The short answer
When you hire in Indonesia through an employer of record, the first fourteen days after the candidate accepts are spent turning an offer into a compliant, registered, paid employee: collecting documents, issuing a Bahasa Indonesia contract, registering with the two BPJS programmes, setting up tax withholding, meeting the payroll cut-off, and getting a working device and a place to sit into the person's hands. The EOR does the government-facing work; you set the role, the pay and the manager. Below is what happens on which day, what you are asked for, and where a first hire usually stalls. It describes MixWork's process; other providers' steps are similar, their dates and cut-offs are not.
Before day one: the offer and the notice period
Everything below assumes a signed offer. If the person is currently employed, their resignation notice runs first; under Government Regulation No. 35 of 2021 an employee resigning voluntarily gives notice, and thirty days is the norm in professional contracts, so a start date four to six weeks out is realistic and a start in two weeks is possible only when the candidate is available. Use the notice period to agree three things with the EOR in writing: the gross monthly salary in rupiah, the start date set with the payroll cut-off in mind, and any benefits above the statutory floor, because whatever you promise above the floor has to be written into the contract before it is signed.
Days 1 to 3: documents and the contract
The employee provides identity and tax documents: national identity card (KTP), tax number (NPWP) and family status for PTKP, bank account details, existing BPJS membership numbers if they have them, and education and prior-employment documents for verification. MixWork runs identity and document verification and professional background and reference checks on every hire, included in the fee, before the contract is issued.
The EOR drafts the employment agreement. Under Law No. 24 of 2009 the contract must be in Bahasa Indonesia; a bilingual version can be issued for you and the employee, and the Indonesian text prevails if the two differ. Professional roles are employed on a permanent contract (PKWTT), the form Indonesian law defaults to and the one that carries full statutory protection; fixed-term (PKWT) contracts are limited by law to specific kinds of work and capped at five years including extensions. A PKWTT may include a probation period of up to three months, and only a PKWTT may. Confidentiality, non-disclosure and data-protection terms drafted against Law No. 27 of 2022 are in every MixWork contract as standard, so nothing has to be bolted on later.
Days 3 to 5: signing and the first day
The contract is explained and signed, in person at the Jakarta office for Jakarta-based hires and by video with the same HR team for hires elsewhere in Indonesia. The employee's first day is set on or after the signing date; there is no legal onboarding period before the contract, only the practical one. For a Jakarta hire taking a dedicated desk under MixWork Spaces, the first day is in the office with the HR team present.
Days 3 to 10: the registrations you never see
BPJS Kesehatan and BPJS Ketenagakerjaan
The EOR, as the legal employer under Law No. 24 of 2011, registers the employee for national health insurance and for the employment programmes: old-age savings (JHT), pension (JP), work-accident (JKK) and death (JKM) cover, with job-loss cover (JKP) attached. An employee who already holds BPJS numbers is registered under them; a first-time worker is enrolled. Employer contributions run at roughly 11% of gross salary in total, with the health contribution capped on wages of IDR 12,000,000 and the pension contribution capped at the ceiling that rose to IDR 11,086,300 in March 2026. Both are the EOR's to calculate and remit. Registration is completed within the statutory window; MixWork targets it within the first payroll cycle so cover is active before the first salary is paid.
PPh 21
Income tax is withheld monthly by the employer using the effective-rate (TER) tables under Government Regulation No. 58 of 2023, based on the employee's PTKP status (single or married, number of dependants), with a December true-up against the progressive brackets of Law No. 7 of 2021. The EOR deposits the tax by the 15th of the following month and files the return by the 20th under Minister of Finance Regulation No. 81 of 2024. The employee's only job is to supply an accurate NPWP and family status; the EOR's is to get the PTKP code right, because a wrong code means twelve months of wrong withholding and an awkward December.
Manpower reporting
Employers in Indonesia report their workforce under Law No. 7 of 1981 on mandatory manpower reporting (WLKP), now through the online system. The EOR carries that obligation as the employer. You will never be asked to do it, but it is worth knowing it exists when a provider tells you compliance is fully handled: this is one of the things the sentence refers to.
