Two days before his international workshop began, Wahid Wartabone (24) decided to explore the other side of Bangkok first. His destination was Chatuchak Market, known as Thailand's shopping paradise.
Known as the largest market in the world and a destination for world travelers, the market has 15,000 shops. The snacks range from food, drinks, accessories.
Wahid really enjoyed the trip, except for the stifling heat. He then decided to stop and enter a coffee shop to cool down and quench his thirst.
His eyes were then fixed on a QRIS sticker displayed on the cashier's desk.
"Shockingly, the cashier's desk already has QRIS affixed. Feel again in a coffee shop in Indonesia," he told SUAR in Jakarta, Thursday (17/7/2025).
For Wahid, these conveniences are more than just advanced features. He felt the practical benefits when he was a tourist in a foreign country.
"So you don't have to carry cash everywhere, which is prone to being scattered or pickpocketed. And because abroad use the country's currency, it can usually make a headache because the fractions are different from rupiah. Using QRIS, there is no need to bother counting foreign money, just scan it," Wahid said.
Even so, Wahid hopes that in the future cross-border QRIS can reach more popular destinations for Indonesian tourists.
"Ideally speaking, the priority should be in ASEAN countries plus countries with the most Indonesian visitors or tourists, not sure statistically what countries," he concluded.
Expansion to China and Japan
QRIS or Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard was first introduced on August 17, 2019, and officially used nationally since January 1, 2020. Basically, QRIS is a digital payment standard based on QR codes that makes transactions easier simply by scanning a barcode, without the need for physical cards or cash.
In its development, Bank Indonesia launched QRIS between countries, a cross-border payment system that allows Indonesian tourists to transact directly at overseas merchants with rupiah.
As of August 17, 2025, Bank Indonesia added Japan and China to the list of countries where Indonesian tourists can use QRIS directly at local merchants after previously being available in Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore.
"We are expanding digital acceptance through the launch of cross-border QRIS cooperation with Japan and the initiation of a cross-border QRIS sandbox with China on August 17, 2025," said Ramdan Denny Prakoso, Executive Director of BI's Communications Department.
This step is also supported by the socialization of QRIS Without Scan (TAP), so that transactions are faster and more seamless, both for users and merchants.
When users scan the QR code in the destination country, the system automatically converts the price to rupiah and processes the payment in real time.
Here's how easy it is to use QRIS:
- Practical, just scan QR without carrying a lot of cash.
- Cost-effective, no need to exchange dollars at a money changer.
- Transact directly at the local exchange rate, without the hassle of calculating foreign currency.
- Supports UMKM & tourism, as foreign tourists can also shop in Indonesia using their home country's bank QR code.
Until now, cross-border QRIS has been officially used in Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore, with the Philippines and several other ASEAN countries in the process.
As of August 17, 2025, QRIS will also be expanded to Japan and China. Meanwhile, India and South Korea are still in the technical stage, and Saudi Arabia has started preliminary discussions.
Chairman of the Indonesian Payment System Association (ASPI) Santoso Liem said the expansion does not stop in Southeast Asia. In Japan, the process has entered the sandbox stage (limited trial) with the Ministry of Trade and Tourism. While in China, QRIS will be connected to UnionPay and Alipay which are very dominant there.
Santoso explained that the target countries are not only looking at "where Indonesian tourists often go," but also "countries that have a lot of tourists coming to Indonesia." Japan and China ticked both boxes.
"This supports two-way tourism, as well as our UMKM ," Santoso explained. "So that tourists from there can also shop more easily in Indonesia."
Although it can already be used in Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore, payment system industry players assess the potential for cross-country QRIS is still much greater. Not only a matter of the number of users, but also a matter of how wide merchants can actually accept QRIS payments.
"Currently, QRIS is only connected through certain networks, such as NETS in Singapore," said Santoso from the Indonesian Payment System Association. "Well, in the future, we want to expand the connection to other big players. So that customers can use QRIS anywhere-not limited to merchants connected to one network."
According to Santoso, this expansion is important so that tourists no longer have to bother checking: "Is this place QRIS-enabled or not?" Instead, the end goal is for almost all merchants, from grocery stores to franchised cafes, to be able to accept QRIS payments, as long as the infrastructure supports it.
"So QRIS is truly a seamless payment tool. Wherever consumers shop, there they can scan and pay," he added.
