Indonesia’s Directorate General of Immigration recently announced a new policy of automatically extending stay permits for eligible foreigners who are unable to return to their home countries amid the global outbreak of the novel coronavirus.

Nearly 2,000 foreign nationals in Bali are requesting to extend their visas, following travel restrictions around the world that make it impossible for some to return to their home countries. 

The regional office for the Ministry of Law and Human Rights recorded at least 1,830 foreigners who have applied for emergency stay permits in Bali since early February, according to a report from Kompas.

The total number of positive COVID-19 cases in Bali jumped to six today, according to the latest official data from the Indonesian government, with local officials attributing two new cases to foreign patients at Tabanan General Hospital.

Five Italian nationals were allegedly stranded at Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport, according to a viral social media post, as they are reportedly unable to return home nor are they permitted to enter Indonesia.

A resident doctor from Airlangga University in Surabaya, who practiced for about two weeks at Sanglah General Hospital in Denpasar, has tested positive for COVID-19, fueling concerns that he might have been infected with the novel coronavirus while on the island.