Indonesian travellers can now apply for a five-year multi-entry Schengen visa under a new EU Visa Cascade scheme — and other ASEAN countries may soon follow.
Indonesia has become the first country in Southeast Asia to be granted access to the European Union’s new Visa Cascade regime, which allows eligible travellers to apply for a five-year multiple-entry Schengen visa with simplified requirements.
The agreement, formally adopted by the European Commission on 23 July 2025, follows a bilateral meeting in Brussels earlier in the month between Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Under the new system, Indonesian nationals who have previously held a Schengen visa within the past three years and travelled to the EU at least once are now eligible to apply for a five-year multiple-entry visa. This replaces the previous need to reapply and justify each new visit individually.
“This Visa Cascade policy is a breakthrough that will support our international engagement, export growth and business mobility,” said Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, in a statement quoted by local media, Tempo
According to EU Ambassador to Indonesia Denis Chaibi, the arrangement is designed to support regular, trusted travellers and strengthen EU–Indonesia relations.
While Indonesia is the first country in ASEAN to formally receive this visa facilitation agreement, several other nations in the region are reportedly interested in negotiating similar access.
According to statements from regional tourism ministers and foreign affairs officials:
- Thailand has expressed interest in pursuing a similar Visa Cascade deal following initial discussions between Thai and EU representatives during trade and tourism forums earlier this year.
- Vietnam has reportedly raised the possibility of an EU visa facilitation agreement in recent bilateral meetings, particularly in the context of its growing export and education ties with Europe.
- The Philippines has also publicly supported broader ASEAN–EU cooperation on travel facilitation, and may be among the next countries to pursue cascade-style agreements.
ASEAN countries like Singapore and Malaysia already enjoy visa-free short-term travel to the Schengen area, and are not directly affected by the Visa Cascade scheme, which is intended to benefit visa-required countries with strong travel and trade histories with Europe.
Indonesia’s inclusion in the Visa Cascade scheme is being viewed as a test case for the EU’s broader engagement strategy with ASEAN. The EU has described Indonesia’s policy as “a recognition of trust” and says it will monitor implementation closely.
At the same time, ASEAN tourism authorities continue to push for their own version of a “Schengen-style” unified tourist visa across Southeast Asia, which could further complement any EU–ASEAN visa liberalisation efforts.
For eligible Indonesian passport holders, the five-year Schengen visa makes it significantly easier to:
- attend trade shows and conferences in the EU,
- conduct business meetings without repeated paperwork,
- visit family or study in Europe on short trips,
- and travel more freely across the 27 EU countries within the Schengen zone.
For now, other ASEAN nationals will still need to follow the standard visa procedures — but with the precedent now set, similar deals could soon be on the table.
Source: en.Tempo.co
Yeah the first cuz some nations in ASEAN are given visa free directly by the EU and UK 😂