Bali–Nusra Customs Details 2025 Crackdown on Illegal Excise Goods

Denpasar — Bali and Nusa Tenggara Customs is intensifying its crackdown on illegal excise goods, combining route‑risk mapping for untaxed tobacco with ongoing market operations, joint patrols and the destruction of seized cigarettes and alcohol. The most recent detailed data available show extensive enforcement in 2025 and mid‑2026, although newer figures for late 2026 have not yet been published in full.

Recent operations have focused on illegal tobacco products and alcoholic beverages, known in Indonesia as MMEA, alongside wider customs and narcotics controls in the Bali, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) and East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) region.

Documented enforcement in 2025

According to the regional Customs office for Bali and Nusa Tenggara, from 1 January to 9 December 2025 the Bali–Nusra directorate and its subordinate offices carried out 1,652 enforcement actions in the excise sector. These cases involved illegal cigarettes, other tobacco products and alcoholic drinks that breached Indonesia’s Excise Law.

In that period officers seized 18.17 million illegal cigarettes, 581.34 kilograms of illegal sliced tobacco, 53.81 litres of other processed tobacco products and 14,872 litres of illegal MMEA. Customs valued the confiscated excise goods at about Rp40 billion, with an estimated Rp27.1 billion in unpaid excise that would otherwise have gone to the state budget.

Separate regional reporting from October 2025 shows that excise violations surged ahead of the year‑end holidays. A Bali‑based outlet, citing local Customs officials, reported that from January to October 2025 Customs took action against 13.6 million cigarette sticks and 20,220 litres of MMEA across 260 excise cases. In October alone, officers seized 6,001,115 cigarette sticks and 1,733 litres of alcohol without excise stamps.

These figures indicate that the excise‑related enforcement load in the Bali–Nusra region in 2025 was significantly higher than the 378‑case tally cited in the draft article and that the value of protected state revenue also exceeded Rp43.6 billion.

Destruction of seized goods in 2025–2026

Customs has continued to move seized goods out of circulation through scheduled destruction. In December 2025, the Bali–Nusra regional office reported destroying 1,477,424 illegal cigarette sticks and 4,962.95 litres of illegal MMEA at a facility in Bali. This destruction covered goods from multiple enforcement actions and was framed as part of efforts to deter future violations.

In July 2026, regional Customs, together with the Ngurah Rai and Denpasar offices, destroyed another batch of contraband collected between September 2025 and June 2026. Photo and text reports of the event state that officers disposed of 16,138 bottles of alcoholic beverages, 3.78 million illegal cigarettes and cigars, and various restricted consumer goods such as phones, laptops and tablets, with a total value of about Rp11.2 billion.

The July 2026 destruction underscores that significant seizures continued into 2026, although a consolidated enforcement count for the year has not yet been publicly compiled in the available reports.

Focus on illegal tobacco routes and public cooperation

While much of the published data are national rather than Bali‑specific, Customs has described its approach to illegal cigarette distribution as risk‑based and multi‑modal. At the national level, the Directorate General of Customs and Excise has reported that, based on supervision data to August 2026, the largest volume of illegal cigarettes intercepted was found on roads, followed by warehouses, delivery services and ports. Officials say they use risk mapping and profiling to prioritise areas for patrols and inspections.

In the Bali–Nusra region, Customs has publicly emphasised strengthening surveillance of illegal tobacco and called on residents and businesses to report suspected violations. A Bali‑based news outlet quoted regional Customs officials in early September 2026 stating that illegal cigarette circulation remains a key focus of oversight and that community reporting is considered important to support enforcement.

Recent announcements also highlight joint operations and outreach. For example, the Labuan Bajo Customs office in NTT described combined market inspections and socialisation activities in September 2025 with a provincial task force against illegal cigarettes, targeting retailers and explaining excise obligations. Similar cooperation with local government units and industry associations has been cited in other regional communications.

Data gaps on 2026 enforcement totals

Available official and media reports confirm continuing seizures and destruction of illegal cigarettes and alcoholic beverages in Bali and Nusa Tenggara through mid‑2026, as well as an emphasis on risk‑based supervision and community participation. However, they do not yet provide a consolidated count of total enforcement actions, volumes seized or potential state revenue for January–September 2026 in the Bali–Nusra region.

As a result, the 2025 enforcement figures published by Customs and local media remain the most complete numerical baseline currently available for assessing the scale of the crackdown on illegal excise goods in Bali and Nusa Tenggara.

Sources

• Kanwil Bea Cukai Bali Nusra official news release
• JPNN Bali article on excise violations ahead of New Year 2025
• Kontan report on national Customs mapping of illegal cigarette routes
• AntaraFoto report on destruction of seized goods by Bali–Nusra Customs
• Bali Portal News report on destruction of illegal goods by Bali–Nusra Customs
• Baliprawara article on strengthened supervision of illegal cigarettes