Customs And Excise For Illegal Used Clothing Worth IDR 49.44 Billion Throughout 2024 To 2025

The Directorate General of Customs and Excise at the Ministry of Finance (Kemenkeu) has taken action against illegal goods in the form of balpres containing used clothes and bags with a value of IDR 49.44 billion from 2024 to 2025.

Director of Communication and Guidance for Customs and Excise Service Users, Nirwala Dwi Heryanto, revealed that Customs and Excise had taken 2,584 prosecutions with a total of 12,808 coli of evidence throughout 2024 to 2025.

"Throughout 2024 to 2025, Customs and Excise has taken 2,584 actions with a total of 12,808 coli of evidence and an estimated value of goods reaching Rp49.44 billion," Nirwala said at a press conference in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta, Thursday, August 14.

Some of the major cases that were successfully uncovered in 2025, including Makassar Customs and Excise taking action against 873 balpres worth Rp1.4 billion from three containers that entered through Makassar Soekarno-Hatta Port, with a mode without customs notification documents on March 13, 2025.

Then, Pangkalan Bun Customs took action against 167 collisan ballpress worth Rp665 million from one truck at Panglima Snake Port with a mode of no customs notification document on March 14, 2025.

The prosecution continued, on April 26, 2025, the Directorate of Customs Enforcement and Investigation took action against two trucks carrying 132 colli balpres worth Rp1 billion on the Cikampek Toll Road. The Balptes is suspected to be a former import sent from East Java to Jakarta.

Then, on April 30, 2025, Dumai Customs took action against a ship loaded with 150 bale bales worth IDR 525 million with the mode not being notified in customs documents.

On August 7, 2025, the West Kalimantan Customs Office secured 2,000 bale balpres in eight containers worth IDR 4 billion at the Depo Temas Shipping Container Field without customs documents.

Most recently, Customs and Excise together with the Indonesian Navy failed the income of 775 balpres containers or used clothes and bags worth IDR 1.51 billion in the Tanjung Priok Port area, North Jakarta.

The action was carried out from Saturday 9 August to Tuesday 12 August in three strategic locations, namely the 212 Domestic Cadet (the unloading location), the TPS TER3 (the scanning location) import scanner tool, and the CDC Banda TPS (the location for hoarding and inspection of goods).

Nirwala said that the achievements of taking action against balpres by Customs and Excise emphasized that balpres is still one of the commodities most often targeted for smuggling.

"This is a priority for Customs and Excise supervision throughout Indonesia," said Nirwala.

Majority Enter From Malaysia

Previously, the Director General of Customs and Excise, Djaka Budhi Utama, said that hundreds of illegal imported balpres entered through Malaysia, because of the geographical location adjacent to Indonesia.

"The most countries, as we all know, are bordering Malaysia. Then on the border of the Malacca Strait with Malaysia," Djaka said at a press conference at Tanjung Priok Port, Jakarta, Thursday, August 14.

From the frequency side, continued Djaka, most of these illegal used imported clothes came from Malaysia. Although, he said, some came from other countries.

"The majority, if you look at the frequency that enters Indonesian territory, is based on Malaysia. Because almost all the bal press that comes in is always through Malaysia. And sometimes there are also those from other neighboring countries," he said.

Djaka bilang, nilai kerugian negara tidak dihitung dari sisi penerimaan karena barang tersebut dilarang impor berdasarkan Peraturan Menteri Perdagangan (Permendag) Nomor 18 Tahun 2021 jo Permendag Nomor 40 Tahun 2022.

Namun, Djaka mengatakan, balpres bisa menimbulkan kerugian imaterial, mulai dari menurunkan citra bangsa, berpotensi membawa penyakit melalui virus dan bakteri, mengganggu industri tekstil dalam negeri, hingga menggerus pangsa pasar produk lokal.

Djaka said the value of state losses was not calculated in terms of revenue because these goods were prohibited from importing based on the Regulation of the Minister of Trade (Permendag) Number 18 of 2021 in conjunction with Permendag Number 40 of 2022.

However, Djaka said, balpres could cause immaterial losses, ranging from lowering the image of the nation, potentially carrying diseases through viruses and bacteria, disrupting the domestic textile industry, to erode the market share of local products.