A court in the Indonesian holiday island of Bali jailed a British man and his Australian girlfriend on Monday for their roles in the murder of a traffic policeman on a popular surfing beach.

David Taylor, 33, was jailed for six years for the murder of Wayan Sudarsa. Sara Connor, 45, was jailed for four years.

The two, who had denied murder, were arrested in August last year after the policeman's body was found on Kuta beach with wounds to his head and neck.

During the investigation, Taylor and Connor were made to reenact the altercation they had had with the victim, whom they suspected of stealing Connor's purse, on the beach.

Connor had told police that she saw Taylor beating the officer as she searched for her purse.

The two were tried separately and prosecutors had called for an eight-year sentence.

Taylor appeared in court first, dressed in a white shirt and black pants, and nodded as a legal aide translated.

"The defendant (Taylor) has been proven to have violated the law and is sentenced to six years in prison," presiding judge Yanto, who goes by one name, told the courtroom.

Taylor's lawyer said his client accepted the ruling.

"Our request was to get the sentence reduced two years from eight years," said Haposan Sihombing.

Connor appeared in court immediately after Taylor's sentencing.

"Sara Connor has been proven to have aided the defendant Taylor in violence that resulted in the victim's death...and is sentenced to four years in prison," judge I Made Pasek said in the hearing.

He added that Connor had sat on the victim's back and held down his neck so that he couldn't defend himself during the altercation.

Connor's legal representative declined to comment.