KEK Sanur vs KEK Kura Kura Bali: How Bali’s Two SEZs Differ

Kura Kura Bali: tourism, creative industries and more

PP 23/2023 defines KEK Kura Kura Bali as a tourism and creative‑economy oriented SEZ with room for additional sectors such as education, research and selected financial‑service activities. The official documents emphasize:

• Integrated tourism and leisure developments.
• Creative economy hubs: film, design, digital and cultural industries.
• Education and research institutions, often framed as international campuses or knowledge centers.
• Potential financial or business‑services district subject to sector regulations.

Its positioning is closer to “integrated resort + creative city” than to a medical campus. Any health or wellness components in Kura Kura would be complementary, not defining.

Governance, developers and realization

Common governance: Dewan Nasional KEK oversight

Both zones report into the Dewan Nasional KEK (National SEZ Council), which:

• Evaluates proposals and recommends to the President which zones to establish, expand or revoke.
• Monitors investment, employment and export or service output.
• Can recommend incentives adjustment or, in extreme cases, revocation for underperforming zones (as seen in past decisions to revoke some non‑Bali KEKs).

Operationally, each zone has:

• A KEK Administrator (Administrator KEK) – the on‑site government unit handling permits, customs and one‑stop services.
• A Developer and Operator – the corporate entity responsible for land development, infrastructure and attracting tenants.

Sanur: state‑driven implementation, hospital anchor

KEK Sanur’s development is driven by Indonesia’s tourism and health state‑owned enterprises:

• InJourney Group – the state tourism holding that includes PT Hotel Indonesia Natour, redeveloping the former Bali Beach complex into a modern integrated resort area.
• Indonesia Healthcare Corporation (IHC) – SOE health holding tasked with developing and operating Bali International Hospital and associated medical services.

This state‑driven approach means:

• Closer alignment with national health policy and Ministry of Health regulations.
• Explicit government interest in achieving early “proof of concept” for medical tourism.
• More visible public reporting on progress through SOE channels.

By mid‑2026, physical realization in Sanur is visible on the ground: hospital structures, road upgrades, and ongoing hotel and MICE redevelopment. Some legacy hotel assets in the area continue to operate around construction activity.

Kura Kura Bali: private master‑developer, slower visible progress

In KEK Kura Kura Bali, the master‑developer is PT Bali Turtle Island Development (BTID), known publicly for the Kura Kura Bali project. This is a long‑running private development on and around Serangan that has transitioned into SEZ status.

The KEK designation in PP 23/2023 gives BTID and partners access to SEZ incentives in exchange for meeting investment and employment targets. However, as of mid‑2026:

• The publicly visible built environment remains limited compared to the 498‑hectare master plan.
• Many project elements exist mainly on paper, in investor presentations or media briefings, rather than as operational assets.

For granular tracking of ground progress, planning disputes and investor narratives around Kura Kura Bali, we defer to balisez.id, which specializes in that zone. Our focus here is to place Kura Kura in context next to Sanur.

Incentives and regulatory flexibility: what both SEZs offer

Tax and customs incentives (general SEZ framework)

Both KEK Sanur and KEK Kura Kura Bali benefit from the general SEZ incentive framework, which is detailed across:

• Law 39/2009 (general provisions).
• PP 40/2021 (implementation and evaluation).
• PP 96/2015 on facilities and ease of investment in SEZs (fiscal and non‑fiscal incentives) – still the core reference for SEZ tax facilities, unless and until explicitly amended for specific zones.

Key elements for qualifying businesses operating inside SEZ boundaries include:

• Corporate income tax relief for prioritized sectors and investments that meet minimum thresholds and timeframes set by the Ministry of Finance.
• VAT and import‑duty facilities on goods entering the SEZ for production or service provision, subject to customs supervision.
• Accelerated licensing and coordinated permits through the KEK Administrator and the national Online Single Submission (OSS) system.
• Relaxation of certain spatial and building regulations within the SEZ, while still respecting environmental and safety norms.

The exact tax relief percentages and periods are determined in Ministry of Finance regulations that apply across SEZs and sometimes vary by sector. Because these technical details are revised from time to time, investors should refer to the latest MoF regulations and seek professional tax advice; we do not lock in a single incentive percentage here.

Sanur’s health‑specific regulatory experiments

Beyond core SEZ incentives, KEK Sanur is also a test bed for healthcare regulatory flexibility. Policy discussions and draft regulations have included:

• Allowing selected high‑end procedures and foreign specialists under controlled licensing.
• Permitting certain imported pharmaceuticals and medical devices to be used in the KEK under specific supervision, even if not yet widely available in general Indonesian hospitals.

