Package protected alternative in Kotlin

Kotlin, compared to Java, seems to rely on packages model to a lesser degree (e.g. directories structure is not bound to packages). Instead, Kotlin offers internal visibility, which is designed for modular project architecture. Using it, you can encapsulate a part of your code inside a separate module.

So, on top level declarations you can use

• private to restrict visibility to the file
• internal to restrict visibility to the module

At this point, there is no other option for visibility restriction.

As a workaround for me on android I've created @PackagePrivate annotation and lint checks to control access. Here you can find the project.

Lint checks are obviously not that strict as compiler checks and some setup needed to fail the build on errors. But android studio picks up lint checks automatically and shows error immediately while typing. Unfortunately I don't know a way to exclude annotated members from autocomplete.

Also, as lint is a purely compile-time tool, no checks at runtime performed.