Criminal defence in Bali — drug arrests and other criminal cases
Since 2 January 2026 every new criminal case in Indonesia runs under a new Criminal Code and a new Code of Criminal Procedure, and the drug penalties were rewritten the same day. This page is for foreigners in Bali — and for the families who get the phone call — facing an arrest, a police summons or a criminal report, most often in a drug case. No outcome can be promised in a criminal matter. What a licensed advocate does is make sure every right is used from the first hour, every deadline is counted, and the family knows what is happening.
What you get
- Contact with the detained person as early as the law allows — counsel may see a suspect from the moment of arrest — and a plain account to the family of where things stand.
- An interpreter insisted on, and no statement signed until it has been translated and understood.
- Attendance at every examination, with objections to entrapping questions placed on the record.
- The arrest and detention deadlines counted date by date at each stage, and a written view on whether the arrest, detention, search or seizure can be tested by praperadilan — including when the answer is no.
- In drug cases: the assessment of whether the person is a user, an addict or a dealer raised early, and an honest view of whether the rehabilitation route is realistic on the evidence.
- The same care for the other side of a case: a reporting party whose complaint has stalled, or a witness who has been summoned.
How it runs, step by step
| Milestone | Typical time | What happens / your part |
|---|---|---|
| Intake & position | Days | We read the summons, report and documents, run the conflict check, and fix your position — reporting party or suspect; you hand over every letter, BAP copy and message you already hold |
| Report or first examination (penyelidikan) | Weeks–months; police-controlled | As reporting party we prepare and file the report; as a person summoned we attend the examination with you. Before questioning starts the investigator must inform you of your right to counsel |
| Investigation & suspect status (penyidikan) | Months; detention capped 20 + 40 days | We attend every examination and place objections to entrapping questions on the record. Where there are grounds, suspect status, detention, search or seizure can be tested by praperadilan |
| File to prosecutor → prosecution | Months; prosecutor-controlled | The file goes to the public prosecutor and, once declared complete, moves to indictment. The pace here belongs to the prosecutor, not to the firm |
| Trial | Months | Indictment, evidence, witnesses, pleading, judgment. We prepare you for each session and run the defence — or, for a reporting party, support the case as your interest requires |
| Judgment → appeal; restorative route throughout | Advised at each step | After the ruling we advise appeal versus accept. Where the offence qualifies, the restorative route can close a case from the first inquiry up to trial — it is not open to every offence |
Typical total: Highly variable; police and prosecutors control the clock
Legal basis
| Aspect | Basis |
|---|---|
| The procedural law now in force: the new KUHAP | UU 20/2025 Pasal 369 — in force since 2 January 2026; Pasal 362 revokes UU 8/1981. Cases already running fall under the transitional rule in Pasal 361. |
| Substantive criminal law: the new Criminal Code | UU 1/2023 Pasal 624 — in force three years after promulgation (2 January 2023), i.e. 2 January 2026; Pasal 3(1): the new rule applies unless the old rule is more favourable to the accused. |
| The right to counsel, and when it attaches | UU 20/2025 Pasal 31 — the investigator must inform you of the right before questioning begins; Pasal 32(1) — counsel accompanies you, and an objection to an entrapping question is recorded in the minutes (Pasal 32(2)–(3)); Pasal 142 letter b. |
| Counsel may see the client from the moment of arrest or detention | UU 20/2025 Pasal 150 letter b — to contact, communicate with and visit from the moment of arrest or detention, at every stage and at any time. |
| The advocate's status and immunity | UU 20/2025 Pasal 149(1) — an advocate is a law-enforcement officer; Pasal 149(2) — an advocate cannot be sued or prosecuted for a defence conducted in good faith, inside or outside the courtroom. This widens UU 18/2003 Pasal 16, which was limited to 'in court session'. |
| The detention limit at the investigation stage | UU 20/2025 Pasal 102 — 20 days by the investigator, plus an extension by the public prosecutor of at most 40 days; past that the suspect must be released. Detention requires at least two items of evidence and one of the grounds in Pasal 100(5). |
| Praperadilan — what can be tested, by whom, and its limit | UU 20/2025 Pasal 158 jo. Pasal 1 point 14 — coercive measures cover naming a suspect, arrest, detention, search and seizure; Pasal 160 — brought by the suspect, family or counsel, once for the same matter; Pasal 161 — brought by the victim or the reporting party. The limit: per the Elucidation to Pasal 158 letter a, a coercive measure already authorised by the head of the District Court is not open to praperadilan. |
