Requirements and Process for Imported Oil SNI Certification in Indonesia
Imported oil SNI certification is a process that needs to be considered by companies intending to import and distribute lubricating oils manufactured overseas in Indonesia. Lubricating oil products that fall within the mandatory SNI scope must comply with technical, administrative, testing, and production facility assessment requirements before they can be marketed in accordance with applicable regulations.
Currently, mandatory SNI implementation for lubricating oils is regulated through Minister of Industry Regulation No. 8 of 2025 concerning the Mandatory Implementation of Indonesian National Standards for Lubricating Oils. The regulation has been effective since July 24, 2025 and revoked Minister of Industry Regulation No. 25 of 2018.
For imported products, the certification process does not only involve the importer in Indonesia. Overseas manufacturers must meet specific requirements and have an Official Representative in Indonesia that performs its functions in accordance with Minister of Industry Regulation No. 8 of 2025.
What Is Imported Oil SNI Certification?
Imported oil SNI certification is a conformity assessment process for lubricating oil products manufactured overseas and intended for distribution in Indonesia. The process aims to ensure that the products comply with the appropriate SNI according to the type and intended use of the lubricating oil.
Lubricating oils have several categories based on their function and application. Therefore, companies need to identify the product before determining the applicable SNI number.
Products may include gasoline car engine oil, motorcycle oil, diesel engine oil, manual transmission lubricating oil, differential gear lubricating oil, or automatic transmission lubricating oil. Each category may have a different SNI standard.
Regulations for Imported Oil SNI Certification
Minister of Industry Regulation No. 8 of 2025 is the primary regulation currently governing mandatory SNI implementation for lubricating oils. The regulation covers mandatory SNI scope, conformity assessment, requirements for industrial companies and overseas manufacturers, Official Representatives, certification processes, and product supervision.
Overseas manufacturers applying for an SNI Certificate must conduct lubricating oil industrial activities and meet requirements related to facilities, trademarks, testing equipment, quality management systems, and an Official Representative in Indonesia.
Applications for an SNI Certificate for products manufactured overseas are submitted by the overseas manufacturer through its Official Representative electronically through SIINas.
SNI Standards for Imported Oil
The applicable standard for imported oil must be determined based on the product’s intended use and specifications. One SNI number cannot be used for all types of lubricating oil.
Several groups of motor vehicle lubricating oils that need to be identified include:
- Four-stroke gasoline engine lubricating oil for motor vehicles.
- Four-stroke gasoline engine lubricating oil for motorcycles.
- Two-stroke gasoline engine lubricating oil.
- High-speed diesel engine lubricating oil.
- Manual transmission and differential gear lubricating oil.
- Automatic transmission lubricating oil.
Because each product has different functions, characteristics, formulations, and specifications, companies need to provide a complete product list before determining the applicable standard and certification scope.
Requirements for Overseas Manufacturers
Minister of Industry Regulation No. 8 of 2025 establishes specific requirements for lubricating oil manufacturers located outside Indonesia.
Overseas manufacturers must meet requirements including:
- Conduct lubricating oil industrial activities.
- Own a trademark for lubricating oil in class 4.
- Have a blending facility.
- Have a filling facility.
- Have viscosity testing equipment.
- Have Total Base Number or TBN testing equipment.
- Have metal content testing equipment.
- Have non-metal content testing equipment.
- Implement an ISO 9001:2015 quality management system.
- Have an Official Representative in Indonesia.
These requirements demonstrate that imported oil SNI certification does not only assess the finished product but also the manufacturer’s ability to consistently manufacture lubricating oil.
Requirements for the Official Representative in Indonesia
Overseas manufacturers must have an Official Representative in Indonesia. This appointment is an important part of the certification process for imported lubricating oil.
The Official Representative must be appointed by the overseas manufacturer to represent it within the jurisdiction of Indonesia. In addition, the Official Representative must obtain a license to use and be responsible for the overseas manufacturer’s class 4 lubricating oil trademark.
The Official Representative must also meet several requirements, including controlling a warehouse in the same regency/city or a nearby regency/city as its registered office, being able to act as an importer, and having an SIINas account.
An overseas manufacturer may generally appoint only one Official Representative. If the Official Representative does not act as an importer, the regulation allows the appointment of up to five importers according to the applicable requirements.
Trademark Requirements for Imported Oil
The trademark is an important requirement in SNI certification for imported lubricating oils. The overseas manufacturer must have its own trademark for lubricating oil in class 4.
The Official Representative must also obtain a license to use and assume responsibility for the trademark. Trademark licensing and registration documents need to be prepared according to the required mechanism.
The trademark name should remain consistent among the trademark owner, manufacturer, Official Representative, certification documents, labels, and imported products throughout the certification process.
Documents for Imported Oil SNI Certification
The overseas manufacturer and Official Representative need to prepare administrative and technical documents for the SNI Certificate application.
Documents that generally need to be prepared include:
- Overseas manufacturer legal documents.
- Production facility profile and address.
- Official Representative documents in Indonesia.
- Evidence of Official Representative appointment.
- Class 4 lubricating oil trademark documents.
- Trademark license agreement for the Official Representative.
- Evidence of trademark license registration according to applicable requirements.
- Evidence of warehouse control by the Official Representative.
- ISO 9001:2015 documents.
- Blending and filling facility data.
- Testing equipment data.
- Product list.
- Product technical specifications.
- Formulation and raw material information as required for assessment.
- Product labels and packaging designs.
Certain overseas manufacturer documents also need to comply with legalization and Indonesian translation requirements under the application procedure.
How to Obtain Imported Oil SNI Certification
Product Identification
The first stage is to identify the lubricating oil products to be imported. The company needs to determine the oil type, intended use, vehicle or engine type, brand, product type, viscosity, formulation, and technical specifications.
