September 16, 2025
JAKARTA – The government plans to roll out a fresh round of year-end stimulus measures to spur economic growth and support household spending.
Coordinating Economy Minister Airlangga Hartarto said the stimulus program, dubbed the “8+4” incentive, would cover multiple sectors to support workers, students and key industries.
It will be the third such package this year after similar programs in January and June.
Read also: Govt to provide scaled-back consumer stimulus for year-end boost
One of the headline measures aims to place students and fresh graduates in paid internships that connect them with employers and provide an immediate income.
“They will be linked and matched and receive pay [under the internship program]. We are still finalizing the amount,” Airlangga told a press conference on Friday, as quoted by state news agency Antara.
Tax breaks are also to be widened. Personal income tax relief, which was previously restricted to workers in labor-intensive industries like textiles, footwear and furniture, will be extended to hotels, restaurants and cafes.
The government is also planning another three-month extension for the food aid scheme rolled out earlier this year, under which it provides 10 kilograms of rice per month to millions of low-income households.
The fourth measure aims to expand waivers on social security fees to freelancers and gig workers, including on-demand transportation drivers, and includes coverage for workplace accidents, unemployment and death benefits.
“Previously, the government paid half of the contributions. The technical details are being prepared,” Airlangga said.
Other measures include a state-backed housing finance scheme through the Workers Social Security Agency (BPJS Ketenagakerjaan) to cover home purchases, renovation and mortgages, as well as cash for work (CfW) schemes in labor-intensive sectors such as transportation and housing.
Airlangga declined to reveal the estimated budget for the six measures, saying the numbers would be finalized in a meeting on Monday.
“The budget is ready. We will push all programs until the year-end,” he said.
Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa said funding would come from reallocating underutilized line items in the state budget.
“We can shift posts that are not absorbed. Until the end of the year, we will move them to areas that are more ready to execute. If there are good programs that are moving too slowly, we will accelerate them,” he said.
The latest measures come amid weaker household spending in Southeast Asia’s largest economy.
Read also: Consumer confidence hits 3-year low on job market jitters
The consumer confidence index (CCI) slipped 0.9 points in August to 117.2 from 118.1 in July, marking its weakest reading since September 2022, and respondents to the monthly survey expressed worry over the job market.
Last week, the government announced plans to shift some Rp 200 trillion (US$12.2 billion) in state deposits from Bank Indonesia to state-owned commercial lenders, allowing for more loan disbursements to reinvigorate private sector activity and boost economic growth, which has hovered around 5 percent.
Purbaya said state-owned banks were expected to channel the deposits into lending rather than bonds, to “jump-start the market mechanism by giving them the tools to work harder for higher returns”.
He added that the ultimate goal was to lift GDP growth to 6 percent in the “not too long term”.