In Indonesia, domestic and international arbitration falls under the Arbitration Law (Law No. 30 of 1999). The Arbitration Law is not based on the UNCITRAL Model Law. Under the Arbitration Law, any award handed down outside the territory of Indonesia (e.g. in Singapore or London) is classifi ed as an international arbitration award. An international arbitral award also includes any award issued by an arbitration institution or ad hoc arbitration which under Indonesian law is deemed as an international arbitration award. 

Any award other than the above is classifi ed as a domestic arbitration award. Most parts of the Arbitration Law concern domestic arbitration. However, the Arbitration Law does provide the procedure and requirements for enforcing an international arbitration award. Indonesia ratified the New York Convention on 5 August 1981 under Presidential Decree No. 34 of 1981, and the New York Convention has been in force in  Indonesia since 5 January 1982. Indonesia acceded to the New York Convention on 7 October 1981. Other than the New York Convention, Indonesia has not signed any other treaty on the recognition and enforcement of arbitration awards.

The main arbitration centre is the Indonesian National Arbitration Board (Badan Arbitrase Nasional Indonesia/BANI). There are also several special arbitration bodies which handle disputes in certain areas of law and industries to accommodate the need for special arbitration; among others, the Indonesia Capital Market Arbitration Board (Badan Arbitrase Pasar Modal Indonesia/BAPMI) for capital market disputes, and the National Syariah Arbitration Board (Badan Arbitrase Syariah Nasional/BASYARNAS) for Islamic banking matters. A few international arbitration bodies have a presence in Indonesia, such as ICC (International Chamber of Commerce) and the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators’

chapter. 

Only the Central Jakarta District Court (CJDC) handles the enforcement of international arbitration awards. More details are provided below in “Enforcement of arbitration awards”.