Indonesia – Qualifications Exempt from Assessment

At a glance

Indonesia is listed in Appendix 3 of the immigration instructions. Indonesian applicants applying under Skilled Migrant Category (SM) residence instructions or under work visa instructions where the country uses Appendix 3 can have certain qualifications assessed without referral to NZQA if all the conditions in the Indonesia-specific list are met [I-indonesia]. The exemption is only for immigration points; it does not guarantee comparability to any New Zealand qualification for registration, employment, or salary [I-indonesia].

Definition

The Indonesia sub-page of Appendix 3 sets out:

• an Academic Qualifications Table listing the qualification names, abbreviations, NZQF levels, and SM points [I-indonesia];
• an Awarding Institutions Table specifying which institutions may award which qualifications from particular years [I-indonesia];
• requirements regarding accreditation, award certificates, and mandatory NZQA referrals [I-indonesia].

A qualification is exempt from NZQA assessment only when all five conditions are satisfied:

1. the qualification is listed in the Academic Qualifications Table [I-indonesia];
2. the awarding institution is listed in the Awarding Institutions Table [I-indonesia];
3. the qualification abbreviation appears in the right-hand column of the Awarding Institutions Table [I-indonesia];
4. the qualification was awarded from the year shown in the Awarding Institutions Table [I-indonesia];
5. the qualification is not excluded by the notes under the Academic Qualifications Table [I-indonesia].

Academic Qualifications Table

Qualification (abbreviation)	NZQF Level	SM Points
Sarjana Strata Satu (S1) — any specialty except Sarjana Pendidikan	7	50
Sarjana Pendidikan	Requires NZQA assessment	—
Magister Manajemen (M)	8	50
Magister Sains Manajemen (MSM)	8	50
Sarjana Strata Dua / Magister Strata II / Magister (except those above) — with specialty stated (S2)	9	70

Notes:

• All degrees awarded from 2003 must display accreditation on the award certificate (e.g., Akeditasi Ban No. 023/BAN-PT/Ak-VII/S1/V1/2004). If accreditation is absent or unclear, the qualification must be referred to NZQA for an International Qualifications Assessment [I-indonesia].
• If only "S2" is stated without a listed degree name on the award certificate, the qualification must be referred to NZQA [I-indonesia].
• If an applicant believes their qualification may be higher than the stated level, they must apply to NZQA for an International Qualifications Assessment [I-indonesia].
• Award certificates must be provided in their original language [I-indonesia].
• The following must always be referred to NZQA:
  • Honorary degrees [I-indonesia]
  • Listed qualifications completed at an institution outside Indonesia, including overseas campuses of listed awarding institutions [I-indonesia]
  • Listed qualifications containing cross-credited courses or papers [I-indonesia]
  • Initial teacher training degrees [I-indonesia]
  • All qualifications awarded after 2019 [I-indonesia]

Awarding Institutions Table

Institution	Qualification awarded from
Institut Pertanian Bogor	S1, S2, M: 1995
Institut Teknologi Bandung	S1, S2, M: 1995; MSM: 2009
Institut Teknologi Sepuluh November Surabaya	S1, S2: 2003
Universitas Airlangga	S1, S2: 1995; M, MSM: 2005
Universitas Brawijaya	S1, S2: 2002; M: 2011
Universitas Diponegoro	S1, S2: 2002
Universitas Gadjah Mada	S1, S2, M: 1995
Universitas Hasanuddin	S1, S2: 2000
Universitas Indonesia	S1, S2, M, MSM: 1995
Universitas Islam Negri Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta	S1, S2: 2004
Universitas Islam Negri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta	S1, S2: 2002
Universitas Negeri Jakarta	S1, M, S2: 2003
Universitas Negri Malang	S1, S2: 2003; MSM: 2013
Universitas Padjadjaran	S1, S2: 1995
Universitas Pendikan Indonesia	S2: 2012

Effective 13/05/2019 [I-indonesia]

Application in decisions

Immigration officers must verify that the qualification, institution, abbreviation, award year, and note exclusions all align with the tables. If any condition is not met, the qualification is not exempt and must be assessed by NZQA. Points are awarded as per the table for exempt qualifications [I-indonesia]. The officer must also check that the qualification does not fall within the mandatory NZQA referral categories (awarded after 2019, cross‑credited, overseas campus, teacher training, honorary) [I-indonesia].

Interpretation & edge cases

• Accreditation from 2003: The absence of the required accreditation statement on the certificate makes the qualification non-exempt, even if the institution and year otherwise qualify [I-indonesia].
• S2 without named degree: Generic S2 qualifications must be sent to NZQA; the exemption cannot be applied [I-indonesia].
• Post-2019 qualifications: All Indonesian qualifications awarded after 2019 fall outside the Appendix 3 exemption and must be assessed regardless of institution [I-indonesia].
• Teacher training degrees: Even if listed, initial teacher training qualifications require NZQA assessment [I-indonesia].
• Overseas study: Any period of study outside Indonesia, including at an overseas campus of a listed institution, removes the exemption [I-indonesia].

Citations

• I-indonesia — Indonesia