This identification is used to determine the applicable SNI number and certification scope.
Appointment of an Official Representative
The overseas manufacturer needs to appoint an Official Representative in Indonesia in accordance with Minister of Industry Regulation No. 8 of 2025.
The relationship between the overseas manufacturer and Official Representative must be supported by documents that meet regulatory requirements, including appointment and trademark licensing documents.
Document Preparation
The manufacturer and Official Representative then prepare documents concerning the company, production facility, trademark, warehouse, quality management system, and technical product information.
Documents need to be reviewed thoroughly because discrepancies between the manufacturer, trademark, production facility, Official Representative, and product may affect the certification process.
Certification Application
An application for an SNI Certificate for foreign-manufactured products is submitted by the overseas manufacturer through its Official Representative electronically through SIINas. If the manufacturer has more than one production location, a separate SNI Certificate application must be submitted for each production location.
Product Sampling
Product samples are taken according to the certification mechanism to represent the products submitted.
The type and number of samples depend on the product and certification scope determined by the LSPro.
Laboratory Testing
Oil samples undergo testing based on the applicable standard. Testing aims to ensure that the physical, chemical, and performance characteristics of the product meet the relevant SNI requirements.
The test results then become one of the bases for the product conformity assessment.
Factory Audit
The overseas manufacturer must prepare its production facility for an audit or assessment according to the certification scheme.
The audit may cover blending facilities, filling facilities, raw materials, production processes, testing equipment, quality control, implementation of ISO 9001:2015, product traceability, and nonconforming product control.
SNI Certificate and SPPT SNI Issuance
After all conformity assessment requirements have been fulfilled, the process may proceed to the issuance of the SNI Certificate and fulfillment of SPPT SNI requirements according to the applicable mechanism.
For imported lubricating oils, the SNI Certificate also states the name and address of the Official Representative and the address of the Official Representative’s warehouse.
Factory Audit for Imported Oil SNI
The factory audit is an important part of the certification process because the production facility is located outside Indonesia. The manufacturer must demonstrate that its production processes are capable of consistently producing lubricating oil corresponding to the tested product.
Several aspects that may be assessed include:
- Blending facilities.
- Filling facilities.
- Raw material control.
- Formulation control.
- Production processes.
- Quality control.
- Testing equipment.
- Equipment calibration.
- Product traceability.
- Implementation of ISO 9001:2015.
Preparing the factory before the audit can help reduce the risk of findings that may extend the certification process.
Imported Oil SNI Testing
Testing of imported oil is conducted according to the applicable SNI number for the type of product. Therefore, testing parameters for gasoline engine oil may differ from motorcycle oil, diesel oil, transmission oil, or other products.
Companies need to ensure that the tested samples genuinely represent the products that will be manufactured and shipped to Indonesia.
Changes in formulation, viscosity, specifications, brand, or product characteristics after certification need to be controlled because they may affect product conformity with the certification scope.
Warehouse Requirements for Imported Oil
Minister of Industry Regulation No. 8 of 2025 establishes specific warehouse requirements for lubricating oils manufactured overseas.
Lubricating oil manufactured by an overseas producer must first be placed in a warehouse controlled by the Official Representative before it is distributed or its ownership is transferred.
The entry of such products is also subject to technical verification or tracing to ensure that the delivery address stated in the import documents corresponds to the address of the warehouse controlled by the Official Representative.
Importers of SNI-Certified Oil
The Official Representative may act directly as the importer of lubricating oil products. However, if the Official Representative does not act as the importer, it may appoint up to five importers according to the applicable regulation.
If there is a change in the importer or importer information before the SNI Certificate expires, the Official Representative must apply for an amendment to the issued SNI Certificate.
Therefore, the relationship between the overseas manufacturer, Official Representative, and importer should be established from the beginning before the certification process starts.
Cost of Imported Oil SNI Certification
The cost of imported oil SNI certification may vary depending on product type, number of types or variants, testing scope, factory location, number of samples, and audit requirements.
For imported products, travel and accommodation costs for the audit team visiting overseas production facilities may also form part of the overall cost.
Minister of Industry Regulation No. 8 of 2025 provides that conformity assessment costs charged by the LSPro and Testing Laboratory are borne by the overseas manufacturer through the Official Representative submitting the SNI Certificate application.
Therefore, a cost estimate should be prepared after the product list, applicable SNI, country of origin, production facility location, trademark, and product scope are known.
Things to Consider Before Applying for Imported Oil SNI Certification
Before starting the certification process, the manufacturer and company in Indonesia should ensure that:
- The type of lubricating oil has been identified.
- The applicable SNI number has been determined.
- The overseas manufacturer conducts lubricating oil industrial activities.
- A class 4 trademark is available.
- Blending and filling facilities are available.
- Required testing equipment is available.
- ISO 9001:2015 has been implemented.
- An Official Representative in Indonesia has been appointed.
- The Official Representative’s warehouse is available according to the requirements.
- Trademark licensing documents have been prepared.
- An SIINas account is available.
- The product list and technical specifications have been prepared.
- The production facility is ready for audit.
- Product samples are ready for testing.
These preparations help companies conduct the certification process more systematically and reduce the risk of nonconformities during document review, testing, and auditing.
Contact Us
Biruni Consulting helps companies in the imported oil SNI certification process professionally and in accordance with applicable regulations in Indonesia
Our services include
- Consultation on applicable regulations.
- Identification of applicable standards.
- Certification document preparation.
- Laboratory testing assistance.
- Certification processing until certificate issuance.
With extensive experience in product certification in Indonesia, Biruni Consulting helps ensure products comply with applicable safety, quality, and performance requirements and are ready for legal distribution in Indonesia.
Contact Us for consultation, certification assistance, and certification processing services.
