What documents you need for a Sulawesi liveaboard, from visa to dive card

By Sulawesi Liveaboard Editorial Desk

Sourced figures: prices in the table carry their source and check month. Published fares are not our offers, and fees change.

You need two sets of papers: one to enter Indonesia and one to board the boat. An operator guide lists a passport with six months' validity, a visa, and an electronic arrival card. Operators then ask for a recognised dive certification and insurance proof. Entry rules here come from that guide, not from immigration, so confirm them with Indonesian immigration before you fly.

Keep the two sets apart in your head, because different people check them and they fail in different ways. An airline or immigration officer can stop you reaching Indonesia. A dive manager can stop you boarding or diving after you have already paid for the trip.

What do you need to enter Indonesia?

Three things, according to Neptune Liveaboards, whose guide is our only source for this part. Treat it as a useful summary from an operator and not as a statement from the government.

• A passport with at least six months of validity beyond arrival.
• A visa. The guide describes a Visa on Arrival that allows 30 days and can be extended once for 30 days. The fee is shown in the price table on this page.
• The All Indonesia electronic arrival card. The guide says every arriving traveller has had to complete it since October 2025.

Two cautions apply. First, the guide reports a proposal announced on 12 August 2026 to raise the visa fee, with no effective date at the time of writing, so the published figure may not be what you pay. Second, which nationalities qualify for the Visa on Arrival, and at which airports it applies, is for immigration to say, and your passport decides it. La Galigo lists visas among the items outside its fare, so assume this cost is yours unless your operator says otherwise.

Count your days too. A long trip with extra nights on land before and after still has to fit inside whatever stay you are granted. Mermaid's Togian trip and La Galigo's Sangihe trip each run 12 days and 11 nights, which fits inside the 30 days the guide describes, but a spare night before boarding, land diving afterwards and the 18-hour wait a DAN-reported workshop recommended before flying all come out of the same allowance.

What does the boat ask for?

Proof that you can dive and that you are covered. Requirements are set by each operator, so use the table as a list of what to expect, then read your own trip's terms.

The computer is not paperwork, but it belongs here because it is checked at the same moment and it can keep you out of the water in the same way. Ask early whether your operator rents them. Experience thresholds vary by route, and our page on how much experience a trip asks for goes through those. A certification card without enough logged dives can be its own problem, which is why the logbook is worth bringing even if nobody has asked for it yet.

When is a medical certificate needed?

The operator terms on this page set no general rule. That does not mean no boat asks for it. Some operators may want a signed medical statement, or a doctor's note if you have a declared condition, so ask yours in writing well before departure.

Ask three specific things: is a form required, does it need a doctor's signature or only yours, and by what date must it reach the operator? Leave time, because a doctor's appointment can be hard to get close to a holiday. If you have a condition that could affect diving, raise it with a physician who knows diving, since that decision is medical and this page cannot make it for you.

Which insurance proof should you carry?

Carry whatever shows the cover your operator names. La Galigo says even non-divers must show cover for medical evacuation and in-water activities, so a general certificate of travel insurance may not prove enough on its own. If your policy document does not state those words clearly, ask your insurer for a letter or a schedule that does. What the policy should contain is a separate question, covered in our guide to dive insurance and evacuation cover.

Keep paper as well as a digital copy. White Manta says mobile signal becomes intermittent not long after leaving port, so a document that lives in an email inbox may be out of reach when it is wanted. Give the insurer's emergency number and your policy number to the dive manager on boarding, and leave a copy with someone at home.

Where should you confirm these rules?

Go to whoever holds the authority over each item, not to a guide like this one:

• Visa, passport validity and arrival card: Indonesian immigration or your nearest Indonesian embassy or consulate. We have not found these rules on an immigration page ourselves.
• Certification, logged dives, computer and insurance terms: your operator's booking terms, in writing, for your exact departure.
• What your policy actually covers: your insurer, also in writing.
• Your airline's own check-in rules: the airline, because it can refuse boarding before immigration ever sees you.

Do this once when you book and again shortly before you fly. The visa fee is the one item with a known proposal to change it, as noted above.

What other questions come up about papers for the trip?

Do I need a visa for a boat trip in Sulawesi?

It depends on your passport. An operator guide describes a Visa on Arrival allowing 30 days, and which nationalities qualify is for Indonesian immigration to confirm before you fly.

Is a dive certification card mandatory?

Yes, on La Galigo, which requires a recognised certification such as SSI, CMAS, BSAC or PADI. Other operators set their own terms, so check yours, and bring the card even if you expect nobody to ask.

Is a medical certificate required?

No general rule is stated, so ask your operator in writing whether a form or a doctor's signature is needed, and by when.

Can I fix a shortfall in experience once on board?

Sometimes. La Galigo offers an Advanced Open Water course on board to Open Water divers with 30 logged dives who fall short of a trip minimum. Check this before you book, since other boats may not offer it.

Is the 30-day visa long enough for a boat trip?

Yes for the trips of up to 12 days named on this site, if the guide's description still applies. Count your nights on land as well, and remember the guide says the stay can be extended once for 30 days.

Which sources support this page?

• Neptune Liveaboards: Indonesia park fees and visa
• La Galigo: Bangka, Lembeh and Sangihe trip
• La Galigo: frequently asked questions
• White Manta: Lembeh and North Manado trip
• Mermaid Liveaboards: equipment rental prices
• Mermaid Liveaboards: Mermaid I schedule and rates
• DAN: guidelines for flying after diving

How do I reach the desk?

Ask the desk on WhatsApp at +62 811-3941-4563 or at bd@juaraholding.com. Your nationality, departure month and certification level are enough for a first message. Do not send passport scans, policy documents or medical details at this stage; nobody needs them to answer a question about requirements.