Halal Industry Drives 15% of RI Visits, Mandatory Certification Looms in October

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - The contribution of Muslim tourists to total tourist visits in Indonesia has now reached around 15 percent, as the mandatory halal certification requirement for tourism business operators draws closer to taking effect in October.

The Ministry of Tourism's Special Staff for Digital Transformation and Tourism Innovation, Masruroh, made the statement during the launch of the book Halal Tourism Development: A Guide for Business Operators and Government at Hotel Sahid Jakarta on Saturday, September 19, 2026.

She explained that the figure was calculated based on data from key Muslim tourist markets designated by the Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI), since Indonesia's arrival cards do not directly record visitors' religion. "As for the contribution of Muslim friendly tourism to Indonesia's total tourist visits, it currently reaches around 15 percent of total visits," Masruroh said.

Regarding the mandatory halal certification set to take effect in October, Masruroh said the Ministry of Tourism has been encouraging business operators, from restaurants to hotels, to obtain certification as soon as possible. "We encourage business operators to carry out halal certification, because by October halal certification will be mandatory. If not, they could be subject to the regulations enforced by the government," she said.

She added that the certification process is carried out in collaboration with the Halal Product Assurance Organizing Agency (BPJPH), with the focus placed on certifying products rather than entire destinations or tourist villages. "What we certify are the products, not the destination or the tourist village itself," Masruroh said.

In addition to certification, the Ministry of Tourism has also prepared a destination readiness index along with digital promotion strategies to reach Muslim travelers worldwide. "We built promotional platforms such as a landing page about Muslim friendly tourism on Indonesia.travel, covering everything from services and Islamic cultural heritage to Islamic events and tour packages," she said.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the Indonesia Halal Lifestyle Center and one of the book's authors, Prof. Sapta Nirwandar, said the book is expected to serve as a practical guide for business operators in understanding the service needs of Muslim travelers. "A dissertation is academic food, that is why I said why not turn it into a book, so it becomes easier to read and understood more widely," Sapta said.

The book maps halal tourism service needs into three levels, namely need to have, good to have, and nice to have, which can serve as a reference for business operators in prioritizing service investments. With the combination of growing economic contribution and strengthened certification regulations, government hope Indonesia's halal tourism sector can continue to grow and become increasingly competitive in the global Muslim travel market.