Brunei Darussalam Economy Profile - Doing Business 2019
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Economy Profile
Brunei Darussalam
Page 1
Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Economy Profile of Brunei Darussalam
Doing Business 2019 Indicators
(in order of appearance in the document)
Starting a business Procedures, time, cost and paid-in minimum capital to start a limited liability company
Dealing with construction permits Procedures, time and cost to complete all formalities to build a warehouse and the quality
control and safety mechanisms in the construction permitting system
Getting electricity Procedures, time and cost to get connected to the electrical grid, and the reliability of the
electricity supply and the transparency of tariffs
Registering property Procedures, time and cost to transfer a property and the quality of the land administration
system
Getting credit Movable collateral laws and credit information systems
Protecting minority investors Minority shareholders’ rights in related-party transactions and in corporate governance
Paying taxes Payments, time, total tax and contribution rate for a firm to comply with all tax regulations as
well as post-filing processes
Trading across borders Time and cost to export the product of comparative advantage and import auto parts
Enforcing contracts Time and cost to resolve a commercial dispute and the quality of judicial processes
Resolving insolvency Time, cost, outcome and recovery rate for a commercial insolvency and the strength of the
legal framework for insolvency
Labor market regulation Flexibility in employment regulation and aspects of job quality
Page 2Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
About Doing Business
The Doing Business project provides objective measures of business regulations and their enforcement across 190 economies and selected
cities at the subnational and regional level.
The Doing Business project, launched in 2002, looks at domestic small and medium-size companies and measures the regulations applying
to them through their life cycle.
Doing Business captures several important dimensions of the regulatory environment as it applies to local firms. It provides quantitative
indicators on regulation for starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit,
protecting minority investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts and resolving insolvency. Doing Business also
measures features of labor market regulation. Although Doing Business does not present rankings of economies on the labor market
regulation indicators or include the topic in the aggregate ease of doing business score or ranking on the ease of doing business, it does
present the data for these indicators.
By gathering and analyzing comprehensive quantitative data to compare business regulation environments across economies and over time,
Doing Business encourages economies to compete towards more efficient regulation; offers measurable benchmarks for reform; and serves
as a resource for academics, journalists, private sector researchers and others interested in the business climate of each economy.
In addition, Doing Business offers detailed subnational reports, which exhaustively cover business regulation and reform in different cities and
regions within a nation. These reports provide data on the ease of doing business, rank each location, and recommend reforms to improve
performance in each of the indicator areas. Selected cities can compare their business regulations with other cities in the economy or region
and with the 190 economies that Doing Business has ranked.
The first Doing Business report, published in 2003, covered 5 indicator sets and 133 economies. This year’s report covers 11 indicator sets
and 190 economies. Most indicator sets refer to a case scenario in the largest business city of each economy, except for 11 economies that
have a population of more than 100 million as of 2013 (Bangladesh, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, the
Russian Federation and the United States) where Doing Business also collected data for the second largest business city. The data for these
11 economies are a population-weighted average for the 2 largest business cities. The project has benefited from feedback from
governments, academics, practitioners and reviewers. The initial goal remains: to provide an objective basis for understanding and improving
the regulatory environment for business around the world.
More about Doing Business (PDF, 5MB)
Page 3Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Ease of Doing Business in DB 2019 Rank
Region East Asia & Pacific
190 1
Brunei Darussalam
Income Category High income 55
DB 2019 Ease of doing business score
Population 428,697
0 100
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan 72.03
DB 2019 Ease of Doing Business Score
0 100
80.60: Malaysia (Rank: 15)
73.64: China (Rank: 46)
72.03: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 55)
67.96: Indonesia (Rank: 73)
63.41: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
57.68: Philippines (Rank: 124)
Note: The ease of doing business score captures the gap of each economy from the best regulatory performance observed on each of the indicators across all economies
in the Doing Business sample since 2005. An economy’s ease of doing business score is reflected on a scale from 0 to 100, where 0 represents the lowest and 100
represents the best performance. The ease of doing business ranking ranges from 1 to 190.
