Indonesia's Law No. 2 of 2026 on the Protection of Domestic Workers was promulgated on 30 April 2026, nine days after the House passed it in a plenary session on 21 April. It runs to 12 chapters and 37 articles, and Article 37 says it takes effect on the date of promulgation. If you employ a housekeeper, a nanny or a family driver, the law already applies to you.
For families who have just moved into a landed house in North Bekasi, two articles bite straight away. Employers must report the domestic worker (PRT, pekerja rumah tangga) to the head of the RT/RW, the neighbourhood unit. And moving house can end the working relationship if the worker does not want to continue at the new place.
Who Counts as a Domestic Worker, and Who Is the Employer
Article 1 defines a PRT as a person who works for an employer doing household work in exchange for wages. The employer is an individual and/or several people in one household, so a two-income couple paying one PRT already fits the definition. Companies fall outside that definition, and Article 28(1)(c) also bars agencies from placing a PRT with a business or any other body that is not an individual employer.
The scope is broad. Article 10 covers cooking, washing and ironing, cleaning the house and yard, minding children, looking after the sick, elderly or disabled, driving, guarding the house and looking after pets. The family driver and the caretaker are both in.
There is an exception. Article 4(2) says people who help around the house on the basis of custom, kinship, education or religion are not PRTs. The elucidation gives abdi dalem, ngenger and nyantrik as examples. A nephew from the village who lives with you while you pay his school fees may fit this exception. Be careful, though: Article 1 says wages can be money and/or another form, and the General Elucidation names "being sent to school or courses" as one such form. If he does regular work and the schooling is his pay, it is safer to treat him as a PRT. The law draws no clear line.
The law also splits workers by working time (Article 9). Per the elucidation, a full-time PRT works and lives in the employer's home, while a part-time PRT works at least two hours a day and lives elsewhere.
Hiring Requirements: Age, ID, Health Letter
Article 5 sets three requirements for a candidate: at least 18 years old, an electronic ID card (KTP-el) and a health certificate from a health facility. The transitional provisions (Article 35(b)) make one exception: anyone under 18 who is married and works or has worked as a PRT before the law took effect keeps their recognised status.
There are two ways to recruit (Article 4(1)):
| Route | Basis of the relationship | Form |
|---|---|---|
| Direct (you find someone yourself, through friends or neighbours) | An agreement, kesepakatan (Article 6(2)) | May be put into a written contract, not required (Article 12) |
| Through an agency (P3RT) | A written employment contract (Article 1 point 9) | Involves the agency, two stamped originals, copies to the agency and the RT/RW (Article 11(3) and (4)) |
Article 11(2) lists what the contract must contain at minimum: identities of the parties, the work address, start date and duration, scope of work, rights and duties, working conditions, wage amount and payment method, place and date signed, and signatures or thumbprints. Paragraph (5) requires it to be in Indonesian. Even for a direct hire, writing these points down on one sheet saves an argument later.
The Employer's Duties in Article 19
Article 19 lists eight duties. In short: pay wages and the religious holiday allowance (THR) as agreed, carry out the agreement, give the worker their rights, allow rest and leave, provide a safe and healthy workplace, allow time for worship, give accurate information about the family and the job, and report the worker's presence to the head of the RT/RW.
New residents can easily miss that last one. In a one-gate cluster, security usually logs who comes and goes, but the RT head still needs your own report. Visit the RT head after handover, while you sort out your KTP address change, and give your helper's name and whether they live in or come daily.
Article 15 lists further rights: healthy food, proper accommodation for a full-time worker, and a religious holiday allowance paid in cash. The THR amount follows the agreement. The law sets no minimum wage for domestic workers. Article 15(3) leaves the amount and timing of wage payments to a government regulation.
Social security
Article 16 sets out two routes. For BPJS Kesehatan (national health insurance), if the worker is registered as a contribution-assistance recipient, the government pays. If not, the employer pays as agreed, "acknowledged by the RT/RW". For employment social security (BPJS Ketenagakerjaan), the employer pays as agreed. The elucidation to Article 15(1)(h) says it covers at least work-accident and death benefits. Detailed contribution rules are also waiting on the government regulation.
