Big Spending Puts Pressure on the State Budget - Tempo.co English

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Seven months have passed, but this year’s tax-revenue target is only halfway there. Through the end of July 2026, the government had collected Rp1,209.6 trillion (around US$68.72 billion) in taxes, or 51.31 percent of the Rp2,537.7 trillion (US$114.18 billion) target set in the 2026 State Budget. That means the government must collect another Rp1,150 trillion (US$65.34 billion) over the next five months. If the target is missed, the State Budget deficit will widen.

That was why, at a meeting with officials from the Finance Ministry’s Directorate-General of Taxes on Monday, September 7, 2026, Harris Turino, a member of the House of Representatives’ (DPR) Commission XI, which oversees financial affairs, urged tax collectors to work much harder as the year-end approached. Tax revenue typically slows during that period. “Efforts to boost revenue should not disrupt the investment climate,” he said.

In response, Director-General of Taxes Bimo Wijayanto said expanding the tax base was a key strategy for increasing revenue. The effort, he said, was being supported by the Core Tax Administration System (Coretax), which had added 2 million new taxpayers to the tax base. “Expanding the tax base allows us to monitor economic activity across a broader reach,” he said.

Bimo claimed that tax revenue had grown 12 percent through July 2026. But the increase had not fully eased the risk of a tax-revenue shortfall. Bimo projected tax revenue of Rp2,310.9 trillion (US$131.3 billion) by year-end, Rp46.9 trillion (US$26.18 billion) below the 2026 State Budget target.