Minister of Finance Minister, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, has expressed optimism that the country’s tax ratio could rise to 11 percent of GDP in the near term against the current national tax ratio of below 10 percent. 

According to Purbaya, achieving the 11 percent level can be done without major new measures, primarily driven by the growth of the workforce, which automatically expands the taxpayer base each year.

“It’s still at 10 percent, so reaching 10–11 percent is almost within reach. (Income tax receipts) would add around Rp120–240 trillion (US$7.2-14.4 billion) to revenue without doing anything extra,” Purbaya said at the 100 Indonesian Economists Seminar on Tuesday, October 28, 2025.

He noted that an 11 percent tax ratio is not unprecedented, as Indonesia reached this level during the administration of the sixth President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY), before declining to around 10–10.5 percent under the seventh President, Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.

“During SBY’s era, the private sector was driving growth. Under Jokowi, it was the state-owned enterprises and the government. If I revive the private sector now, the tax ratio could rise 0.5–1 percent from current levels,” he said.

Purbaya emphasized that his fiscal policy would focus on stimulating the private sector, believing that strengthening the real economy would directly increase state revenue, circulation of money, and overall economic activity.

“The real sector moves first − the private sector − not the government,” he said.

Data from the Ministry of Finance shows Indonesia’s tax ratio fell to 8.42 percent in the first half of 2025, down from 9.49 percent during the same period last year.