JAKARTA - Indonesia’s Directorate General of Immigration said it rejected 9,349 passport applications over suspected misuse between January and July 2026.
ANTARA reported the figure on Aug. 4, citing an official immigration statement. The applications had been flagged for potential misuse, but the report did not identify the applicants as confirmed trafficking victims.
Immigration Director General Hendarsam Marantoko said authorities were applying layered checks from the passport-application stage through departure controls at immigration checkpoints.
The screening is intended to determine whether applicants plan to travel for tourism or formal employment, or show indications of trafficking risk.
“We are committed to strengthening prevention at the source through risk-based monitoring, public education and cross-sector collaboration to ensure no more Indonesian citizens fall victim to human trafficking,” Hendarsam said.
The same report said the prevention programme covered 1,178 Immigration Fostered Villages supported by 516 guidance officers. Earlier remarks by Hendarsam said the officers conduct community outreach and receive complaints, reports and initial consultations.
ANTARA’s Aug. 4 report said the programme also educates communities about official overseas-employment procedures and trafficking risks.
The system also covers Indonesians identified as potential trafficking victims after returning home. They may be placed in the immigration Subject of Interest database, which alerts officers if a listed person attempts to leave the country again.
An April 20 operation in Batam illustrated how departure screening works.
Immigration officers and police stopped 167 prospective nonprocedural migrant workers from travelling to Malaysia through Batam Center International Port.
Two suspected facilitators were also detained. Batam is considered a focal point because it serves as a strategic transit route across the Malacca Strait.
The Directorate General of Immigration said it was working with law-enforcement agencies and relevant ministries to identify recruitment patterns, departure routes and key actors involved in illicit departures.
