Indonesia’s Ministry of Law continues to block approximately 700,000 business entities and foundations for failing to disclose their beneficial owners, highlighting persistent gaps in corporate ownership transparency.
Speaking at a press conference in Jakarta on 26 October 2026, Law Minister Supratman Andi Agtas said these entities remained noncompliant after authorities blocked nearly two million entities the previous year. Beneficial ownership reporting helps identify the individuals who ultimately benefit from an entity and understand its affiliations.
The minister said continued reporting failures had raised concerns that some registered entities were no longer operating. The ministry plans to place the relevant businesses on an inactive entity list as part of administrative reforms.
The proposed classification addresses a gap between formal registration and business activity. Entities may remain recorded with the Directorate General of General Legal Administration (AHU) despite having ceased operations.
Indonesia has also strengthened its framework through Minister of Law Regulation No. 2 of 2025, covering the verification and supervision of corporate beneficial owners. The regulation strengthens mechanisms to verify ownership information and oversee reporting compliance.
The latest announcement follows earlier official warnings about incomplete disclosures. In April 2026, AHU reported that approximately 823,000 of Indonesia’s 3.5 million registered legal corporations had yet to submit beneficial ownership information.
For businesses assessing Indonesian counterparties, the development highlights the importance of reviewing both registry status and ownership disclosures. Registration alone may leave questions about whether an entity remains operational and who ultimately controls it.
From a KYB perspective, the announcement underscores why compliance teams should investigate missing ownership information, document unresolved discrepancies, and monitor changes in corporate status throughout a business relationship, particularly when reporting failures remain unresolved for extended periods.
UK and Ireland Enforce Beneficial Ownership Disclosure Requirements
The UK introduced its Register of Overseas Entities in 2022, linking beneficial ownership disclosure to property transactions and restricting dealings by noncompliant entities. In Ireland, beneficial ownership reporting became mandatory under 2019 regulations, with failures constituting criminal offences. Both frameworks demonstrate earlier efforts to attach consequences to opaque corporate ownership.
