Labour Inspection Rules Revised

Minister of Manpower Regulation No. 15 of 2026 (Permenaker 15/2026), which amends Regulation No. 11 of 2026 on labour inspection procedures, was signed on 8 October 2026, promulgated on 12 October 2026 in the State Gazette 2026 No. 681, and took effect on promulgation (Kementerian Ketenagakerjaan [Kemnaker], 2026b). The regulation it amends, Permenaker 11/2026, had only been promulgated on 3 July 2026, when it revoked Permenaker 33/2016 and its 2020 amendment (Kemnaker, 2026a). The two promulgation dates are 101 days apart. On 30 October 2026, the head of the ministry's planning and development agency said the amendment clarifies the inspectors' authority to examine and test compliance with labour norms, including the minimum wage, overtime pay and work accident benefits (Martaon, 2026).

The stakes are not small. Ministry data on the national open data portal record 462,241 work accident cases in 2024, 91.65 percent of them among wage-earning participants (Kemnaker, 2025). We compared the official texts of both regulations from the ministry's legal database article by article, then assessed the result with the frame normally used for a ministerial regulation on labour inspection in Indonesia: its place in the hierarchy under Law No. 12 of 2011 on the Making of Laws and Regulations, the delegation from its parent laws, the principles of ILO Convention No. 81, and research evidence on inspection effectiveness.

How We Compared

We used five criteria: who holds authority, what is regulated, how long each step may take, what objection route exists, and what document results. Our sources were the 68-page official copy of Permenaker 11/2026, the 20-page copy of Permenaker 15/2026, and the harmonisation file uploaded as supporting data. Articles that Permenaker 15/2026 does not touch remain as worded in Permenaker 11/2026.

What Changed

Article I of Permenaker 15/2026 contains seven numbered changes: six to the body and one to the annex (Kemnaker, 2026b). They fall into two groups, determinations of worker entitlements and OHS certificates.

Wages and Accident Benefits

Testing of working norms is the procedure inspectors use to determine shortfalls in overtime pay, the minimum wage, and work accident (JKK) or occupational disease benefits (Kemnaker, 2026a). The changes compare as follows:

• Article 31(11). The old text set the 120-day limit for determinations by provincial inspectors only for overtime and the minimum wage (paragraph (2)(a) and (b)). The new text refers to the whole of paragraph (2), which brings JKK and occupational disease benefits within the limit (Kemnaker, 2026a, 2026b).
• Article 33(2). Employers had 14 days to carry out a determination; they now have 14 working days from receipt. A new paragraph (3) prescribes Format 17 (Kemnaker, 2026b).
• Article 34(1). The cross-reference for a re-determination request is corrected from Article 31(8) to Article 31(11).
• Article 34(4). Re-examination by ministry inspectors previously covered only overtime results (Article 31(2)(a)). It now refers to Article 31(1), meaning every type of shortfall. Paragraph (5) on the format is deleted (Kemnaker, 2026a, 2026b).
• Article 37(6). Employers must carry out a re-determination within 14 working days, up from 14 days. Paragraph (8) adds Format 18A for re-determining JKK and occupational disease benefits (Kemnaker, 2026b).

Other steps are unchanged. A re-determination request is filed within 14 working days of receipt (Article 34(3)), incomplete files get 10 working days (Article 35(2)), the provincial head forwards the request within 7 working days (Article 36), the Director General verifies it within 7 working days (Article 37(1)), and re-examination takes up to 90 days, extendable by up to 30 days (Article 37(4)) (Kemnaker, 2026a).

OHS Certificates

Article 46A is the only new article. The certificate stating that an OHS object meets or fails OHS requirements, referred to in Article 45(1), may now also be issued by the head of the provincial manpower office on a company's request. The request attaches a test report. An inspector verifies it within 3 working days. An incomplete file is returned within 2 working days, and the applicant has 3 working days to complete it. The certificate is issued within 2 working days of verification, signed by the inspector and approved by the office head. Where no verification takes place within 3 working days, the request is deemed verified and the certificate must be issued (Kemnaker, 2026b).

