--- title: "Headhunter in Surabaya, Indonesia: An Employer's Guide" canonical_url: "https://www.jessonglobal.com/insights/headhunter-surabaya" last_updated: "2026-11-02T02:58:50.861Z" meta: description: "Hiring a headhunter in Surabaya, Indonesia? See Greater Surabaya wage floors, a cost table with VAT and PPh 23, licence checks and inter-province rules." "og:description": "Hiring a headhunter in Surabaya, Indonesia? See Greater Surabaya wage floors, a cost table with VAT and PPh 23, licence checks and inter-province rules." "og:title": "Headhunter in Surabaya, Indonesia: An Employer's Guide" "twitter:description": "Hiring a headhunter in Surabaya, Indonesia? See Greater Surabaya wage floors, a cost table with VAT and PPh 23, licence checks and inter-province rules." "twitter:title": "Headhunter in Surabaya, Indonesia: An Employer's Guide" --- Jesson Global — Home **For Employers**[**Executive Search & Headhunting**](https://www.jessonglobal.com/insights/topics/executive-search)Nov 1, 2026·8 min read # Headhunter in Surabaya, Indonesia: An Employer's Guide Hiring a headhunter in Surabaya, Indonesia? See Greater Surabaya wage floors, a cost table with VAT and PPh 23, licence checks and inter-province rules. ![Jessica Baware](https://www.jessonglobal.com/_ipx/fit_cover&pos_top&q_76&s_44x44/cms-media/jessica-baware.jpeg) By [**Jessica Baware**](https://www.jessonglobal.com/about#team) Co-Founder & CEO, Jesson Global A headhunter in Surabaya, Indonesia is most useful for senior or hard-to-find roles where the right people are not applying. We found no official tariff, so the fee is whatever your contract says. Surabaya's 2026 minimum wage is Rp5,288,796 a month, and any firm recruiting across provinces needs extra approvals under Permenaker 18/2024, so check those before you compare prices. ## When is a headhunter the right choice in Surabaya? Use one when the role is senior, the candidate pool is thin, or the search must stay confidential. For roles with plenty of applicants, a job ad or a contingency agency usually costs less. The Association of Executive Search and Leadership Consultants ([~~AESC~~](https://www.aesc.org/insights/blog/retained-executive-search-vs-contingency-whats-difference)) says contingent recruiters typically fill entry- to mid-level roles, while retained firms focus on executive and senior positions. Our own reading of that split is below, so treat it as a starting point. | **Your situation** | **Start with** | | --- | --- | | Many operational roles with plenty of applicants | Job ads and your own HR team | | A specialist role with a known local pool | Contingency agency | | A plant, regional or country leadership role | Retained search | | A confidential replacement | Retained search | Put simply, you pay a headhunter for reach and discretion, so the fee only makes sense when you need both. Our guide on [~~how to choose an executive search firm in Indonesia~~](https://www.jessonglobal.com/insights/executive-search-firm-indonesia) covers the retained model in more depth. ## Does the firm need to be based in Surabaya? Not necessarily, because a senior search often looks well beyond one city. Ask where the candidates are likely to be, and choose the firm that can reach them, but check that it can legally recruit in those regions. A Surabaya or East Java role may draw candidates who already live nearby, and it may also need someone relocating from another province. A firm with only local networks could miss the second group, while a Jakarta firm may know East Java less well. In practice, ask each firm to name the talent pools it would map for your role and how it would approach them. If your search moves to Jakarta candidates, our [~~guide to recruitment agencies in Jakarta~~](https://www.jessonglobal.com/insights/recruitment-agency-jakarta) covers that market and its wage figures. ## What do Surabaya's wage figures mean for your brief? They set a legal floor, and they do not show what a manager or director earns. Surabaya's 2026 city minimum wage (UMK) is higher than the Gresik and Sidoarjo figures below, and it is more than twice the East Java provincial minimum. | **Measure, 2026** | **Amount per month** | **Source** | | --- | --- | --- | | Surabaya UMK | Rp5,288,796 | [~~Metro TV, Decree 100.3.3.1/937/013/2025~~](https://www.metrotvnews.com/read/NrWC8LWY-berapa-umr-surabaya-2026-ini-besaran-umk-terbaru-se-jatim) | | Gresik UMK | Rp5,195,401 | Metro TV, same decree | | Sidoarjo UMK | Rp5,191,541 | Metro TV, same decree | | East Java provincial minimum (UMP) | Rp2,446,880.68 | [~~Metro TV, Decree 100.3.3.1/934/013/2025~~](https://www.metrotvnews.com/read/bmRCY92v-ump-jawa-timur-2026-ditetapkan-rp2-45-juta) | | Jakarta provincial minimum (UMP) | Rp5,729,876 | [~~Hukumonline~~](https://www.hukumonline.com/berita/a/ump-dan-umsp%E2%80%93dki-2026-lt697324d20263d/) | The Surabaya floor is Rp441,080, or 7.7%, below Jakarta's. That gap is about minimum pay, so it does not tell you that senior pay in Surabaya sits 7.7% below Jakarta. Put simply, do not discount a Jakarta salary benchmark by this percentage. We could not find a current official average wage for East Java. Nationally, BPS data reported by [~~CNBC Indonesia~~](https://www.cnbcindonesia.com/news/20260805141123-4-756778/bps-catat-upah-buruh-naik-tertinggi-di-5-sektor-usaha-ini) shows an average employee wage of Rp3.39 million in May 2026, and Rp3.42 million in manufacturing. These averages cover every level, so ask the firm for current evidence on your specific role, such as recent offers it has seen. ## What does a headhunter in Surabaya cost? We found no official tariff, so the fee is set in your contract, usually as a percentage of first-year pay. Korn Ferry's filing with the US regulator says its search fee is [~~"generally one-third of the estimated first-year cash compensation"~~](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0000056679/000005667926000021/kfy-20260430.htm) of the placed candidate, but that is one global firm's practice and not a Surabaya rate. Tax changes your cash flow. The Directorate General of Taxes (DJP) explains