Year-End Overtime in Indonesia: Employee Consent and a Written or Digital Order Are Required
Indonesia's Law 27/2026 requires employee consent and a written or digital order for overtime, capped at 4 hours a day and 18 hours a week. Here is how to prepare before the December peak.Indonesia's Law Number 27 of 2026 on Employment Protection, in force since 28 October 2026, requires two things before an employee works overtime: the worker's consent and a written or digital order from the employer. According to Fortune Indonesia's summary (9 November 2026), the limits are four hours a day and 18 hours a week.
The rule applies just ahead of the busy season: the 12.12 sales, Christmas and New Year. Shops, warehouses and kitchens that usually ask staff to stay late with a spoken "can you carry on a bit longer" need to turn that habit into something recorded.
The Indonesia overtime rules as reported
Fortune Indonesia summarises four points:
- Conditions. Overtime needs the worker's consent and a written or digital order from the employer.
- Time limits. At most four hours a day and 18 hours a week.
- Pay. 1.5 times the hourly wage for the first hour, and 2 times the hourly wage for each hour after that.
- Normal working time. 40 hours a week: 7 hours a day over 6 days, or 8 hours a day over 5 days.
All of this comes from a single media source. That source does not explain how the hourly wage is calculated and does not mention special rates for overtime on a public holiday. We have not added formulas that are not there. For both, check the text of the law on the State Secretariat's legal documentation site (JDIH) or ask a consultant.
Making a simple overtime order
From here on, this is our advice.
An overtime order does not have to be a formal letter on headed paper. What matters is a record that can be shown again later and that covers the essentials. A good overtime order answers five questions:
- Who is being asked to work overtime.
- On what date.
- From what time to what time.
- What work is to be done.
- Who is giving the order.
Then comes the employee's consent: a signature on the form, or a written "agreed" in reply to the order.
Can the order be sent as a text message? The law says "written or digital", but the source does not spell out what digital form is meant. We cannot state that a WhatsApp message satisfies the requirement. What we can say is that sending the order as a written message and keeping the employee's reply is a sensible record-keeping practice while implementing regulations are pending, and far better than a spoken order that leaves no trace. If you do this, message each person individually instead of only posting in a group, and keep the messages somewhere that survives a change of phone.
One more point: consent means the employee may say no. Build the roster with backup people and do not depend on a single name.
Calculating overtime pay
The reported multipliers are 1.5 for the first hour and 2 for each hour after. As an illustration with a made-up figure, suppose an employee's hourly wage is Rp20,000 and they work three hours of overtime in one day:
| Overtime hour | Multiplier | Overtime pay |
|---|---|---|
| First hour | 1.5 | Rp30,000 |
| Second hour | 2 | Rp40,000 |
| Third hour | 2 | Rp40,000 |
| Total | Rp110,000 |
The Rp20,000 figure is only an example. How to derive an hourly wage from a monthly wage is not explained in the source, so confirm the basis before you put it into payroll.
Staying inside 18 hours a week
The daily limit of four hours is easy to remember. The weekly limit of 18 hours is the one that gets missed, because the running total is invisible when overtime is noted per day on separate sheets.
The arithmetic is simple: four hours of overtime on four days is already 16 hours. Only two hours remain for the fifth day. In a sales week, the limit can be reached by Thursday.
Some ways to stay inside it:
- Keep a weekly table per person. One row per employee, seven day columns, one total column. Fill it in every night.
- Set a marker at 14 hours. Once someone reaches 14 hours in a week, the next overtime goes to someone else.
- Rotate, do not stack. Six people doing two days of overtime each is better than two people doing overtime every day.
- Consider temporary extra hands for the busiest week if your count shows the limit will certainly be passed.
- Shift hours instead of adding them. If orders peak in the evening, some people can start later in the day, as long as their normal working time stays within 40 hours a week.
What to do before December
- Name one person with authority to order overtime. If every supervisor can order it verbally, your records will never be complete.
- Prepare an overtime order form or message format and tell staff how to approve it.
- Draft the roster for your two busiest weeks now, then count overtime hours per person per week.
- Agree how actual start and finish times are recorded, not just the plan.
- Set aside an overtime budget based on that roster.
Actual hours are the part most often left blank. If attendance is already recorded digitally, for example through the attendance and payroll features in Polynusa, the real clock-out time is there to match against the overtime order.
Note: this article summarises news reports and is not legal advice. Confirm how overtime pay is calculated and what form of order is valid for your business with an employment consultant or your local manpower office.
Sources
- Fortune Indonesia, 9 November 2026
FAQ
What does Law 27/2026 require for overtime?
According to Fortune Indonesia, overtime needs the worker's consent and a written or digital order from the employer.
What are the overtime limits?
Four hours a day and 18 hours a week, according to Fortune Indonesia's summary.
Does a WhatsApp message count as a digital overtime order?
That cannot be confirmed yet. Keeping the order and the consent as written messages is a sensible record-keeping practice while implementing regulations clarify what a digital order is.