Permenaker 11/2026 already provided two routes. On the inspector route, testing takes up to 30 working days until the report and certificate are issued, and they are delivered within 7 working days (Article 39(6) and (7)). On the route through OHS testers at the ministry's central technical units, the certificate is issued within 7 working days of receiving the test report (Article 46) (Kemnaker, 2026a).

Wording and Annex

Articles 17(2) and 31(10) change only in wording, from inspectors "at" the provincial office to inspectors "of" the provincial office. The annex amends the list of formats and sample Formats 3, 4, 5, 6, 17 and 18, and inserts Format 18A. Format 18A takes the form of a Ministerial Decree, while Format 18 for wage matters is a decree of the ministry's labour inspector (Kemnaker, 2026b).

Transition and Sanctions

Permenaker 15/2026 contains no transitional provision and no new sanction. Article 52 of Permenaker 11/2026 still applies: inspection notes, determinations, prohibitions and certificates issued before that regulation remain valid until they expire. The heaviest provisions are also unchanged. A work accident causing death or disability may go straight to criminal enforcement (Article 9), an object that fails OHS requirements is subject to a prohibition or stoppage of work (Article 45(4)), and an unheeded second inspection note may lead to investigation or a recommendation for administrative sanctions (Article 29) (Kemnaker, 2026a).

Counting the Deadlines

Under Article 46A, a company with a complete file can receive its certificate within 5 working days (3 for verification and 2 for issue). A returned file adds up to 5 working days (2 to return and 3 to complete), plus a re-verification whose length is not stated. We built this count from the text of Article 46A (Kemnaker, 2026b).

For an entitlement case that reaches re-determination, we added up the longest periods in the text. The provincial determination may take 120 days and the re-examination 90 days plus a 30-day extension, 240 days in total. The administrative steps in between, from delivering the determination (5 working days) through filing the objection (14), forwarding (7) and verification (7) to carrying out the re-determination (14), add 47 working days. That rises by 20 working days when a file is twice found incomplete (Articles 35(2) and 38(1)) (Kemnaker, 2026a, 2026b). The text does not say when the 120 days start, and some periods are written in days while others are in working days.

Our Assessment

On legal standing, Permenaker 15/2026 is a ministerial regulation that is recognised and binding to the extent it is ordered by a higher regulation or made under the minister's authority (Article 8 of Law 12/2011), and a challenge against a statute would go to the Supreme Court (Article 9(2)) (Republik Indonesia, 2011). The delegation is clear. Law No. 1 of 1970 on Work Safety assigns direct supervision to inspectors and requires their powers to be set by regulation (Article 5) (Republik Indonesia, 1970). The original text of Law No. 13 of 2003 on Manpower provides for inspection by competent and independent inspectors (Article 176) through dedicated units in central and regional government (Article 178) (Republik Indonesia, 2003a). Both laws, together with Law No. 3 of 1951 and Law 13/2003 as last amended by Law No. 6 of 2023, are listed as the legal basis of Permenaker 15/2026 (Kemnaker, 2026b). The harmonisation record states that the draft did not conflict with higher regulations (Direktorat Jenderal Peraturan Perundang-undangan [Ditjen PP], 2026). That statement is administrative, not a court ruling, but for employers the regulation has been binding since 12 October 2026.

In substance, the largest change concerns JKK. Permenaker 11/2026 already required accident evidence and a chronology for re-determining JKK benefits (Article 35(6)), yet Article 34(4) limited re-examination to overtime (Kemnaker, 2026a). We read Permenaker 15/2026 as closing that gap. With 462,241 work accident cases in a single year (Kemnaker, 2025), disputes over JKK benefits now have a time limit and a clear objection route. We found no open data on how many such disputes reach inspectors, so the effect cannot yet be measured.

Moving from days to working days gives employers more time, since 14 working days usually come close to 3 calendar weeks. The difficulty is that sample Formats 18 and 18A still say "14 (fourteen) days", and Format 17 counts the objection period from the compliance deadline, while Article 34(3) counts it from receipt of the determination (Kemnaker, 2026b). In our view the norm sits in the body of the regulation and the formats are samples. Until an official clarification appears, counting by the shorter reading is the safest choice.