The details depend on Ministry of Health and BPOM (Food and Drug Authority) regulations, which may refer specifically to the Sanur Health SEZ. Any investor or operator in pharmaceuticals, devices or specialist services must track these sectoral rules closely.

Kura Kura Bali’s creative and financial ambitions

KEK Kura Kura Bali is framed as a place where creative industries and potentially some financial and business services can benefit from SEZ‑specific incentives and streamlined licensing. Potential advantages compared to a normal tourism area include:

• Customs and tax treatment for imported equipment and materials for creative production or research.
• Possibility of hosting special financial activities subject to alignment with OJK (Financial Services Authority) and Bank Indonesia regulations.
• Education and R&D activities that tie into national human‑capital strategies.

These ambitions, however, are more forward‑looking than realized. For on‑the‑ground investor experiences and regulatory test cases in Kura Kura Bali, balisez.id tracks emerging examples as they materialize.

Sanur vs Kura Kura Bali for investors

Who KEK Sanur fits best

Given its defined focus and more advanced physical realization, KEK Sanur is most suitable for:

• Hospital and clinic operators looking to establish a presence in a health‑focused SEZ with a high‑profile anchor (BIH) and a clear medical tourism narrative.
• Medical service providers in imaging, diagnostics, rehabilitation, and ancillary services that plug into a tertiary hospital ecosystem.
• Pharmaceutical and medical device companies that need a controlled environment for high‑value products tied to medical tourism or referral services.
• Hospitality and wellness investors targeting patients and families: recovery hotels, wellness centers, integrated spa‑medical offerings.
• MICE and conference organizers focused on health, pharma, and professional medical events, leveraging SEZ facilities and coastal location.

Risk factors:

• Regulatory complexity in healthcare (licensing, foreign doctor practice rules, insurance reimbursement frameworks).
• Dependence on BIH and other flagship health assets achieving international‑standard operation.
• Competition from established regional medical tourism hubs outside Indonesia.

Who KEK Kura Kura Bali fits best

KEK Kura Kura Bali, as designed in PP 23/2023, aligns more naturally with:

• Resort and themed real estate developers comfortable with large‑scale, multi‑decade projects.
• Creative production companies (film, post‑production, design, content) that value a campus‑style environment and SEZ customs facilities for equipment.
• Education and training institutions targeting international or blended cohorts, with interest in a “new city” setting.
• Selected financial and digital‑service providers if and when specific sub‑regulations permit SEZ‑based operations in those sectors.

Risk factors are structurally different from Sanur:

• Scale and time horizon: 498 hectares will take years to fully realize.
• Higher dependence on a single master‑developer’s financing and execution capacity.
• Exposure to any legal or community disputes around land and coastal development.

Prospective investors in Kura Kura Bali should combine official PP 23/2023 readings with independent monitoring such as balisez.id to distinguish between marketing promises and realized assets.

Sanur vs Kura Kura Bali for visitors and patients

KEK Sanur: medical tourism plus familiar Sanur tourism

For individual visitors or patients, KEK Sanur’s value proposition consists of:

• Access to Bali International Hospital and associated clinics once fully operational, for procedures, check‑ups and specialized care.
• Accommodation and recovery options in and around Sanur, from SEZ‑integrated hotels to longstanding independent guesthouses outside the zone.
• Ease of combining treatment and tourism – Sanur’s established beachfront, restaurants and gentle coastal environment appeal to families and recovery stays.

Non‑medical visitors will mainly experience KEK Sanur as part of a broader Sanur holiday: upgraded hotel facilities, new conference spaces and an evolving waterfront. KEK status itself is largely invisible to them; the difference is in the scale and quality of new developments driven by the health SEZ mandate.

KEK Kura Kura Bali: future‑oriented destination

For general visitors, as of mid‑2026, KEK Kura Kura Bali is more of a future‑oriented promise than a fully formed destination. The SEZ is planned as:

• A hub for new resorts and possibly branded residences.
• A location for cultural and creative events, studios and education campuses.

Some limited tourism and recreation options may be available depending on the latest project phase, but the full “city” concept remains in development. For trip‑planning that relies on current, on‑the‑ground experiences in Kura Kura, consult balisez.id and recent traveler or industry reports, not only master‑plan CGI renders.

If you are weighing a medical trip centered on Sanur against a more general Bali holiday that might one day include Kura Kura, we can help map realistic options and timeframes. Use our plan your trip channel and note that you prefer WhatsApp for practical coordination; we will match you with up‑to‑date operators.

