Minister Affirms RTA Digital Excludes Population Data Transfers

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Communication and Digital Affairs Minister Meutya Hafid said discussions on the Reciprocal Trade Agreement (RTA) related to digital trade are still underway with Commission I of the House of Representatives (DPR). The talks focus on regulating cross-border data transfers in digital commerce.

In a meeting with Commission I, the government stated that the RTA would only take effect after ratification by the DPR. Once ratified, the regulation will require about 90 days before becoming effective.

“The details will be further explored, including input from the DPR during the ratification process,” Minister Meutya said at the Parliament Complex in Jakarta on Monday, May 18, 2026, as quoted by Antara.

She addressed concerns about the exchange of Indonesian citizens’ personal data, stressing that the agreement does not regulate population data transfers. Article 3.2 of the RTA only covers data exchange between companies in the context of digital commerce.

“It is not true that the government transfers citizen data. This only occurs in the digital commerce process,” she said.

Minister Meutya added that inter-company data exchanges remain subject to the Personal Data Protection Law (PDP Law).

The government acknowledged that the establishment of a personal data protection agency is still under discussion among ministries and agencies, including the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs, the State Secretariat, and the Ministry of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform.

She argued that the RTA is necessary to regulate data storage practices on global digital platforms. “Currently, consumer data used on foreign platforms is not always stored in Indonesia. In fact, the RTA requires them to comply with Indonesia’s PDP Law,” she said. (Misni Parjiati)