It Disappeared in South Korea 22 Years Ago... "It's Gender Discrimination": 'Sanitary Pad Tax' Debate Erupts in Indonesia

Debate over the "sanitary pad tax" starts on social media

Effective tax rate is 11%; backlash grows amid rising prices

Authorities: "It is not a special tax targeting women"

As the cost of living rises in Indonesia, calls are growing to abolish the 11% tax on sanitary pads.

Debate Over Sanitary Pad Tax Spreads on Social Media... Voices From Across Society Call for Its Abolition

A photo illustrating the article shows people walking along a street in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. Pexels

Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on November 3 that calls are mounting in Indonesia to abolish value-added tax on menstrual hygiene products, including sanitary pads. The debate gained traction on October 25, when a social media user pointed out that sanitary pads are subject to VAT. A post comparing Indonesia with neighboring Malaysia, where sanitary pads are classified as tax-exempt, spread online. This prompted questions about whether it is appropriate to tax products needed for menstruation, an unavoidable biological process, in the same way as ordinary consumer goods.

The actual VAT burden on sanitary pads in Indonesia is 11%. The statutory rate is 12%, but for non-luxury goods, only 11/12 of the selling price is used as the tax base. A sanitary pad priced at 20,000 rupiah (about 1,500 won) before tax is subject to 2,200 rupiah (about 165 won) in tax.

Taxing sanitary pads is not a new policy, but the issue has resurfaced as the cost of living has risen. According to Statistics Indonesia (BPS), consumer prices rose 3.23% in October from a year earlier, exceeding the 2.86% increase recorded in the same month last year. In February this year, inflation reached 4.76%, its highest level in about three years.

As the controversy spread, voices from across society weighed in. On November 2, Dalia Madani, deputy chair of Indonesia's National Commission on Violence Against Women, criticized the tax on menstrual products as "a discriminatory policy that does not adequately account for the costs of women's reproductive health." She said menstrual products are "essential items, not discretionary consumer goods," and warned that low-income women who cannot afford to buy them may experience so-called "period poverty" and be unable to use enough hygiene products.

Niti Emiliana, head of the Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI), urged the government to "abolish VAT on sanitary pads through tax adjustments." Seli Andriani Gantina, a member of the House of Representatives, also said on November 3 that "the government should consider designating menstrual products as tax-exempt or subsidizing the tax."

Tax Authority: "Taxation Is in Accordance With the Law"... South Korea Exempted Sanitary Pads in 2004

However, the local tax authority maintains that the current tax is imposed in accordance with the law. Inge Diana Rismawati, director of public relations at the Directorate General of Taxes, explained that "VAT on sanitary pads is not a special tax targeting women or menstruation, but part of a tax system that applies to consumption in general." She added that "tax exemptions are granted only to specific items stipulated by law, and sanitary pads are not yet included."

Some countries do not tax sanitary pads. South Korea designated sanitary pads as VAT-exempt products in 2004. Canada has applied a 0% tax rate to menstrual products since July 2015, while India abolished the 12% goods and services tax (GST) on sanitary pads in 2018. China, by contrast, imposes 13% VAT on sanitary pads and tampons.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.