Rankings on Doing Business topics - Brunei Darussalam
1
1
16
31
28
48
55
55 67 64
84
82
Rank
109
136 142
149
163
190
Starting Dealing Getting Registering Getting Protecting Paying Trading Enforcing Resolving
a with Electricity Property Credit Minority Taxes across Contracts Insolvency
Business Construction Investors Borders
Permits
Ease of Doing Business Score on Doing Business topics - Brunei Darussalam
100.00
100 94.92
86.57
80 73.49 74.03
65.00
58.70 60.95
Score
60 55.11
51.48
40
20
0
Starting Dealing Getting Registering Getting Protecting Paying Trading Enforcing Resolving
a with Electricity Property Credit Minority Taxes across Contracts Insolvency
Business Construction Investors Borders
Permits
Page 4Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Starting a Business
This topic measures the number of procedures, time, cost and paid-in minimum capital requirement for a small- to medium-sized limited
liability company to start up and formally operate in each economy’s largest business city.
To make the data comparable across 190 economies, Doing Business uses a standardized business that is 100% domestically owned, has
start-up capital equivalent to 10 times the income per capita, engages in general industrial or commercial activities and employs between 10
and 50 people one month after the commencement of operations, all of whom are domestic nationals. Starting a Business considers two
types of local limited liability companies that are identical in all aspects, except that one company is owned by 5 married women and the
other by 5 married men. The ranking of economies on the ease of starting a business is determined by sorting their scores for starting a
business. These scores are the simple average of the scores for each of the component indicators.
The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in May 2018. See the methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Procedures to legally start and formally operate To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions about the
a company (number) business and the procedures are used. It is assumed that any required information is
readily available and that the entrepreneur will pay no bribes.
• Preregistration (for example, name verification or
reservation, notarization)
The business:
• Registration in the economy’s largest business - Is a limited liability company (or its legal equivalent). If there is more than one type
city
of limited liability company in the economy, the most common among domestic firms
• Postregistration (for example, social security is chosen. Information on the most common form is obtained from incorporation
registration, company seal) lawyers or the statistical office.
- Operates in the economy’s largest business city. For 11 economies the data are
• Obtaining approval from spouse to start a
business or to leave the home to register the also collected for the second largest business city.
company - The entire office space is approximately 929 square meters (10,000 square feet).
- Is 100% domestically owned and has five owners, none of whom is a legal entity;
• Obtaining any gender specific document for has a start-up capital of 10 times income per capita and has a turnover of at least
company registration and operation or national 100 times income per capita.
identification card - Performs general industrial or commercial activities, such as the production or sale
of goods or services to the public. The business does not perform foreign trade
Time required to complete each procedure
activities and does not handle products subject to a special tax regime, for example,
(calendar days)
liquor or tobacco. It does not use heavily polluting production processes.
• Does not include time spent gathering - Leases the commercial plant or offices and is not a proprietor of real estate and the
information amount of the annual lease for the office space is equivalent to the income per
• Each procedure starts on a separate day (2 capita.
procedures cannot start on the same day) - Does not qualify for investment incentives or any special benefits.
- Has at least 10 and up to 50 employees one month after the commencement of
• Procedures fully completed online are recorded operations, all of whom are domestic nationals.
as ½ day - Has a company deed that is 10 pages long.
• Procedure is considered completed once final
document is received The owners:
• No prior contact with officials - Have reached the legal age of majority. If there is no legal age of majority, they are
assumed to be 30 years old.
Cost required to complete each procedure (% of - Are sane, competent, in good health and have no criminal record.
income per capita) - Are married and the marriage is monogamous and registered with the authorities.
- Where the answer differs according to the legal system applicable to the woman or
• Official costs only, no bribes man in question (as may be the case in economies where there is legal plurality), the
• No professional fees unless services required by answer used will be the one that applies to the majority of the population.
law or commonly used in practice
Paid-in minimum capital (% of income per
capita)
• Funds deposited in a bank or with third party
before registration or up to 3 months after
incorporation
Page 5Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Starting a Business - Brunei Darussalam
Standardized Company
Legal form Private Limited Company
Paid-in minimum capital requirement BND 0
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan
Indicator Brunei East Asia & OECD high Best Regulatory
Darussalam Pacific income Performance
Procedure – Men (number) 3 6.8 4.9 1 (New Zealand)
Time – Men (days) 5 25.9 9.3 0.5 (New Zealand)
Cost – Men (% of income per capita) 1.2 17.8 3.1 0.0 (Slovenia)
Procedure – Women (number) 4 6.9 4.9 1 (New Zealand)
Time – Women (days) 6 26.0 9.3 0.5 (New Zealand)
Cost – Women (% of income per capita) 1.2 17.8 3.1 0.0 (Slovenia)
Paid-in min. capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 4.0 8.6 0.0 (117 Economies)
Figure – Starting a Business in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Ranking and Score
DB 2019 Starting a Business Score
0 100
94.92: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 16)
93.52: China (Rank: 28)
83.29: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
82.78: Malaysia (Rank: 122)
81.22: Indonesia (Rank: 134)
71.97: Philippines (Rank: 166)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of starting a business is determined by sorting their scores for starting a business. These scores
are the simple average of the scores for each of the component indicators.
