Electronic Land Certificates: What Changes for Owners

The electronic land certificate (Sertipikat-el) is proof of rights to land issued by the Ministry of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/National Land Agency (ATR/BPN) as an electronic document and validated with an electronic signature. For owners, the paper certificate they already hold remains valid. It is replaced with the electronic version only when there is a registration service, such as a sale, gift, inheritance or mortgage, or when the owner asks for conversion (alih media).

What an electronic land certificate is

The legal basis comes in layers. Article 147 of the Job Creation Law (UU Cipta Kerja, now UU 6/2023) allows proof of rights to land, mortgage rights (hak tanggungan) and deeds of transfer to be in electronic form. Article 84 PP 18/2021 provides that land registration may be carried out electronically. Implementation is governed by Permen ATR/BPN 3/2023 on the Issuance of Electronic Documents in Land Registration, which revoked Permen ATR/BPN 1/2021.

Permen ATR/BPN 3/2023 confirms that electronic land documents and their printouts are valid legal evidence (Article 6). A Sertipikat-el takes effect once it has been signed electronically by the authorised official (Article 17). Its data are held in the electronic land register (BT-el) in the Ministry's database.

What changes for owners

• Access through a land account. The Sertipikat-el is provided through an electronic system. The rights holder receives a single account based on the NIK (national identity number) for Indonesian citizens, the passport number for foreign nationals, or the deed of establishment number for legal entities (Article 19). In practice, access is through the Sentuh Tanahku app, and the account is created with the help of the Land Office.
• Official copy on request. Owners who are not used to the technology, cannot access the system, or ask for it, may be given an official copy printed on special paper (Article 20).
• QR code to check authenticity. Every Sertipikat-el carries a QR code that shows its authenticity and latest status (Article 20(4)).
• The database is decisive. Owners can print their own Sertipikat-el, but if there is a discrepancy, the data in the Ministry's database prevail (Article 21).
• Edition system. Every change in juridical data, for example a transfer of rights, produces a new edition. The previous edition is no longer valid and becomes part of the history (Article 40).

These changes also shift how security is maintained. The risk of losing or forging a paper certificate is reduced, but the account and identity data need protecting: never give your password or verification code to anyone, and download the app only from an official app store.

Are paper certificates still valid?

Yes. The Ministry of ATR/BPN has stated that analogue certificates remain valid and will not be withdrawn as long as the owner does not apply for conversion or another land service. Reports that land will be taken by the state if its certificate is not yet electronic are untrue.

The Ministry aims for a full transition to electronic certificates within the next few years.

When a paper certificate becomes electronic

Under Article 33 Permen ATR/BPN 3/2023, conversion takes place in two ways:

1. Gradually, village by village.
2. During a data maintenance service, that is, when there is a change in physical or juridical data, for example a sale, gift, inheritance, subdivision of a plot, or registration of a mortgage.

The electronic system is being introduced gradually, according to the readiness of each Land Office (Article 3(3)). During conversion, officers verify and validate the survey letter and land register data against the electronic system (Articles 34–35). Once the Sertipikat-el is issued, the paper certificate is kept by the Land Office as part of the file (warkah) and is not returned (Article 39(3)).

Owners can also ask for conversion without any transaction. The service fee is PNBP (non-tax state revenue) under PP 128/2015. Several media outlets report that owners of old certificates, particularly those issued before 1997 and not supported by an adequate plot map, are advised to update their data.

Electronic certificates in sales, gifts and mortgages

For the parties to a transaction, several steps now take place electronically:

• Before making a deed, the PPAT (land deed official) must confirm that the certificate data match the electronic data through the electronic land information service (Article 97 Permen ATR/BPN 3/1997 as amended by Permen ATR/BPN 16/2021).
• The PPAT uploads the deed and supporting documents through the electronic system no later than seven working days after the deed is signed (Article 25 Permen ATR/BPN 3/2023).
• The person receiving the right, for example the buyer, then submits the registration application and pays the service fee after receiving a notification (Article 28).
• Mortgage rights are registered electronically and the mortgage certificate is also electronic. See APHT and SKMHT.
• A PPJB (conditional sale and purchase agreement) and lease agreements can be recorded in the electronic land register (Article 31).

The full sale process is in the article on AJB requirements for land and buildings, and for heirs in certificate of inheritance.

Girik and old evidence after February 2026

An electronic certificate can only be issued for land that is already registered. For former customary land whose evidence is still a girik, petuk, pipil, kekitir or verponding Indonesia (old customary and colonial-era tax records), Article 76A Permen ATR/BPN 16/2021 provides that such evidence ceases to be valid five years after PP 18/2021 came into force, that is, from February 2026. As a result:

• a girik can no longer be used as evidence of rights, only as an indication in land registration;
• the land keeps its status as former customary land, not state land;
• registration is through recognition of rights, with a statement of physical possession witnessed by at least two witnesses.

The Ministry of ATR/BPN has confirmed that former girik land is not taken by the state. Its owners can still register their land.

Documents to prepare for conversion

• The original certificate
• The application form signed by the applicant or their attorney, with a duty stamp (meterai)
• Photocopies of the applicant's KTP (identity card) and family card, checked against the originals
• A power of attorney and the attorney's identity, if represented
• For legal entities: the deed of establishment and its ratification

Frequently asked questions