes that copied policies name.
• Authority: Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) applies to schools in England, so it has no legal force here. See which parts of KCSIE travel abroad.
• Corporal punishment: Indonesian law does not clearly ban it in schools. Your policy should ban it outright.

Law 27 of 2022 on Personal Data Protection took effect on 17 October 2022. Article 74 gave organisations two years to adjust, so the grace period ended in October 2024. The official record lists the law as in force.

Article 25 says a child's data must be processed in a specific way, with consent from a parent or guardian. Article 4 lists data on children among special category data. Article 46 requires written notice to the data subject and the data protection agency within 3 x 24 hours of a protection failure.

Article 56 covers transfers abroad. The sender must check that the receiving country gives equal or higher protection, then use binding safeguards, then ask for the person's approval if neither applies. The law text has no blanket rule that personal data must stay in Indonesia.

One law firm summary reports that an implementing regulation enacted in July 2026 takes effect on 16 January 2027. The summary says it covers transfers, breach reporting and data protection officers. It also says the data protection agency is not yet in place.

Ask every software supplier where safeguarding records are stored, who can read them and what happens when the contract ends.

Teachers may work in English. Drivers, guards, cleaners, kitchen teams and nurses often work in Bahasa Indonesia or a regional language. English-only training leaves them out, so offer the reporting route in Bahasa Indonesia too (see why translation alone falls short).

The Global Initiative to End All Corporal Punishment of Children says corporal punishment is lawful in Indonesian schools. Its report, updated in November 2024, finds no law that explicitly bans it. UNICEF says teachers often use violent punishment.

Your policy should ban it for every adult, whatever the law says. Ask counsel whether the 2026 school regulation changed the position.

For safer recruitment, the national police issue a police record certificate called an SKCK. A legal explainer says police regulation 1 of 2026 governs it, that foreign nationals can apply and that it lasts six months.

It covers Indonesian police records only. Also ask new hires for certificates from every country where they lived, and follow safer recruitment in international schools.

This short list suits your first month. This guide is general information and not legal advice, so confirm each item with local counsel and the relevant authority.

• Ask your Head which permit and accreditors apply, and file copies where you can find them.
• Write one reporting route on one page, in English and Bahasa Indonesia, naming the DSL and deputy.
• Save and test 112, 110, 129 and 1500-771, and post them where staff and students can see them.
• Find your regional UPTD PPA office and nearest police unit, and record a named contact.
• Ask counsel in writing whether staff or the school must report, to whom and how fast.
• Ask every software supplier where records are stored and how they give breach notice.
• Write a ban on corporal punishment and share it with staff in both languages.