Page 6Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Starting a Business in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time (days) Cost (% of income per capita)
6 0.8
0.7
Cost (% of income per capita)
5
0.6
4
Time (days)
0.5
3 0.4
0.3
2
0.2
1
0.1
0 0
1 3 5 *6
Procedures (number)
* This symbol is shown beside procedure numbers that take place simultaneously with the previous procedure.
Note: Online procedures account for 0.5 days in the total time calculation. For economies that have a different procedure list for men and
women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website
(http://doingbusiness.org/en/methodology ). For details on the procedures reflected here, see the summary below.
Page 7Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Starting a Business in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedures Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 APPLIES TO WOMEN ONLY: Obtain permission from husband to leave 1 day no charge
home in order to start a business
Agency : Domicile
According to the Islamic Family Law 61, subject to Hukum Syara’ and
confirmation by the Court, a wife shall not be entitled to maintenance when she is
nusyuz or unreasonably refuses to obey the lawful wishes or commands of her
husband, including...(b) when she leaves her husband’s home against his
wishes.
3 Submit incorporation documents and pay registration fees 2 days BDN 300 (flat fee for
Agency : Registry of Companies and Business Names Division, Ministry of registering an
Finance industrial company)
Registration is done at www.roc.gov.bn. As of May 2017, the online system has
been enhanced to allow for instant verification of the company name. The system
automatically generates a response if the name is unique. Once the proposed
company name is verified and available to be used, entrepreneurs can proceed
to the fill in online application form and submit required documents.
The Registry of Companies issues a certificate of incorporation, two certified
copies of the memorandum and articles of association, and registration forms for
the Employees Provident Fund and the Collector of Income Tax. The Registry
automatically notifies the Collector of Income Tax of the company’s registration.
The documents required for incorporation are:
- Identification documents
- Emails and contact information for each person
- Consent to act as director form
- Form X (list of directors)
- Memorandum and Articles of Association signed by all members.
The registration documents are sent in electronic version, typically on the next
business day from submitting the application.
5 Make a company seal or stamp 3 days BND 185
Agency : Seal-making shop
A company seal is not required for most transactions, but is used in practice.
Newly incorporated companies will in practice get a seal or a stamp. The
company seal is used on share certificates or official documents while the stamp
is used frequently for day to day activities, such as invoices.
6 Register for Employees Provident Fund 1 day, simultaneous no charge
Agency : Provident Fund with previous
Once the company successfully incorporated, the information will be procedure
automatically forwarded to the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) system. It is no
longer required submit hard copy of documents (certificate of incorporation, form
X, ID cards) to register the company with EPF. Once registrar submits certificate
to EPF, the EPF sends an e-mail to directors with the details of procedures and
requirements (e.g., guidelines on how to monitor contributions). After that, the
company must complete the registration online at tap.com.bn and obtain the
account number.
Companies must also register the employees with EPF, and pay relevant
contributions. Registration of employees is done online at tap.com.bn, and this
can be done at the same time as registration of the company. To register
employees, it is required to provide name and salary of each person. The identity
cards of all employees as well as the employment contracts should be presented
to the TAP counter in order to finalize employees' registration and be able to
make contributions.
If the employee already has TAP and SCP no, the registration will be
automatically updated once information is provided. If the employee is new to the
workforce (i.e., with no prior TAP and SCP no), usually, registration is completed
on the following working day.
Applies to women only.
Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure.
Page 8Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Dealing with Construction Permits
This topic tracks the procedures, time and cost to build a warehouse—including obtaining necessary the licenses and permits, submitting all
required notifications, requesting and receiving all necessary inspections and obtaining utility connections. In addition, the Dealing with
Construction Permits indicator measures the building quality control index, evaluating the quality of building regulations, the strength of
quality control and safety mechanisms, liability and insurance regimes, and professional certification requirements. The most recent round of
data collection was completed in May 2018. See the methodology for more information
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Procedures to legally build a warehouse To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions about the
(number) construction company, the warehouse project and the utility connections are used.
