In 2018, there were 1,500 cases of foreign worker violations.

The Ministry of Manpower (Kemenaker) recorded 1,521 foreign workers (TKA) caught violating regulations in 2018. This figure represents a 290% increase from the previous year, when only 390 workers were caught.

The most common violation was working in Indonesia without an Employment Permit for Foreign Workers (IMTA), with 1,237 workers involved – the highest number among all violations. The second most common violation was abuse of position, involving 104 workers. As a result of these violations, 1,511 workers were ordered to leave their workplaces, and 11 workers received immigration recommendations.

Inadequate supervision by the Foreign Personnel Supervision Team (Tim Pora) is considered a contributing factor to the increase in violations, particularly those involving TKAs without IMTAs. This inadequate supervision is attributed to a shortage of supervisory personnel. According to Kemenaker data, the number of TKA supervisors in 2017 was only 2,294. This number includes general supervisors, specialists, and Civil Servant Investigators (PPNS), compared to a total of 85,974 foreign workers.