President Prabowo Subianto has signed Law No. 3/2025 on the Indonesian Military (TNI), one key point of which is the extension of retirement age for TNI soldiers from the previous maximum of 58 years to 63 years of age, depending on ranks and the President's approval.
The law, which was signed on March 26, 2025, replaces the old provisions in Law No. 34/2004, which set the retirement age limit for non-commissioned officers and privates at 53 years, and high-ranking officers at 58 years.
In the new TNI Law, the retirement age for officers with the rank of lieutenant colonel and below is 58 years. Officers with the rank of colonel retire at the age of 59, while high-ranking officers with one to three stars retire at the age of 60–62 years.
Meanwhile, four-star general, such as the TNI Commander, can serve until the age of 63 and can still be extended twice for one year each, at the President's discretion.
With this new provision, a number of TNI officials who were originally approaching retirement now still have a fairly long term of office. The Indonesian Navy Chief of Staff Admiral Muhammad Ali, born on April 9, 1967, can still serve for the next five years, plus the potential for a two-year extension. The incumbent TNI Chief General Agus Subiyanto, who was born on August 5, 1967, even has the potential to serve for another seven years.
Meanwhile, Indonesian Army Chief of Staff General Maruli Simanjuntak, who is 55 years old, can serve for more eight years. Meanwhile, the Indonesian Air Force Chief of StaffAir Chief Marshal Tonny Harjono, who was born on October 4, 1971, can even serve for the next eleven years.
President Prabowo in an interview with the editors-in-chief of the mass media in Hambalang, Bogor, West Java, on April 6, 2025 stated that the revision of the TNI Law was needed to avoid rapid changes in TNI leadership.
"In those few years, the TNI Chief changed once a year, the Army Chief of Staff changed once a year because his term was up. Where can we have an organization whose leaders change every year?" Prabowo said.
The president dismissed speculations that the revision was aimed at reviving ABRI's [former name of TNI] dual function. "The TNI has no intention of having a dual function again. Come on, that's nonsense," he said.
Budget burden
Galau D. Muhammad, a researcher at the Center of Economic and Law Studies (CELIOS), said that this policy raises a number of potential problems, especially related to the country's fiscal fundamentals which are already very vulnerable.
"We have quite a large debt arrears, around Rp800 trillion (US$53.3 billion), plus a decrease in State revenue of around Rp31 trillion (US$2 billion) due to obstacles in the tax bureaucracy," Galau spoke to Indonesia Business Post on Friday, March 21, 2025.
He reminded that Indonesia is currently experiencing a significant fiscal deficit, which is forcing the state to finance the increase in spending through debt.
"If the active service period of TNI soldiers is extended, then financing the salaries and allowances of TNI soldiers will further burden the budget, which is currently at a critical point," Galau noted.
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