Days 5 to 10: payroll setup and the cut-off
The employee is added to the payroll with the gross salary, allowances, PTKP code and bank details, and the employer cost is set up on your side: salary, statutory contributions, the THR accrual (one month's salary a year, payable seven days before the employee's religious holiday under Minister of Manpower Regulation No. 6 of 2016) and the provider's fee. Every provider has a monthly cut-off after which a new joiner cannot be added to that month's run. Ask for the date before you agree the start date; a start two days after cut-off means the first salary arrives with the second month's run, and a first hire who waits seven weeks for a first payslip is a retention problem you created on day one. MixWork confirms the cut-off in the scoping call and, where a start date falls late in a cycle, arranges the first payment so the employee is paid for the days worked without waiting for the following month.
Days 1 to 7: devices, access and a place to work
Where you take MixWork Managed IT, the laptop is imaged to a hardened baseline, encrypted and enrolled in device management before it is handed over, from stock held in the region, with a guided handover on or before the first day; it is leased from USD 99 per device per month with no deposit and a three-month minimum. Where you provide devices yourself, plan shipping and customs into the timeline, because a laptop that clears customs on day twelve is a first week lost. Software licences, email and repository access are yours to grant; give the employee's manager a checklist and a deadline of day one. Where you take MixWork Spaces, the dedicated desk, meeting-room access and building security pass are ready on day one, from USD 199 per workspace per month.
Days 7 to 14: the first check-in
Total Care 360 is included with every MixWork EOR engagement at no extra cost, and it starts in the first fortnight: the employee's dedicated HR manager makes contact, the monthly check-in calls are scheduled (one with the employee, one with you), attendance and leave are set up in the employee app, and the manager on your side is told who to call when something is not working. Most problems that end in a resignation at month nine are visible at week two to someone who asks. That is what the first check-in is for.
Day | What happens | Who does it | What you are asked for |
|---|---|---|---|
Before day 1 | Offer accepted; salary, start date and benefits agreed; notice period runs | You, employee, EOR | Gross salary in IDR, start date set against the payroll cut-off, benefits above the floor |
1 to 3 | Documents collected and verified; Bahasa Indonesia PKWTT drafted | EOR, employee | Job title, reporting line, any non-standard terms |
3 to 5 | Contract explained and signed; first day | EOR HR team, employee | Manager available for day one |
3 to 10 | BPJS registration; PPh 21 setup on NPWP and PTKP; manpower reporting | EOR | Nothing |
5 to 10 | Payroll record created before cut-off; employer cost confirmed | EOR | Approval of the first invoice basis |
1 to 7 | Device imaged and handed over; workspace ready; access granted | EOR (Managed IT, Spaces), your IT and manager | Software licences, email, repositories |
7 to 14 | HR manager contact; check-in calls scheduled; attendance and leave set up | EOR HR team | A 30-minute client check-in slot |
Where first hires stall
A start date agreed before the payroll cut-off was checked.
A benefit promised at interview that never made it into the contract, discovered at the first payslip.
A device shipped from abroad that arrives after the first week.
A wrong PTKP code, visible only when December withholding looks strange.
No named manager on your side for day one, so the first week is spent waiting for access.
None of these is Indonesian law. All of them are calendar and communication, which is why the scoping call with the EOR should cover the cut-off, the contract terms and the device plan before the offer goes out. The employer of record guide covers the legal framework in full; the Jakarta office page describes where the in-person parts of this happen; and if you are moving an existing employee from another provider rather than hiring new, the switching guide covers the handover.
Primary sources
Law No. 24 of 2009: Bahasa Indonesia contracts.
Law No. 13 of 2003 on Manpower, as amended by Law No. 6 of 2023, and Government Regulation No. 35 of 2021: PKWTT and PKWT contracts, probation, notice.
Law No. 24 of 2011 and BPJS Ketenagakerjaan published rates: social security registration and contributions.
Government Regulation No. 58 of 2023, Law No. 7 of 2021 and PMK 81/2024: PPh 21 withholding, brackets, deposit and filing dates.
Law No. 7 of 1981: mandatory manpower reporting.
Law No. 27 of 2022: personal data protection.
This article is general information current as at 12 September 2026 and is not legal advice. Confirm current requirements with qualified Indonesian legal counsel.
