The Directorate General of Taxes (DJP) at the Ministry of Finance will begin collecting income tax (PPh) from merchants on online store platforms through the Trade Through Electronic Systems (PMSE) or e-commerce mechanism starting 1 October 2026. Director General of Taxes Bimo Wijayanto confirmed the readiness to implement the previously delayed plan on Wednesday, 16 September 2026.

Bimo explained that the previous Minister of Finance, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, delayed the implementation of the tax collection to ensure better preparation. "The bottleneck was simply because Minister Purbaya decided to temporarily delay it so that the preparation would be more mature," he said.

"So there are no dramas, no drama at all. (Ready by 1 October) yes," Bimo stated.

During his tenure as Minister of Finance, Purbaya had decided to postpone the implementation of this marketplace tax until the end of October 2026. The legal foundation designating marketplaces as tax collectors was issued by the government in 2025. The regulation was outlined in the Minister of Finance Regulation (PMK) Number 37 of 2025, which initially became effective on 14 July 2025, before its implementation was ultimately delayed.

Purbaya stated that the government does not solely rely on expanding the tax base to boost state revenue. According to him, tax revenue will automatically increase if economic growth accelerates. "No, if the economy grows faster, taxes will automatically go up," he said. Aside from relying on economic growth, Purbaya noted that the government is also preparing to overhaul the tax system to increase state revenue more effectively.

He mentioned that these improvements include upgrading taxation software, including the Coretax system, as well as reorganizing personnel within the tax department. "There will continue to be improvements in the tax sector to make it even more effective in the future, including software upgrades, Coretax, and others. We will also be reorganizing the personnel," Purbaya said.

This article is published in partnership with Katadata  

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