The move to expand cooperation to more issuers and acquirers abroad, he said, is also not just about transactions. "This is about creating an inclusive ecosystem, which makes tourists more comfortable shopping, and UMKM in Indonesia can also benefit," Santoso concluded.
But expanding QRIS across countries is not just about technicalities. The main challenge is whether the destination country already has a QR payment standard? In ASEAN, the infrastructure already exists. But in countries like Saudi Arabia, cards or EDC machines are still dominant. To build a QR system from scratch, banks or industries there must be sure there is a business-viable transaction volume.
"They do the math: is it worth it? If there are few tourists to Indonesia, they might hesitate," Santoso said.
Local government encouragement is also important. In Japan, for example, the government helped facilitate, so the talks were faster.
In order for QRIS to truly "work everywhere," the key lies in two things:
Issuing, i.e. banks in the country of origin willing to issue QR payments.
Acquiring, i.e. merchants in the destination country willing to accept the QR.
"We hope that G-to-G cooperation will be expanded, so that customers are not confused about 'how come here you can do it, but there you can't'," Santoso said.
"The more banks and merchants that are connected, the more seamless it will be."
Santoso said, ideally QRIS can be used in all stores, not just certain merchants. And foreign tourists can also pay throughout Indonesia, from Bali to the hometown of UMKM.
In terms of numbers, cross-border QRIS transactions are not yet dominant. The volume is still small compared to domestic payments, highly dependent on the number of tourists and cross-border workers .
"But as a facility, this is important," Santoso explained. "Strengthening the digital payment ecosystem, encouraging UMKM and tourism."
In Bali, small merchants have already felt the impact: foreign tourists shopping without the hassle of exchanging money. But outside tourist destinations, the effect is still limited.
Santoso revealed that South Korea has expressed interest and entered the development stage. India is also in technical discussions. Saudi Arabia is still looking for the right partner. "South Korea has stated the principle and wants to develop it. They are in the development process," he said.
Cross-border QRIS is not just about technology, it's about real convenience: tourists don't need to worry about cash or exchange rate fluctuations. Local UMKM don't need to buy expensive EDC machines. For the country, this is a small door for tourism and the creative economy to grow.
"We don't really measure profit. The main goal is always the same," Santoso concluded. "Making it easier for anyone, anywhere, to pay."
According to the latest data from Bank Indonesia released on Wednesday (16/07), the volume of digital payment transactions through QRIS in the second quarter of 2025 grew 148.50 percent(year on year / YoY).
Behind this surge, there is a serious effort to pave the way for Indonesian users to more easily transact abroad. As of August 17, 2025, Bank Indonesia added Japan and China to the list of countries where Indonesian tourists can use QRIS directly at local merchants after previously being available in Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore.
"We are expanding digital acceptance through the launch of cross-border QRIS cooperation with Japan and the initiation of a cross-border QRIS sandbox with China on August 17, 2025," said Ramdan Denny Prakoso, Executive Director of BI's Communications Department.
This step is also supported by the socialization of QRIS Without Scan (TAP), so that transactions are faster and more seamless, both for users and merchants.
This increase contributed to the total volume of national digital transactions reaching 11.67 billion transactions.
In addition to QRIS, transaction volume through mobile applications rose 32.16% yoy, and transactions via internet banking grew 6.95% yoy. Payment system infrastructure is also getting more solid: BI-FAST processed 1.12 billion transactions with a value of Rp2,788 trillion, while BI-RTGS recorded transactions worth Rp47,481 trillion.
Not Just a Transaction
Nailul Huda, Economist at the Center of Economic and Law Studies (Celios), emphasized that the expansion of cross-border QRIS should not only be seen as a convenience for Indonesian tourists shopping abroad but also for the world of small and medium enterprisesUMKM).
"This cross-border QRIS will be very beneficial for our UMKM when there are foreign tourists who come to Indonesia and shop in the country with the QR code or bank of the tourist's home country," he told SUAR.
According to Huda, there are two important keys: first, encouraging more tourists from Malaysia, Thailand, or Singapore to come to Indonesia; and second, marketing local tourism such as natural and cultural tourism, including events such as the pacu jalur which is now on the rise.
"Currently, we are still inferior to Thailand. More Indonesians vacation to Thailand than vice versa," he added.
Huda suggested that the next expansion focus on countries with the most tourists to Indonesia, such as Australia and China.
"There are quite a lot of tourists from these two countries," said Huda.
