Indonesia LOB - Required Documents

[CWK]

I recently book a LOB trip for Komodo. After I had made full payment and provided the LOB company with details such as passport number, certification level, etc, they sent me a email saying, "Could you also please send us a copy of your passport to enable us to arrange permissions for your arrival in Indonesia." I have done 5 dive trips to Indonesia in the last 12 months and am perfectly aware that there is absolutely no need to arrange permissions for my arrival in Indonesia, therefore I declined to provide a copy of my passport (which is an identity document) to the LOB company.

The LOB company now says, "For Indonesia we do require a copy of your passport to be able to prepare the boat permissions in advance." I have done LOBs in other countries (but not Indonesia) and have not been required to provide a copy of my passport for "boat permissions". Does anyone know why I must provide a copy of my passport to the LOB company for Indonesia, more specifically Komodo? Is there some local government regulation that requires a copy of LOB passanger passports?

As a general rule, I do not provide my PINs to anyone. Likewise I do not provide copies of my identity documents to anyone.

 

[Adelaar Cruises]

Hello,

Some harbor masters or clearance agencies in Indonesia do ask for passport copies of the guests onboard. Our boat currently only needs the passport information but we know of colleagues who do need to request a passport copy from their passengers. I am not aware which LOB you will be traveling with but this doesn't sound like a scam. I hope this information was helpful and wish you a lovely time in Indonesia.

 

[Mike Veitch]

Yes, harbour clearance is the reason. Boats have to make a clearance on the way in and on the way out of every port in Indonesia. To do this they require identification of each person on the boat

 

[CWK]

Many thanks. I guess the LOB started on the wrong foot by telling me that they needed it to arrange permissions for my arrival in Indonesia.

 

[Damselfish]

Might be a language thing. While their rep who does this stuff may speak pretty good English or whatever- presumably better than our Indonesian - sometimes there can be awkward bits or inaccurate turns of phrase.

 

[CWK]

Not a language thing as their reps are English sounding names. They have LOBs in more than one country.

 

[chillyinCanada]

I felt the same way this last lob trip but frankly not as concerned about a copy of my passport being sent on, as I am about wiring money to Indonesia.

For that reason, I use an agent. That's not the only reason I use my agent, but it's a good one.

 

[CWK]

I felt the same way this last lob trip but frankly not as concerned about a copy of my passport being sent on, as I am about wiring money to Indonesia.

Yes. Wiring money to Indonesia is something else. I've been asked to wire money to personal accounts, as opposed to accounts in company names, when booking land based dive packages. Takes some getting used to.

 

[bshort4]

I just booked a liveaboard trip with Uber Scuba out of Lubuan Bajo and all they asked for was my passport number and of course country of origin--not a copy of the passport. Maybe they'll make a copy at their office once I get there. They also used PayPal to transfer money for the deposit--to their company account. As I have an account with PayPal their protection plan should help me with any problems I may encounter--hopefully.

 

[Lorenzoid]

It's very common for a dive op to ask for passport number and nationality. I'm pretty sure I have even been asked by land-based ops. I fill in those lines on their forms without giving it a second thought. I have never been asked for a copy of my passport, though, in Indonesia or anywhere else.