• Submitting all relevant documents and obtaining The construction company (BuildCo):
all necessary clearances, licenses, permits and
certificates - Is a limited liability company (or its legal equivalent) and operates in the economy’s
largest business city. For 11 economies the data are also collected for the second
• Submitting all required notifications and receiving largest business city.
all necessary inspections
- Is 100% domestically and privately owned; has five owners, none of whom is a
• Obtaining utility connections for water and legal entity. Has a licensed architect and a licensed engineer, both registered with
sewerage the local association of architects or engineers. BuildCo is not assumed to have any
other employees who are technical or licensed experts, such as geological or
• Registering and selling the warehouse after its
completion topographical experts.
- Owns the land on which the warehouse will be built and will sell the warehouse
Time required to complete each procedure upon its completion.
(calendar days)
The warehouse:
• Does not include time spent gathering
information - Will be used for general storage activities, such as storage of books or stationery.
- Will have two stories, both above ground, with a total constructed area of
• Each procedure starts on a separate day— approximately 1,300.6 square meters (14,000 square feet). Each floor will be 3
though procedures that can be fully completed meters (9 feet, 10 inches) high and will be located on a land plot of approximately
online are an exception to this rule
929 square meters (10,000 square feet) that is 100% owned by BuildCo, and the
• Procedure is considered completed once final warehouse is valued at 50 times income per capita.
document is received - Will have complete architectural and technical plans prepared by a licensed
architect. If preparation of the plans requires such steps as obtaining further
• No prior contact with officials
documentation or getting prior approvals from external agencies, these are counted
Cost required to complete each procedure (% of as procedures.
income per capita) - Will take 30 weeks to construct (excluding all delays due to administrative and
regulatory requirements).
• Official costs only, no bribes
The water and sewerage connections:
Building quality control index (0-15)
- Will be 150 meters (492 feet) from the existing water source and sewer tap. If there
• Quality of building regulations (0-2) is no water delivery infrastructure in the economy, a borehole will be dug. If there is
• Quality control before construction (0-1) no sewerage infrastructure, a septic tank in the smallest size available will be
installed or built.
• Quality control during construction (0-3) - Will have an average water use of 662 liters (175 gallons) a day and an average
• Quality control after construction (0-3) wastewater flow of 568 liters (150 gallons) a day. Will have a peak water use of
1,325 liters (350 gallons) a day and a peak wastewater flow of 1,136 liters (300
• Liability and insurance regimes (0-2)
gallons) a day.
• Professional certifications (0-4) - Will have a constant level of water demand and wastewater flow throughout the
year; will be 1 inch in diameter for the water connection and 4 inches in diameter for
the sewerage connection.
Page 9Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Dealing with Construction Permits - Brunei Darussalam
Standardized Warehouse
Estimated value of warehouse BND 2,075,582
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan
Indicator Brunei East Asia & OECD high Best Regulatory
Darussalam Pacific income Performance
Procedures (number) 20 15.1 12.7 None in 2017/18
Time (days) 83 133.5 153.1 None in 2017/18
Cost (% of warehouse value) 1.9 1.9 1.5 None in 2017/18
Building quality control index (0-15) 12.0 9.1 11.5 15.0 (3 Economies)
Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Ranking and Score
DB 2019 Dealing with Construction Permits Score
0 100
86.96: Malaysia (Rank: 3)
73.49: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 55)
70.71: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
68.58: Philippines (Rank: 94)
66.57: Indonesia (Rank: 112)
65.16: China (Rank: 121)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of dealing with construction permits is determined by sorting their scores for dealing with
construction permits. These scores are the simple average of the scores for each of the component indicators.
Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time (days) Cost (% of warehouse value)
0.8
80
0.7
70
Cost (% of warehouse value)
0.6
60
Time (days)
0.5
50
40 0.4
30 0.3
20 0.2
10 0.1
0 0
1 2 *3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Procedures (number)
* This symbol is shown beside procedure numbers that take place simultaneously with the previous procedure.
Note: Online procedures account for 0.5 days in the total time calculation. For economies that have a different procedure list for men and
women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website
(http://doingbusiness.org/en/methodology ). For details on the procedures reflected here, see the summary below.
