Immigration law in Brunei

The main legal bases are the principal immigration statute (Immigration Act Cap. 17), in the 2014 edition current at B.L.R.O. 2/2023, the Immigration Regulations and the Residence Permit Regulations. The Immigration Department (JIPK), operating under the home affairs ministry (Ministry of Home Affairs), and the immigration controller (Controller of Immigration) decide on visas, passports and residence permits; branch offices are located in Kuala Belait, Tutong and Temburong. Many decisions are discretionary and may be subject to individual conditions. For entry, the foreign affairs ministry (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) classifies visas by passport and nationality into categories A to D. Depending on the category, a visa, a visa on arrival or no prior visa issuance may be required. Social, business and professional visit visas are valid for no more than three months. Standard processing usually takes one to three working days; a single-entry visa costs BND 20, while a multiple-entry visa costs BND 30 for validity of less than three months or BND 50 for longer validity. All foreign nationals must register their entry and exit by land, air or sea in advance through electronic arrival registration (E-Arrival). The service is free and records, among other things, passport, travel and accommodation details; transit without contact with an immigration control point is exempt. A visit pass is insufficient for paid or unpaid work. The employer or sponsor first applies for a foreign-worker recruitment licence (Foreign Worker Recruitment License), LPA, BUR500 or BUR555, a job order (Job Order) and the representative card (Representative Card) of the employment agency. This is followed by the visa or work visa before entry, a medical examination and an employment permit (Employment Pass) or work permit (Work Pass). A green identity card (Green IC) is then issued as an identity card for foreign passport holders. The passport should generally remain valid for at least six months. Malaysian and Singaporean nationals may be exempt from the visa requirement for the work visa, but they still need a valid work permit. Qualifications must match the occupation, and no sufficient local workforce may be available for the relevant skill area. Employment status normally remains tied to the employer and position; a change is governed by the contract-transfer procedure of the Labour Department. After employment ends, the permit is cancelled and the person must leave. Work without written approval from the immigration controller cannot be assumed to be permitted even with a social visit pass. For study, the person concerned needs the study application form (Form 10), admission to a named educational institution and the required authorisation from the education ministry (Ministry of Education) or the education director (Director of Education). The duration and conditions of the student permit (Student's Pass) depend on the individual case. The authority may cancel the permit if studies are not started or continued or if conditions are breached; a student permit does not provide general access to work. Family members of an employment-permit holder apply for a dependant permit (Dependant's Pass) using the family application form (Form 25). Foreign family members of Bruneian nationals or people with permanent residence may apply for a long-term social visit permit (Long Term Social Visit Pass) before possible eligibility for permanent residence. Depending on the case, marriage, birth, passport and sponsor evidence is required. A family permit does not automatically lead to permanent residence. Long-term permits (Long Term Passes) distinguish social, business and professional grounds. The social category concerns family ties, the business category concerns foreign owners or investors who make a socioeconomic contribution, and the professional category concerns needed foreign expertise. The published information does not provide a complete account of all criteria and quotas. None of these permits automatically establishes permanent residence or Bruneian nationality. The immigration authority handles applications for an entry permit (Permit Masuk), also called an Entry Permit, or a resident permit (Resident Permit). Under the current guideline from 31 December 2024, eligible groups include, among others, children of Bruneian nationals or people with permanent residence, adopted and stepchildren, spouses and people with proven Bruneian ancestry. Long minimum periods apply to some groups, including about five years of uninterrupted residence for adopted children, usually 15 or 20 years for stepchildren, about 15 years of marriage for foreign wives of Bruneian nationals and about 10 years for stateless wives. Foreign husbands of Bruneian nationals are generally required to show 15 years of marriage; spouses of stateless people with permanent residence are generally required to show about 20 years. For proven ancestry, approximately ten years of residence applies where the person was born in Brunei and 15 years where the person was born outside the country. A temporary work authorisation does not create an automatic entitlement to permanent residence under the documented law. Fees depend on the passport and permit; tables list, among other amounts, about BND 3 or BND 10 for entry or resident permits, in some cases BND 50 for visas and BND 5 or BND 50 for permit cards. No fixed processing time for permanent residence has been published. Bruneian nationality is governed by the nationality statute (Brunei Nationality Act Cap. 15). Birth in Brunei alone does not automatically confer nationality. Depending on the legal basis, registration or naturalisation may require permanent residence or an entry permit, at least twelve years of residence within the last 15 years, the last two years without interruption, good conduct, a security check and, from age 18, a Malay-language test. For birth outside Brunei, general naturalisation usually requires at least 20 years of residence within the last 25 years, the last two years without interruption, the Malay-language test and knowledge of life and customs in Brunei. Special rules apply, among others, to children of Bruneian mothers or fathers, adopted children and wives of Bruneian nationals. For wives, the immigration authority publishes criteria that, depending on the case, refer to approximately five or three, seven or seven, or ten or seven years of marriage and residence. Under Section 13, the nationality decision has no statutory right of appeal or review; processing times and fees have not been published. Under the researched legal position, Brunei has no separate formal asylum or refugee-status procedure. The country is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention or the 1967 Protocol. A special temporary pass (Special Pass) may permit temporary residence but is not a protection status. Individual questions about protection from refoulement should be clarified with professional advice and the immigration authority. The authorities may refuse entry for reasons including insufficient means of support, mental illness, infectious disease, certain foreign convictions without a pardon, prostitution or substantiated security and unsuitability concerns. The minister may restrict entry categories for security, economic, social or educational reasons. If an entry permit is refused on public-security grounds, a written petition may be submitted to the minister within 30 days of notification; the minister's decision is final. Section 31 covers, among other matters, refusal of entry, detention and removal, Section 32 covers removal after certain violations, and Section 33 covers removal for unlawful stay. Detention may take place in an immigration depot or another designated location. The government may recover the costs of removal, detention or medical care. No general statutory remedy against all measures is apparent; Article 84C of the Constitution also excludes judicial review. During the stay, the person concerned needs a valid passport and must comply with the conditions of the relevant visa or permit, the electronic arrival registration and all validity periods. False or incomplete documents increase the risk of refusal or cancellation. The responsible authority depends on the matter: the immigration authority for visas, work permits, entry or resident permits and nationality; the Labour Department for foreign workers; the Ministry of Health for medical fitness; the education authorities for study permits; and Bruneian diplomatic missions for visa issuance or confirmation.