Article 46A speeds up the service, especially through the rule that a request is deemed verified after 3 working days. That rule moves the risk of delay from the company to the office. Provincial capacity is uneven. A study in Gorontalo found provincial inspection was not yet effective because of limited staff, facilities, budget and policy direction (Dungga & Tome, 2019), and the explanatory notes to the ratification of Convention No. 81 state that inspectors must be sufficient in number and specialisation and that inspection must sit under central supervision (Republik Indonesia, 2003b). We are concerned that some certificates will be issued without substantive verification. Article 46A also does not say who may prepare the attached test report; it says only "in accordance with the laws and regulations" (Kemnaker, 2026b). A certificate remains a statement about an object's condition when tested, so the duty of management to meet the safety requirements of Law 1/1970 does not pass to the office.

Research evidence helps place the change. A systematic review of 43 studies found strong evidence that several OHS enforcement levers reduce injuries or increase compliance (Tompa et al., 2016). In the United States, each randomly allocated inspection was followed by 2.4 fewer serious injuries, or 9 percent, over 5 years, and better targeting could have averted twice as many (Johnson et al., 2023). Both studies come from settings different from Indonesia. Their general lesson is that the effect of inspection depends on its reach and its targets. Permenaker 15/2026 improves procedural certainty for determinations and documents, but it does not address inspector numbers, inspection targeting, or the periods in inspection notes. It had been in force for 24 days when we wrote this, and there are no implementation data yet.

Preparing the Company

The steps below follow from the text of both regulations:

• Log the date of receipt of every letter from an inspector, since nearly every deadline runs from receipt.
• Answer data requests within 5 working days. There can be at most 3 requests, after which the inspector may determine the shortfall from the data available (Article 31(5), (6) and (8)) (Kemnaker, 2026a).
• Keep ready the file listed in Article 35(4): the employment contract or other proof of employment, proof of payment, attendance records, the test report and the determination. For JKK, add evidence of the accident or occupational disease and its chronology, and medical opinions where available (Articles 31(9) and 35(6)) (Kemnaker, 2026a).
• Count compliance periods by the shorter reading where a format and an article differ, and note that the sample formats describe a re-determination as final (Kemnaker, 2026b).
• Keep a register of OHS objects with the testing party, test date and certificate expiry. A test report attached to an Article 46A request should contain the elements of Article 44(2): basis, time and place, company identity, general and technical data of the object, analysis, conclusions and recommendations, and the tester's name and signature (Kemnaker, 2026a).
• Stop using an object found non-compliant until a compliance certificate is issued (Article 45(6)), and retest after an accident, serious damage or modification, because the certificate lapses in those cases (Article 45(8)) (Kemnaker, 2026a).

Nusa Safety can help with the technical and administrative side. Through its statutory equipment inspection coordination service, the Nusa Safety team builds the register of OHS objects and their test schedule, prepares the technical data, and coordinates licensed PJK3 inspection partners and the follow-up of findings. Reports and certificates are still issued by the authorised parties; Nusa Safety is not a PJK3 and does not issue OHS certificates.

Companies that want a firmer routine for inspections can use SOP and technical guideline development for procedures on receiving inspector letters, gathering evidence and counting deadlines, or an SMK3 internal audit to check that evidence is ready before an inspector arrives. Legal questions about a specific case should go to an advocate.

This article is general information and not legal or professional advice for any specific case.

