BALINEWSID.COM, DENPASAR — The Bali Provincial Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) is stepping up scrutiny of the growing number of unlicensed tourism accommodations, including illegal villas, across the island.

Bali Satpol PP Chief Dewa Nyoman Rai Dharmadi said his office had received public complaints regarding the construction and operation of allegedly unlicensed tourism accommodations.

He instructed Satpol PP units across Bali’s regencies and municipalities to collect data on the villas and other accommodations already operating without proper authorization.

“The villas that have been built on a massive scale need to be properly recorded and subject to guidance. We need to provide information and facilitate the process so that villas identified as unlicensed can become legal businesses and contribute to regional revenue,” Dharmadi said on Tuesday (Aug. 18, 2026).

According to Dharmadi, accurate data on unlicensed accommodations would make it easier for authorities to monitor the buildings and respond if problems arise. Registration would also help maintain fair competition between licensed tourism businesses and those operating outside the regulatory framework.

He warned that the issue went beyond business licensing, as uncontrolled villa construction could also encroach on protected or restricted areas.

“This should not be taken lightly because it could also lead to massive development in areas where construction is prohibited, including land designated for sustainable agricultural purposes,” he said.

Dharmadi said Satpol PP offices at the regency and municipal levels were responsible for monitoring and taking action against illegal villas and ensuring that tourism accommodation businesses were not operating in prohibited areas.

He also warned that unregistered tourism businesses could result in lost regional revenue.

“If revenue is lost, the regencies and municipalities are the ones affected. If there is a violation, Satpol PP can be involved in providing guidance and enforcement, together with the relevant technical agencies,” he said.

Bali Has Around 2,000 Unregistered Tourism Businesses

The issue comes amid a significant increase in the number of officially registered tourism accommodations in Bali.

Agus Made Yoga Iswara, Deputy Chairman of the Indonesian Hotel General Manager Association (IHGMA), previously said the number of officially registered tourism accommodations rose from around 12,000 in 2024 to approximately 17,000 in 2025.

He attributed the increase partly to government efforts to regulate unregistered tourism businesses and encourage them to obtain official status.

“We strongly welcomed the government’s efforts to improve governance and encourage unregistered businesses to become official. Based on the data we collected in 2025, the number of registered businesses reached 17,000,” Yoga said on Saturday (Aug. 16, 2026).

However, he estimated that around 2,000 tourism accommodation businesses were still not compliant with applicable regulations.

Of those, approximately 1,000 were businesses operating under the real estate classification in the Indonesian Standard Industrial Classification (KBLI), rather than being registered specifically as tourism accommodation businesses.

Bali Satpol PP Short of Nearly 200 Personnel

The enforcement effort is also being carried out amid a shortage of personnel within the Bali Provincial Satpol PP.

Dharmadi said the provincial unit currently has 205 personnel, while an internal assessment showed that nearly 200 additional personnel were needed to meet operational requirements.

“We have prepared a personnel needs assessment in accordance with the applicable provisions. We are short of nearly 200 personnel at the provincial level, and we have submitted a proposal for the additional manpower,” Dharmadi said.

He said the shortage was linked to the increasingly complex nature of public order and regulatory enforcement in Bali.

Although Bali is relatively small geographically, authorities face a wide range of challenges, including violations of spatial planning regulations, unlicensed tourism accommodations and cases involving both local residents and foreign nationals.

“The workload is quite heavy. Bali is not a very large area, but the complexity of the problems is significant,” Dharmadi said.

Satpol PP serves as one of the front-line government agencies responsible for initial supervision and enforcement of local regulations before cases are followed up by the relevant technical authorities.

Despite the personnel shortage, Dharmadi said the agency would continue its enforcement activities by strengthening coordination with regency and municipal Satpol PP units.

“This does not mean that we will stop taking action. Through good coordination, we can ease the workload at the provincial level,” he said.