| Restorative justice — now on a statutory footing, with its conditions and exclusions | UU 20/2025 Pasal 79–82 — available from the first inquiry up to trial (Pasal 79(8)). Conditions in Pasal 80(1): a maximum fine of category III or imprisonment of at most five years, a first offence, and not a repeat. Exclusions in Pasal 82: including corruption, terrorism, sexual violence, and offences against life. A settlement is performed within seven days, after which the case must be closed (Pasal 79(3) and (5)). |
| Protection for a reporting party and for witnesses | UU 20/2025 Pasal 143 letter a — a witness cannot be prosecuted or sued over their testimony or report, unless it was not given in good faith; letter b — a witness has the right to counsel at every examination. |
| Drug offences since 2 January 2026: the new Criminal Code plus the adjusted Narcotics Law | UU 1/2023 Pasal 609–611 as amended by UU 1/2026 — no minimum prison terms; fines 'and/or'. Pasal 622(1) letter w as amended by UU 1/2026 revokes only Pasal 112, 113, 117, 118, 122 and 123 of UU 35/2009; its other offences remain, with penalties adjusted by UU 1/2026 Pasal II(10)–(11) and Attachment II, which also removed minimum terms (Pasal I(1)). In force 2 January 2026 (Pasal IX). |
| Personal use, and the duty to rehabilitate | UU 35/2009 Pasal 127(1)–(3) — at most 4 years for Group I, 2 for Group II, 1 for Group III; the judge must take Pasal 54, 55 and 103 into account, and a user proven to be a victim of abuse must undergo medical and social rehabilitation. Pasal 54 — addicts and victims of abuse must undergo rehabilitation. Pasal 103(1)–(2) — time in treatment ordered with a guilty verdict counts as time served. |
| The Integrated Assessment Team (TAT) | Joint Regulation No. 01/PB/MA/III/2014 of seven institutions, Pasal 8 — doctors and a psychologist, plus a legal team from the police, BNN, the prosecution and the law ministry; Pasal 9 — at the investigator's request, analyses whether the person is a victim of abuse, an addict or a dealer, and recommends treatment; Pasal 4(5) — concluded within six days of the request; Pasal 3(5) and 5(1) — placement in rehabilitation while the case runs, but detention for anyone who also deals. |
| When judges order rehabilitation: Supreme Court Circular 4/2010 | SEMA 4/2010 point 2(a)–(e) — caught in the act; a one-day supply (for example 1 gram of methamphetamine or 5 grams of cannabis); a positive laboratory test; a statement from a government psychiatrist appointed by the judge; and no evidence of involvement in trafficking. Point 3 — the judgment names the facility; accredited community facilities are at the defendant's own cost. |
| Restorative justice is closed to drug offences, except for users | UU 20/2025 Pasal 82 letter i — the restorative-justice route is excluded for narcotics offences, except where the person's status is that of a user or abuser; the other conditions and exclusions still apply (Pasal 80(1); Pasal 82 letter e). |
| A foreign suspect: consular contact, interpreter, and the right to decline to give a statement | UU 20/2025 Pasal 90(5) — notice that a foreigner has been named a suspect goes to their country's representative; Pasal 142 letters c, e, f, h and i — to be told in a language they understand, to give or refuse to give a statement, an interpreter at any time, and contact with and visits from their country's representative; Pasal 34(3)–(4) — the investigator must appoint a translator, who signs the statement. |
| How long BNN may hold someone after a drug arrest | UU 20/2025 Pasal 96 — an arrest lasts at most 1 × 24 hours unless a law provides otherwise; UU 35/2009 Pasal 76 with Pasal 75 letter g — an arrest by BNN investigators lasts at most 3 × 24 hours, extendable by at most 3 × 24 hours. |
| Detention limits after the investigation | UU 20/2025 Pasal 103 — prosecution 20 days plus up to 30 by the district court chair; Pasal 104 — district court 30 plus up to 60; Pasal 105–106 — High Court and Supreme Court 30 plus up to 60 each; Pasal 107 — a further 30 plus 30 days where the offence carries 9 years or more; Pasal 109(2) — time in detention may not exceed the maximum sentence. |
| The death penalty: a 10-year probation period | UU 1/2023 Pasal 98 — an alternative penalty and a last resort; Pasal 99(1) and Pasal 100 as amended by UU 1/2026 — imposed with a 10-year probation period during which it cannot be carried out; commendable conduct leads to conversion to life imprisonment by presidential decree after the Supreme Court's consideration. |
| A foreigner after serving a drug sentence | UU 35/2009 Pasal 146(1)–(2) — a foreigner who has served a sentence for a narcotics offence is expelled from Indonesia and barred from returning. |
Each basis above has been verified against the primary source and filed in the firm's dossier for this service. Points still under verification are not published here.