References

1. Direktorat Jenderal Peraturan Perundang-undangan, Kementerian Hukum Republik Indonesia. (2026). Berita acara pengharmonisasian dan surat penyampaian hasil harmonisasi Rancangan Peraturan Menteri Ketenagakerjaan tentang Perubahan atas Peraturan Menteri Ketenagakerjaan Nomor 11 Tahun 2026 tentang Tata Cara Pengawasan Ketenagakerjaan (Nomor PPE.PP.01.05-3194) [Harmonisation record and letter on the draft amendment to Minister of Manpower Regulation No. 11 of 2026]. https://jdih.kemnaker.go.id/asset/data_puu/DataDukung_Permenaker_15_2026.pdf
2. Dungga, W. A., & Tome, A. H. (2019). Identifikasi faktor penghambat penyelenggaraan pengawasan ketenagakerjaan di Provinsi Gorontalo [Identifying barriers to labour inspection in Gorontalo Province]. Jambura Law Review, 1(1), 1-21. https://doi.org/10.33756/jalrev.v1i1.1605
3. Johnson, M. S., Levine, D. I., & Toffel, M. W. (2023). Improving regulatory effectiveness through better targeting: Evidence from OSHA. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 15(4), 30-67. https://doi.org/10.1257/app.20200659
4. Kementerian Ketenagakerjaan Republik Indonesia. (2025). Kasus kecelakaan kerja tahun 2024 [Work accident cases in 2024] [Data set]. Portal Satu Data Indonesia. https://data.go.id/dataset/dataset/kasus-kecelakaan-kerja-tahun-2024
5. Kementerian Ketenagakerjaan Republik Indonesia. (2026a). Peraturan Menteri Ketenagakerjaan Nomor 11 Tahun 2026 tentang Tata Cara Pengawasan Ketenagakerjaan [Minister of Manpower Regulation No. 11 of 2026 on Labour Inspection Procedures]. Berita Negara Republik Indonesia Tahun 2026 Nomor 438. https://jdih.kemnaker.go.id/peraturan/detail/3070/peraturan-menteri-ketenagakerjaan-nomor-11-tahun-2026
6. Kementerian Ketenagakerjaan Republik Indonesia. (2026b). Peraturan Menteri Ketenagakerjaan Nomor 15 Tahun 2026 tentang Perubahan atas Peraturan Menteri Ketenagakerjaan Nomor 11 Tahun 2026 tentang Tata Cara Pengawasan Ketenagakerjaan [Minister of Manpower Regulation No. 15 of 2026 amending Regulation No. 11 of 2026 on Labour Inspection Procedures]. Berita Negara Republik Indonesia Tahun 2026 Nomor 681. https://jdih.kemnaker.go.id/peraturan/detail/3109/peraturan-menteri-ketenagakerjaan-nomor-15-tahun-2026
7. Martaon, A. T. (2026, October 30). Kemnaker perkuat perencanaan pengawasan lindungi pekerja [Ministry of Manpower strengthens inspection planning to protect workers]. Metrotvnews.com. https://www.metrotvnews.com/read/NxGCXRE5-kemnaker-perkuat-perencanaan-pengawasan-lindungi-pekerja
8. Republik Indonesia. (1970). Undang-Undang Nomor 1 Tahun 1970 tentang Keselamatan Kerja [Law No. 1 of 1970 on Work Safety]. Lembaran Negara Republik Indonesia Tahun 1970 Nomor 1. https://jdih.kemnaker.go.id/peraturan/detail/49/undang-undang-nomor-1-tahun-1970
9. Republik Indonesia. (2003a). Undang-Undang Nomor 13 Tahun 2003 tentang Ketenagakerjaan [Law No. 13 of 2003 on Manpower]. Lembaran Negara Republik Indonesia Tahun 2003 Nomor 39. https://jdih.kemnaker.go.id/peraturan/detail/27/undang-undang-nomor-13-tahun-2003
10. Republik Indonesia. (2003b). Undang-Undang Nomor 21 Tahun 2003 tentang Pengesahan ILO Convention No. 81 Concerning Labour Inspection in Industry and Commerce [Law No. 21 of 2003 ratifying ILO Convention No. 81]. Lembaran Negara Republik Indonesia Tahun 2003 Nomor 91. https://jdih.kemnaker.go.id/peraturan/detail/3085/undang-undang-nomor-21-tahun-2003
11. Republik Indonesia. (2011). Undang-Undang Nomor 12 Tahun 2011 tentang Pembentukan Peraturan Perundang-undangan [Law No. 12 of 2011 on the Making of Laws and Regulations]. Lembaran Negara Republik Indonesia Tahun 2011 Nomor 82. https://peraturan.bpk.go.id/Details/39188/uu-no-12-tahun-2011
12. Tompa, E., Kalcevich, C., Foley, M., McLeod, C., Hogg-Johnson, S., Cullen, K., MacEachen, E., Mahood, Q., & Irvin, E. (2016). A systematic literature review of the effectiveness of occupational health and safety regulatory enforcement. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 59(11), 919-933. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajim.22605