Moving House Can End the Arrangement
Article 14 lists seven grounds for ending the relationship. Point (g) matters to buyers: the employer moves and the worker is not willing to continue the relationship. A family moving from East Jakarta to North Bekasi should talk it through with their worker well before moving day.
A worker must give at least one month's notice before resigning (Article 17(e)), and that notice is the employer's right (Article 18(e)). Seven consecutive days of absence without a clear reason can also end the relationship (Article 14(d)).
If You Use an Agency
Article 28 bars agencies from cutting wages or charging candidates and workers any fee, holding their original documents or blocking their communication. The service fee is charged to the employer (Article 20(c)), and the elucidation spells out what it covers: administrative costs, accommodation and transport. If either the worker or the employer won't continue, the agency must supply a replacement as set out in the placement agreement (Article 21(e) and (f)).
Agencies without a licence, or not yet compliant with the law, have one year from 30 April 2026 to comply (Article 35(a)). An agency needs a business identification number (NIB) and a standard certificate through the OSS licensing system (Article 26). Ask for the NIB before you sign.
The law contains no criminal provisions. The only sanctions it writes down are administrative ones for agencies (Article 28(2)). Violence against a live-in worker can still be prosecuted under Law 23/2004 on the Elimination of Domestic Violence, which counts a person who works in and lives with a household as part of that household.
If There Is a Dispute
The route is stepped:
- Discussion, for no more than seven days from when either side asks for it (Article 31).
- If that fails, a dispute between employer and worker is mediated by the head of the RT/RW where the worker is employed (Article 32(1)).
- For disputes between the employer, the worker and/or the agency that discussion could not settle, there is a mediator from the manpower office, who must resolve it within seven days of receiving the complaint (paragraphs (2) and (3)).
A mediator's ruling on a wage dispute between employer and worker is final and binding (paragraph (5)). When a dispute moves from the RT to the manpower mediator is not spelled out. Article 33 leaves the detail to a government regulation.
The Implementing Rules Are Not Out Yet
Article 36(2) allows at most one year for every implementing regulation, so the deadline is 30 April 2027. Anwar Sanusi, head of the Manpower Ministry's planning and development agency, told a webinar on 29 September, as reported by ANTARA, that the government is preparing a roadmap for domestic-worker governance that has to be aligned with the drafting of the law's implementing rules, and said domestic workers are "no longer regarded as helpers or assistants". Meanwhile, Article 36(1) keeps older rules on domestic workers in force where they do not conflict with the new law.
What you can do now: write the agreement on one sheet of paper, report to the RT head, talk through your moving plans, and check your worker's BPJS. Wage and contribution details can only be confirmed once the regulation is out.
For families weighing an Emerald 70 house at Kingspoint on Jl. Raya Perjuangan (two storeys, 70 m² floor area), a part-time helper who comes daily is often more practical than setting aside a room for a live-in worker. How to find and vet someone is in our guide to household services in North Bekasi, and other childcare options are in the daycare article.
Frequently asked questions
Is the domestic workers law already in force?
Yes. Law 2/2026 was promulgated on 30 April 2026 and Article 37 says it applies from that date. Its implementing regulations are due by 30 April 2027.
Must the employer sign a written contract?
Yes if the worker comes through an agency (P3RT), under Article 1 point 9 and Article 11(3) and (4). For a direct hire the basis is an agreement, which may be put in writing (Article 12).
Does the employer have to report to the RT?
Yes. Article 19(h) requires the employer to report the presence of a domestic worker in their home to the head of the RT/RW.
Does a family driver count as a domestic worker?
Yes. Article 10 includes driving in the scope of household work, along with guarding the house and looking after pets.
Sources: Law No. 2 of 2026 on the Protection of Domestic Workers (State Gazette 2026 No. 47), copy from the Ministry of Manpower legal database (JDIH Kemnaker); detikNews and Bisnis.com, 21 April 2026 (House plenary vote); ANTARA, 30 September 2026; Law 23/2004 on the Elimination of Domestic Violence, Article 2.
Want to see the Emerald 70 house?
Ask about the two-storey layout, gate access for a helper who comes daily, and units still available on Jl. Raya Perjuangan, North Bekasi.
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