Anda hendaknya membaca polis itu dahulu.

Hendaknya means something like should, ought to, or it would be advisable to.

It gives advice or a recommendation, not a strict command. In this sentence, it sounds polite and somewhat formal. It is softer than harus (must).

So:

• Anda hendaknya membaca polis itu dahulu. = You should read the policy first.
• softer than: Anda harus membaca polis itu dahulu. = You must read the policy first.

It is understandable and correct, but it sounds a bit formal, careful, or written. You may see it in:

• official advice
• instructions
• formal writing
• customer service language

In everyday speech, Indonesians may more often say:

• Sebaiknya Anda membaca polis itu dahulu.
• Anda sebaiknya membaca polis itu dahulu.

These also mean You should read the policy first.

Anda is the polite/formal word for you in Indonesian.

It is commonly used in:

• customer communication
• business
• advertising
• instructions
• formal situations

Because polis suggests an insurance policy or official document, Anda fits the context well.

Compare:

• Anda = polite/formal you
• kamu = informal you
• often in Indonesian, the subject can also be omitted if clear from context

Membaca is the verb with the meN- prefix, which is the normal active form for to read.

• root: baca = read
• active verb: membaca = to read / read

In a full, standard sentence, membaca is the expected form:

• Anda membaca... = You read / are reading...
• Anda hendaknya membaca... = You should read...

Baca by itself is often used in:

• commands: Baca ini! = Read this!
• informal style
• dictionary/root form

No. In this sentence, polis means policy, especially an insurance policy.

This is a loanword related to Dutch/English legal-insurance vocabulary, not to police.

So:

• polis asuransi = insurance policy
• membaca polis itu = read that/the policy

This is a good word to remember because it looks a little misleading to English speakers.

In Indonesian, demonstratives like ini (this) and itu (that/the) usually come after the noun.

So:

• polis itu = that policy / the policy
• buku ini = this book
• rumah itu = that house

This is different from English, where this/that comes before the noun.

In many contexts, itu can also function a bit like the, especially when referring to a specific known thing.

Dahulu here means first, before that, or in advance.

So membaca polis itu dahulu means:

• read the policy first
• read the policy beforehand

It tells you that this action should happen before some other action, even if that other action is not stated explicitly.

A very common synonym is terlebih dahulu:

• Anda hendaknya membaca polis itu terlebih dahulu.

This sounds very natural and slightly more explicit.

Yes, basically, but dahulu is more formal.

• dulu = common in everyday speech
• dahulu = more formal/written/polite

So:

• Baca dulu. = informal: Read it first.
• Bacalah dahulu. = more formal/literary: Please read it first.

In your sentence, dahulu matches the formal tone created by Anda and hendaknya.

Yes, the position can vary somewhat.

These are all possible, with slightly different rhythm or emphasis:

• Anda hendaknya membaca polis itu dahulu.
• Hendaknya Anda membaca polis itu dahulu.
• Anda sebaiknya membaca polis itu dahulu.

Putting hendaknya before the subject can sound more formal or stylistically marked:

• Hendaknya Anda membaca polis itu dahulu.

But the version in your sentence is very natural in formal Indonesian.

Not exactly. It is more like polite advice or a recommendation.

Because of hendaknya, it sounds like:

• You should read the policy first
• It is recommended that you read the policy first

A stronger command would use forms like:

• Harap membaca polis itu terlebih dahulu.
• Silakan membaca polis itu terlebih dahulu.
• Anda harus membaca polis itu terlebih dahulu.

These all differ in tone:

• harap = polite instruction/request
• silakan = please/go ahead
• harus = must

Yes, Indonesian often omits the subject when it is understood from context.

For example:

• Hendaknya membaca polis itu dahulu.

This can still be understood, especially in written instructions, but including Anda makes the sentence clearer and more directly addressed to the reader.

In customer-facing or formal writing, keeping Anda is very common because it sounds direct but polite.

No specific tense is marked here. Indonesian verbs usually do not change form for tense the way English verbs do.

The sentence gets its time reference from context. Here, because of hendaknya and dahulu, the meaning is naturally something like:

• You should read the policy first
• before doing something else

So the time is understood from the situation, not from a special verb ending.

Both are correct. Terlebih dahulu is very common and often sounds slightly more complete or explicit in formal instructions.

Compare:

• Anda hendaknya membaca polis itu dahulu.
• Anda hendaknya membaca polis itu terlebih dahulu.

Both mean the same thing. The second one may sound a little more standard in official or written contexts.

So if you see either form, there is no big difference in meaning.