Mixed-Marriage & Family Law
A prenuptial agreement is not paperwork for the wedding. Without one, UU 1/1974 Pasal 35(1) makes everything acquired during the marriage joint property, and UUPA Pasal 21(3) then gives a foreign spouse who picks up Hak Milik that way one year to release it - after which the right lapses by operation of law and the land passes to the State. Since Putusan MK 69/PUU-XIII/2015 the agreement can also be made after the wedding, which is the option most couples reading this actually need.
What you get
- A position check before any drafting: citizenship, religion - which decides whether the Religious Court or the District Court would hear anything later - what is already held, and in whose name
- Written advice on what UU 1/1974 Pasal 35 and 36 turn into joint property, and what UUPA Pasal 21(1) and 21(3) then do to Hak Milik that reaches the foreign spouse through it
- A bilingual prenuptial or postnuptial agreement drafted to the scope of separation you choose, executed before a notary seated in Indonesia - a notarial deed is what Permendagri 108/2019 Pasal 98 requires, not a court order
- Registration carried through to the marginal note on your marriage certificate under Permendagri 108/2019 Pasal 99 - the step that makes the agreement work against banks, BPN and third parties
- Representation if it becomes contested: divorce, the children, or the estate, in whichever court has jurisdiction
How it runs, step by step
| Milestone | Typical time | What happens / your part |
|---|---|---|
| Position check | 2–5 days | We confirm citizenship, religion (it decides which court), assets already held and whether any agreement exists |
| Written structure advice | 3–7 days | What is joint property, and what the land rules do to the Indonesian spouse's Hak Milik |
| Agreement drafted | 1–2 weeks | Prenuptial or postnuptial agreement, bilingual; you agree the scope of separation |
| Notarial deed | 2–5 days | Executed before an Indonesian notary — a notarial deed is the requirement, not a court order |
| Registration (marginal note) | 1–4 weeks (indicative) | Recorded at Disdukcapil as a marginal note on the marriage certificate — this is the step that makes it work against banks, BPN and third parties |
| If it becomes a dispute | Months | Divorce, custody or inheritance; if your spouse lives abroad the summons goes through the Indonesian mission and the case stretches |
Typical total: Agreement ~3–6 weeks; a contested divorce runs months
Legal basis
| Aspect | Basis |
|---|---|
| A marital agreement can be made before, at the time of, or during the marriage; ratified by the marriage registrar or by a notary | UU 1/1974 Pasal 29(1) jo. Putusan MK 69/PUU-XIII/2015 — Pasal 29 has to be read together with the Court's decision, which is what opened the agreement to being made during the marriage |
| The agreement takes effect from the marriage unless it says otherwise; during the marriage it can be amended or revoked by agreement of both parties, provided no third party is harmed | UU 1/1974 Pasal 29(3) & 29(4) jo. Putusan MK 69/PUU-XIII/2015, operative points 1.3–1.6 (conditionally unconstitutional — Pasal 29 was reinterpreted, not struck down) |
| Without an agreement: property acquired during the marriage becomes joint property, and dealing with it requires both spouses' consent | UU 1/1974 Pasal 35(1) & Pasal 36(1); property brought in, gifted or inherited stays under each spouse's own control (Pasal 35(2)) |
| Only Indonesian citizens may hold Hak Milik; a foreigner who acquires it through the mixing of property on marriage must release it within one year — after that the right lapses by operation of law and the land passes to the State | UUPA (UU 5/1960) Pasal 21(1) & 21(3); a dual national cannot hold Hak Milik either (Pasal 21(4)) |
| The Constitutional Court refused to strike down UUPA Pasal 21(1), 21(3) and 36(1) — the nationality principle stands; MK 69 opened up the marital agreement, not land ownership for foreigners | Putusan MK 69/PUU-XIII/2015 p. 151 ('without legal merit') jo. the operative part, point 3 ('the remainder of the petition is rejected') |
| Registering the agreement — including one made during the marriage, and any amendment or revocation — requires a deed before a notary seated in Indonesia, not a court order; the registrar then enters a marginal note on the register and on the marriage certificate | Permendagri 108/2019 Pasal 98 & Pasal 99(1)–(2) |
| Forum: the Religious Court has jurisdiction over marriage matters between persons who are Muslim; otherwise the District Court | UU 7/1989 Pasal 49 as amended by UU 3/2006 (jo. UU 50/2009) |
| A divorce can only be granted at a court hearing, after an attempt at reconciliation has failed | UU 1/1974 Pasal 39(1); grounds for divorce PP 9/1975 Pasal 19; the judge must attempt reconciliation at every session (PP 9/1975 Pasal 31) |
| Respondent living abroad: the petition is filed at the court where the petitioner lives, and the summons is served through the Indonesian mission there — a diplomatic channel, with no deadline attached | PP 9/1975 Pasal 20(3) & Pasal 28; where the respondent's whereabouts are unknown, the last summons must fall at least three months before the hearing (Pasal 27(3)) |
| Children after divorce: both parents remain obliged to care for and educate the child solely in the child's interest; if they disagree over who has the child, the court decides. The Marriage Law itself contains no automatic rule that the child goes to the mother | UU 1/1974 Pasal 41 letters a–c (the father bears the cost; if he is unable to, the court may place part of it on the mother) |
| A divorce is deemed to take effect from its registration at the civil registry; for those of the Muslim faith, from the moment the Religious Court's judgment becomes final | PP 9/1975 Pasal 34(2) |
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
We are already married. Is it too late for an agreement?
No. UU 1/1974 Pasal 29(1), read together with Putusan MK 69/PUU-XIII/2015, allows a marital agreement to be made before the marriage, at the time of it, or during it. It takes effect from the marriage unless the agreement says otherwise, and it can later be amended or revoked by agreement of both of you, provided that does not harm a third party - Pasal 29(3) and 29(4). What it needs is a deed before a notary seated in Indonesia and registration as a marginal note on your marriage certificate, under Permendagri 108/2019 Pasal 98 and 99. It does not need a court order, whatever you have been told.
Does MK 69 mean a foreigner can own land in Indonesia now?
No. This is the most consistently mis-sold point in Bali. The same petition also asked the Constitutional Court to strike down UUPA Pasal 21(1), 21(3) and 36(1) - the provisions that reserve Hak Milik to Indonesian citizens. The Court rejected that part outright, calling it without legal merit at page 151, and its operative part rejects the remainder of the petition. What MK 69 opened up was the marital agreement. It left the nationality principle in land law exactly where it was.
My spouse lives abroad. Can I still file for divorce here?
Yes. Under PP 9/1975 Pasal 20(3) the petition goes to the court where the petitioner lives, and Pasal 28 sends the summons through the Indonesian mission in the country where your spouse is. That channel carries no deadline, which is the honest reason a cross-border divorce runs longer than one where both parties are in Indonesia. Which court it is turns on religion: the Religious Court where the spouses are Muslim, the District Court otherwise, under UU 7/1989 Pasal 49 as amended by UU 3/2006. Fee is fixed in the engagement letter after intake.
Honest limits
This service structures and documents. It does not decide a contested matter. An agreement narrows what can be argued about; it does not stop a spouse from arguing, and no agreement reaches what UUPA reserves to Indonesian citizens - none of them makes Hak Milik available to a foreigner. Disdukcapil registration, notary availability and court listing are outside the firm's control, so every duration on this page is indicative of 2026 practice rather than a commitment. Where a family is already in conflict the cost is not only legal, and the firm will not pretend a document removes that. Outcomes in a contested divorce, in a dispute over children, or in an estate turn on the facts and on the court; nothing here is a prediction about yours.
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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