Realization and performance: candid status comparison

Sanur: smaller but further along

By design, KEK Sanur is relatively small (41.26 ha) and focuses on a few high‑value anchors. That makes realization more tractable:

• Land consolidation in the former state‑hotel and golf area simplifies acquisition compared to fragmented private land.
• State‑owned developers and hospital operators have political backing to hit early milestones.
• Integration with existing Sanur tourism reduces the need to “create a destination from scratch.”

Dewan Nasional KEK has highlighted Sanur as a priority SEZ and tracks its investment realization figures. Where official numbers are published (for example, total committed investment or job‑creation targets), we cite them in our dedicated KEK Sanur investment pages with exact sources and dates. We do not repeat headline figures here without full citations.

Kura Kura Bali: ambition ahead of delivery

KEK Kura Kura Bali’s 498‑hectare ambition and mixed‑use program naturally require a longer timeline. Official documents outline investment and employment targets, but the gap between projections and physical delivery remains material as of mid‑2026.

For example, some public statements have mentioned multi‑billion‑dollar investment aspirations in Kura Kura Bali. Unless those figures appear in official PP attachments, Presidential speeches, BKPM/Ministry of Investment releases, or Dewan Nasional KEK reports, we treat them as unverified and do not repeat them as facts.

The National SEZ Council is increasingly willing to revoke or restructure underperforming SEZs elsewhere in Indonesia. That policy stance adds pressure to KEK Kura Kura Bali to demonstrate concrete progress, not only updated master‑plan visuals.

Summary: which Bali SEZ for which strategy?

Primary goal: health and medical tourism

KEK Sanur is the logical focus, given its hospital anchor and health‑specific policy experiments.

Primary goal: large‑scale resort or creative “city” concept

KEK Kura Kura Bali offers the land and planning framework, but with higher realization risk and longer timelines.

Need for near‑term operational environment

Sanur’s integration into an existing urban‑tourism grid gives it an earlier operational profile.

Willingness to bet on long‑term land transformation

Kura Kura Bali fits investors comfortable with phased delivery and private‑developer project risk.

Both SEZs are tools of the same national strategy: capturing more value in tourism‑related and knowledge‑intensive services while experimenting with regulated flexibility. Their differences are in focus, footprint and pace.

FAQ: KEK Sanur vs KEK Kura Kura Bali

Is KEK Sanur already operating while Kura Kura Bali is not?

KEK Sanur is an officially established SEZ under PP 41/2022 with active construction and some functioning tourism assets; its hospital anchor, Bali International Hospital, is in advanced development. KEK Kura Kura Bali under PP 23/2023 is also formally established, but many of its planned tourism and creative components are still in early realization. Both are “operational” in legal terms, yet Sanur is further along in visible build‑out.

Which SEZ offers better tax incentives: Sanur or Kura Kura Bali?

Both are covered by the same national SEZ incentive framework in Law 39/2009, PP 40/2021 and PP 96/2015. There is no separate “Sanur tax law” versus “Kura Kura tax law.” Differences arise from sectoral classifications and meeting minimum investment thresholds, not from the Bali SEZ location itself. Investors should refer to the latest Ministry of Finance regulations and get professional tax advice.

Can foreign hospitals or universities set up in both KEK Sanur and KEK Kura Kura Bali?

In principle, SEZs can host foreign‑linked hospitals, universities or other institutions if they comply with sectoral laws. KEK Sanur is explicitly framed for health services and medical tourism, so foreign hospital partnerships are a core use case. KEK Kura Kura Bali’s PP 23/2023 opens space for education and research, so foreign or joint‑venture campuses are possible in that framework. Each case must clear its own licensing under the Ministry of Health or Ministry of Education and related regulators.

Which SEZ is better for ordinary tourists to stay in now?

As of mid‑2026, Sanur offers a more mature tourism environment, both inside and around the KEK, with a mix of new SEZ‑driven properties and long‑standing independent hotels and restaurants. KEK status mostly stays behind the scenes. Kura Kura Bali is still in development; some tourism elements may operate but the full destination concept is not yet realized, making it more speculative as a primary holiday base.

Where can I get detailed, independent analysis of each Bali SEZ?

For KEK Sanur, this site—KEK Sanur Intelligence—specializes in regulation‑sourced, numbers‑first coverage of the health SEZ. For KEK Kura Kura Bali, we recommend the independent portal balisez.id, which focuses on Bali’s broader SEZ landscape and tracks Kura Kura in greater depth. If you want help aligning both perspectives with your own project or itinerary, you can plan your trip with us and request WhatsApp‑based follow‑up.