Common questions
Someone in my family has been arrested for drugs in Bali. What should we do first?
Find out who holds them — BNN or the police — and where. The family is entitled to a copy of the arrest warrant and of the detention order within one day of each (KUHAP Articles 95(3) and 100(4)). Contact your embassy: a foreign suspect has the right to contact and be visited by their country's representative, and the notice naming them a suspect goes to that representative (Articles 142(h)–(i) and 90(5)). Then instruct an advocate — counsel may see the suspect from the moment of arrest (Article 150(b)). Please do not pay anyone who offers to "fix" the case: this firm does not offer, arrange or pass on any payment to officials.
How long can they be held?
After a drug arrest, BNN investigators may hold a person for up to 3 × 24 hours, extendable by a further 3 × 24 hours (Narcotics Law, Article 76). Detention during the investigation is then capped at 20 days plus up to 40 (KUHAP Article 102); prosecution adds 20 plus up to 30, and the district court trial 30 plus up to 60 (Articles 103–104). Where the offence carries 9 years or more, each stage can be extended by a further 30 plus 30 days (Article 107). Time in detention may never exceed the maximum sentence for the offence (Article 109(2)).
Is rehabilitation instead of prison possible?
Sometimes, never automatically. Addicts and victims of abuse must undergo rehabilitation (Narcotics Law Article 54); a judge may order treatment that counts as time served (Article 103); and the Supreme Court's Circular 4/2010 lists when that order fits — including a one-day amount and no evidence of trafficking. At the investigator's request, an Integrated Assessment Team assesses whether the person is a victim of abuse, an addict or a dealer, and must conclude within six days of the request. But possession is a separate offence with heavier penalties than personal use, so the evidence decides which route is open.
Do you also act in criminal matters that are not about drugs?
Yes — a police summons as a witness or suspect, a complaint of fraud or embezzlement that you have filed or that names you, and the restorative-justice route where the offence qualifies. That route is now set out in the procedure code itself (Articles 79–82), with conditions such as a maximum sentence of five years and a first offence, and it is closed to a list of offences that includes drug offences other than for users.
Honest limits
No result can be promised in a criminal case, and anyone who promises release, rehabilitation or a dropped case is selling something that is not theirs to sell. This firm does not offer, arrange or pass on payments to officials, and does not act for anyone who asks it to. The pace of a case belongs to the police, BNN, the prosecutor and the court; every duration on this page is indicative of 2026 practice. Praperadilan is a test, not a right to win, and it has limits. Indonesian drug penalties remain severe, and every outcome turns on the evidence and the amounts involved. The 2026 codes are new and are still being tested before the Constitutional Court, so the legal position is re-checked for each case rather than taken from this page. The first step is a paid consultation — Rp2.5 million for 90 minutes; criminal work is then quoted in writing after intake.
Talk to the advocate
Tell us what you are dealing with on WhatsApp. That first message is intake and a conflict check — not legal advice. Advice happens in a booked consultation: Rp2.5 million for 90 minutes, credited against your fee if you retain the firm within 30 days.
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