Every visitor to Raja Ampat needs a marine park entry permit — the PIN card, formally a kartu jasa lingkungan or environmental services card. It is widely quoted at around IDR 1,000,000 for foreign nationals and IDR 500,000 for Indonesians, it is valid for one calendar year rather than one trip, and it is sold at the Raja Ampat tourism counters in Sorong and Waisai. On a charter, your operator normally buys it for you. The rupiah figure is set by district regulation and has changed more than once, so confirm the current rate before you travel.
What is the PIN, exactly?
Raja Ampat funds the protection of its reefs through a user-pays scheme run by the regency. You buy a card, you receive a small tag, and that tag is your evidence that you have contributed to patrols, monitoring and the community share of the conservation budget. Rangers and homestay hosts can ask to see it. Dive operators will ask for it before your first dive.
Two features surprise people. First, it is annual: buy it in February and it covers you until the end of that calendar year, including a second trip in November. Second, it is personal: one card per person, not per booking, per boat or per family.
What does it cost in 2027?
| Category | Widely quoted rate | Earlier published structure | Validity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreign national | approx. IDR 1,000,000 | IDR 700,000 | One calendar year |
| Indonesian national | approx. IDR 500,000 | IDR 425,000 | One calendar year |
These are the figures reported in recent years by counters and operators. The amount is set by district regulation and has been revised more than once. Treat this table as a planning band and confirm the live rate at booking — we do that in writing for every charter guest.
We are deliberate about the hedging here. Of all the numbers on this website, the Raja Ampat permit is the one where published sources disagree most, and an operator who quotes it to the rupiah with total confidence is either very recently informed or not being careful.
Where do you actually buy it?
There are two official counters that matter to charter guests.
| Counter | Where | Best for | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sorong tourism office counter | Sorong city, near the harbour district | Guests boarding directly in Sorong | Office hours only; closed on some public holidays |
| Waisai counter | Waisai, Waigeo — the regency seat | Guests arriving by the Sorong–Waisai fast ferry | Often the practical option for independent travellers |
On a private phinisi charter this is usually a non-event. You send passport details in advance, the operator’s ground agent buys the cards, and the tags are handed to you at embarkation. That is how our Raja Ampat 7-night phinisi charter handles it, and it removes an office visit from a day that already contains a flight.
Bring cash anyway
Counters are cash-first in rupiah. Card facilities are inconsistent, and the ATM network in Sorong and Waisai is thin and occasionally empty around long weekends. Even if your operator is buying the permits, arriving with rupiah in hand is basic seamanship on land.
What does the money fund?
The permit is not a tourist tax dressed up in green language. Raja Ampat’s marine protected area network relies on it for ranger patrols that enforce no-take zones, for reef and manta monitoring, and for a share distributed to the villages whose customary marine tenure covers those reefs. The relationship is direct: the communities that give up fishing access on a reef are the communities that receive a slice of what visitors pay to swim on it.
That is also why enforcement is taken seriously. Being unable to produce a tag when a ranger asks is embarrassing at best and can cost you dives at worst.
What goes wrong most often?
- Paying twice in one year. Divers who visit in March and again in October sometimes buy a second card because nobody told them the first was annual. Keep the receipt and the tag.
- Losing the tag. It is small, it lives on a lanyard, and it goes overboard. Photograph it and the receipt on day one.
- Arriving without cash. See above.
- Assuming the boat covers it. On some budget itineraries the permit is an explicit exclusion. Ask which side of the line it sits on.
- Confusing it with Komodo. Komodo National Park charges a daily entrance ticket under a completely different regime; the two systems share nothing but the word “fee”. If your trip combines both, read our companion piece on what Komodo charter guests actually pay.
How does the permit fit into arrival day?
Almost every Raja Ampat charter begins at Sorong’s Domine Eduard Osok airport (SOQ) — roughly three and a half to four and a quarter hours from Jakarta, about two hours from Makassar, and around an hour and a quarter to an hour and a half from Manado. Most guests board in Sorong itself. The Sorong–Waisai fast ferry takes about two hours with a morning and an afternoon sailing, but timetables shift and weather cancels sailings, which is the single strongest argument for a buffer night. We set out the full sequence — flights, hotels, ferry, ATMs, permit counter — in our guide to Sorong and Waisai logistics.
If your voyage runs south to the Misool pinnacles and lagoons, the permit requirement is identical; only the sailing distance changes. See the Misool phinisi charter itinerary for how those nights are usually structured.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Raja Ampat permit valid for a year or a trip?
One calendar year. A card bought in April covers a second visit in November of the same year.
Can I buy the permit online?
Online arrangements have appeared and disappeared over the years. The dependable routes remain the Sorong and Waisai counters, or your operator’s ground agent. Do not rely on a third-party site you have not verified.
Do children need a PIN card?
Practice varies by counter and by year. Budget as though they do, and let any concession be a pleasant surprise.
Is the permit included in a phinisi charter price?
On our charters it is arranged for you and stated clearly in the quote as either included or listed at cost. On budget liveaboards generally, marine park permits are a common exclusion.
What if I lose the tag mid-trip?
Show the receipt or the photograph of it. Rangers are pragmatic when you can prove payment; they are not when you cannot.
Does the permit cover diving as well as snorkelling?
The marine park entry permit covers your presence in the protected area. Dive-specific costs are charged by the operator, not the regency.
Why do different websites quote different prices?
Because the amount has been revised by district regulation more than once and many pages were never updated. This is exactly why we publish it as an approximate band with an instruction to verify.
Do I need anything else besides the PIN?
A passport with adequate validity and the correct Indonesian entry permission for your nationality. The marine park card is a local conservation charge, not an immigration document.
Let the permit be someone else’s problem
Charters are operated by Komodo Luxury, part of Juara Holding Group, running Indonesian voyages since 2015. Send us your passport details with your booking and the permits are bought, checked and handed over at embarkation, with the current regency rate confirmed in writing so nothing changes at the counter.
WhatsApp: +62 811 3823 875 · Email: sales@komodoluxury.com