that the [~~VAT charged stays at 11%~~](https://www.pajak.go.id/en/node/113886) on non-luxury services, and that [~~PPh 23 on services is 2%~~](https://www.pajak.go.id/id/pph-pasal-23) of the gross value, or 100% higher if the recipient has no tax number. Whether a recruitment fee is on the PPh 23 service list is a question for your tax adviser. The table is an illustration only. It assumes a 20% fee on 12 months of base salary, a firm that charges VAT, and that PPh 23 applies, and the 20% is a round number we chose for the arithmetic. | **Monthly base salary** | **Fee** | **VAT at 11%** | **Invoice total** | **Paid to firm after PPh 23** | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | IDR 20 million | 48,000,000 | 5,280,000 | 53,280,000 | 52,320,000 | | IDR 40 million | 96,000,000 | 10,560,000 | 106,560,000 | 104,640,000 | The gap between the last two columns is not a saving. You pay that amount to the tax office instead of the firm, so your total outflow stays at the invoice total. A firm billing from abroad changes the picture, because DJP states that [~~PPh 26 is 20%~~](https://www.pajak.go.id/id/pph-pasal-26) when tax-treaty conditions are not met. On the IDR 96 million fee, that is IDR 19.2 million. In plain terms, ask which entity will invoice you, and settle who bears the tax. Our article on [~~headhunter fees in Indonesia~~](https://www.jessonglobal.com/insights/headhunter-fee-indonesia) goes further on fee mechanics. ## How do you check a firm's licence and inter-province approvals? Ask for the licence documents, and then ask about approvals for the regions you care about. [~~Permenaker No. 18 of 2024~~](https://jdih.kemnaker.go.id/asset/data_puu/2024pmnaker018.pdf) treats a private placement agency (PPTKS) as a licensed legal entity, and Pasal 10 names the licence as an NIB and/or a Sertifikat Standar. Use this checklist with any firm on your list: | **Check** | **Basis** | | --- | --- | | The firm is a legal entity with a business licence | Pasal 1 point 9 | | It can show its NIB and/or Sertifikat Standar | Pasal 10(4) | | It employs a placement officer (Petugas Antar Kerja) | Pasal 10(2) | | It does not charge candidates, except for certain positions | Pasal 11 | | For recruiting across regions, it has a placement agreement, reports the vacancy, and holds an SPP AKAD and an SPR | Pasal 53 | The SPP AKAD is the approval letter for placement between provinces, and the SPR is a permit from the provincial manpower office to recruit for inter-regional needs. Put simply, a firm that can recruit legally in Surabaya has not automatically settled the question for a search in other provinces. You can also check an NIB yourself, because [~~Hukumonline's guide~~](https://www.hukumonline.com/klinik/a/cara-mendapatkan-dan-mengecek-nib-lt61725aa67ae9f/) explains that the OSS website has a Pencarian NIB (NIB search) field. Confirm that the entity on the documents is the one signing your contract. ## What should the contract cover? The contract must cover seven minimum items, and you should add commercial terms of your own. Pasal 54(2) lists the parties' identity, their rights and obligations, the scope of work, the number of workers, the wage, the service fee and the placement guarantee. The rule requires a guarantee but does not set its length, so that term is yours to negotiate. Add the fee basis, the payment schedule, replacement terms, how long an introduced candidate stays covered by the fee, and exclusivity. Agree too on who reports the vacancy. Pasal 29(3) says the employer must report it through SIAPkerja, and Pasal 55(1) says the agency reports it if the employer has not done so. In practice, one line in the contract prevents both sides from assuming the other has handled it. ## How long does a search take? It varies by role and firm, so compare the stages and ask whether the candidate's notice period is included. As one published example, Jesson Global states four to eight weeks from kickoff to placement, with a shortlist of three to five vetted profiles in weeks four to six and support for both sides for the first 90 days. Our article on [~~how long executive search takes in Indonesia~~](https://www.jessonglobal.com/insights/how-long-does-executive-search-take-in-indonesia-a-2026-complete-guide) has more detail. Indonesian searches run through PT. Jesson Global Indonesia, and this process is designed for Director-level roles and above, cross-border placements and confidential replacements. For those roles, you can see how a search is scoped on our [~~executive search page~~](https://www.jessonglobal.com/executive-search). ## FAQ ### **How much does a headhunter in Surabaya charge?** We found no official tariff, so the fee is set in your contract and is usually a percentage of first-year pay. As one documented reference, Korn Ferry reports search fees of generally one-third of first-year cash compensation. Ask each firm for its rate, the fee basis and the payment schedule in writing before comparing offers. ### **Do I need a headhunter based in Surabaya?** Not necessarily, because the right candidate may live in another province. Ask each firm which talent pools it would map and how it would reach them. If it will recruit across provinces, ask about its SPP AKAD and SPR, because Pasal 53 of Permenaker 18/2024 requires them for that work. ### **Who pays the headhunter, the employer or the candidate?** The employer pays. Permenaker 18/2024 bars private placement agencies from charging job seekers placement fees, except for certain positions set by law. The service fee must also appear in the written agreement between the firm and the employer, so the amount is clear from the start of the engagement. ### **Is the Surabaya minimum wage relevant to senior hires?** Only as a legal floor, because it says nothing about what senior people earn. Surabaya's 2026 UMK is Rp5,288,796 a month, and Jakarta's provincial minimum is Rp5,729,876. For a realistic benchmark on a manager or director role, ask the firm for current evidence on that specific role and industry. 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