When an agency buys software, who holds the copyright?

By Mohammad Hilmi Bisri, S.Kom.. Published 10 October 2026.

A government agency that pays a supplier to build an application does not necessarily become its owner. What the agency buys may be permission to use the application, or it may be the copyright together with the program code. The basic rules are in Law (Undang-Undang) No. 28 of 2014 on Copyright (external site) (UU Hak Cipta, the Copyright Law), while the details are set by the contract or the work order (Surat Perintah Kerja, SPK).

Software is a protected work

Article 40(1)(s) of the Copyright Law lists computer programs as protected works. Article 1 point 9 defines a computer program as a set of instructions that makes a computer perform certain functions. Copyright arises automatically as soon as a work takes tangible form (Article 1 point 1).

Who holds the copyright if the contract is silent

The law distinguishes between the author (pencipta), the person who creates the work, and the copyright holder (pemegang hak cipta), who is either the author or a party that has lawfully received the right (Article 1 points 2 and 4).

Article 36 covers works made to order for another party. Unless agreed otherwise, the author and copyright holder is the party that made the work. This means that the copyright in an application ordered from a supplier belongs to the supplier, unless the contract says otherwise.

Article 35(1) covers works made within an official service relationship (hubungan dinas). According to the elucidation of that article, this is the employment relationship between a state official and their agency. If an agency employee builds an application within that relationship, the government agency is deemed to be the author and the copyright holder, unless agreed otherwise.

Payment alone does not transfer the copyright to the agency. If the agency wants to hold the copyright, the transfer must be set out in a written agreement (Article 16(2)(e)).

Licences, source code, and transfer of copyright

A licence is written permission from the copyright holder to another party to exercise the economic rights in the work under certain conditions (Article 1 point 20). In everyday terms, the agency buys a right of use: it may use the application under the terms of the contract, while the copyright stays with the supplier.

Source code is the program text that programmers write and change. An agency that receives the source code is not automatically allowed to change it. Copying and adapting a work are among the copyright holder's economic rights (Article 9(1)), and anyone else who does so needs permission (Article 9(2)). Permission to change the source code therefore needs to be written into the contract. If the copyright itself is transferred, the agency becomes the copyright holder.

The standard HanzCodes model is a licence to use for one agency, paid once, with the copyright remaining with PT Hanz Kode Terpadu. Details are on the How we work page.

Central government agencies and regional governments are also bound by Presidential Regulation (Peraturan Presiden) No. 95 of 2018 on Electronic-Based Government Systems (external site) (Sistem Pemerintahan Berbasis Elektronik, SPBE). Under Article 35, the building and development of SPBE applications gives priority to open source code, meaning program code that is open to the public. If an application uses closed source code, the agency must obtain the advice of the minister responsible for communication and informatics.

Licence rules in the law

The copyright holder grants a licence through a written agreement (Article 80(1)). The following provisions directly affect an agency's contract:

• A licence runs for a set period and may not exceed the term of the copyright (Article 80(2)). The contract should state the period.
• Unless agreed otherwise, the licensee pays royalties (payment for using the work) for as long as the licence runs (Article 80(3)). If there is only a one-off payment, state that there are no recurring royalties.
• Licence agreements must be recorded by the minister responsible for legal affairs in the public register of copyright licence agreements, for a fee (Article 83(1)). A licence that is not recorded has no legal effect on third parties, meaning anyone other than the supplier and the agency (Article 83(3)).

The recording procedure is set out in Government Regulation (Peraturan Pemerintah) No. 36 of 2018 (external site). Either the licensor or the licensee may apply (Article 1 point 3). Under Article 7(2), the minimum content of a licence agreement includes the date and place of signing, the names and addresses of the parties, the subject of the licence, whether it is exclusive or non-exclusive (including sublicensing), its duration, and the territory where it applies. An exclusive licence means the supplier does not grant the same licence to anyone else. A sublicence is permission given by the licensee to a further party.

Recording a work with DJKI

Works are recorded by the Directorate General of Intellectual Property (Direktorat Jenderal Kekayaan Intelektual, DJKI) (external site). Article 64(2) confirms that recording is not a condition for obtaining copyright, and its elucidation states that unrecorded works are still protected. Even so, DJKI recommends recording as proof of ownership in case of a dispute.

A certificate of recording is initial evidence of ownership unless proven otherwise (Article 69(4)), but it does not validate the content of the work (Article 72). Anyone can view the public register of works free of charge (Article 69(3)). An agency may ask the supplier for a copy of the certificate. A supplier that has not recorded its application can still hold the copyright.

What to write in the contract or SPK

• Deliverables: the ready-to-use application, the user guide, and whether the source code is included. If the source code is handed over, state what is permitted: storage only, changes by the agency itself, or handing it to another supplier.
• Copyright status: it stays with the supplier under a licence, or it is transferred to the agency. Without this clause, Article 36 applies.
• Licence scope: the name of the agency using it, the period, whether it is exclusive, whether sublicensing is allowed, and where it is installed, for example on the agency's own server (the computer that holds the office's applications and data).
• Payment: one-off or recurring. If it is one-off, state that there are no further royalties.
• Licence recording: who applies to DJKI and who pays the fee.
• Data ownership: the data that the agency enters and produces belongs to the agency. The clause should include the format in which the data is handed over when the work ends, so it can be moved to another application. The duty to protect that data is covered in the article on the Personal Data Protection Law (UU PDP) for villages, schools, and agencies.
• Maintenance after the warranty: how long the warranty lasts and which faults it covers, the price and scope of maintenance afterwards, and what happens to the application and its source code if the supplier stops operating.

This article is a summary, not legal advice. It is based on Law 28 of 2014, which is still in force as of 10 October 2026. On 6 October 2026, the Legislation Body (Badan Legislasi) of the House of Representatives (DPR) formed a working committee to discuss the Copyright Bill (RUU Hak Cipta) with the government (external site). For specific decisions, refer to the text of the regulations and ask the competent unit, for example the UKPBJ (the procurement unit), the APIP (the government's internal auditors), the agency's legal department, or the village facilitator.