Page 10Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
15
13.0 13.0 13.0
12.0
11.1
Index score
10 9.1
5
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedures Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Obtain a copy of the survey plan 1 day BND 15
Agency : Survey Department
A survey plan is a mandatory document that must be presented when requesting
a building permit.
2 Land Surveyor validates the survey plan and draws the topographical map 7 days BND 3,225
Agency : Private Land Surveyor
A land surveyor is hired to check the accuracy of the copy of the survey map and
confirm that the boundaries of the land provided in the copy of the survey plan
are accurate. The report prepared by the Land surveyor will enable the architect
to properly and accurately design the building. At the same time, the land
surveyor will also draw the topographical survey of the land.
3 Obtain a geotechnical study/soil test 7 days BND 2,500
Agency : Private Firm
A soil test is performed to determine the suitability of the soil and assess whether
it can accommodate the construction project. I t also help in identifying the types
of soil and also test the strength of the soil.
4 Hire an accredited checker to check compliance of the building plans 1 day BND 15,567
Agency : Private
According to the Building Control Order (2014) and Building Control Regulations
(2014), an independent accredited checker must be hired by BuildCo. This is a
new rule where an independent checker has the responsibility to verify
compliance of building plans with regulations.
All building plans are given to the accredited checker along with the survey plan.
5 Hire a resident technical officer to conduct inspections during construction 1 day BND 14,000
Agency : Private
According to the Building Control Order (2014) and Building Control Regulations
(2014), an independent technical officer is hired with the mandate to conduct
inspections during construction, and to issue a compliance certificate upon
completion of the building to certify that the building is in compliance with the
regulations and was built according to the approved plans.
6 Obtain planning approval from Town and Country Planning Department 14 days no charge
Agency : Town and Country Planning Department
According to Clause 3, Part II of the Building Guidelines Requirements 2014, the
Qualified Person must submit the application forms accompanied with 2 sets of
plan consisting of survey plan and building development plans to the Town and
Planning Authority for approval. A copy of the Land Title Deed must be submitted
as well for verification of the compliance with special conditions of title and other
terms of the Land Title Deed. The submission is now being carried online with
the e-KP portal and building plan, survey plan and copy of the land title deed may
be submitted in PDF format. Form A must also be submitted certifying that the
Qualified Person will be responsible for compliance with the Building Guidelines
Requirements.
Upon review and approval by TCP, the Qualified Person is then requested to
submit two sets of building plans in hard-copy (known as clean sets) for the
issuance of the Planning Approval.
7 Obtain approval from Fire Department 1 day BND 105
Agency : Fire Department
Once the approval has been obtained, BuildCo must visit the Fire department to
have the documents stamped and to pay for the fire department fees. This
process is completed in person. This approval is needed to obtain the building
permit from ABCi
Page 11Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
8 Obtain development approval of building works from ABCi 14 days BND 451
Agency : ABCi - Building department
The Qualified Person submits an application form (Form A) for development
approval of any building works from ABCi through the government's OneBiz
portal along with a softcopy of the building plans in PDF format for their review
and approval.
9 Obtain permit to carry out building works from ABCi 1 day no charge
Agency : ABCi
The details of all the hired licensed professionals must be provided to ABCi to
obtain the permit to carry out building works.
10 Supervising qualified person submits the notice of completion of all piling 1 day no charge
works
Agency : ABCi
According to Article 25 (1) (a), (a) the supervising qualified person submits a
notice of completion (fom D) of all piling works carried out, a record plan
showing full details of the piling works and a certificate of supervision of those
piling works within 28 days of completion of those piling works;
11 Supervising qualified person submits a certificate stating that the building 1 day no charge
works have been carried out under his supervision
Agency : ABCi
According to Article 25. (1) (b) and (c) of the Building Control Regulations (2014),
the technical officer who has conducted all the inspections during construction
must submit a compliance certificate to attest that he has supervised the
construction of the building and that it was done in compliance with the approved
plans.
12 Builder submits the Builder's Completion Certificate of Completion of 1 day no charge
Building Works
Agency : ABCi
According to Article 15 (1) (d) of the Building Control Order (2014), the Builder
(BuildCo) must also submit a certificate within 7 days of the completion of
building works, certifying that, according to best of his knowledge, the building
was constructed in accordance with the law and the approved plans.
13 Perform water pressure test 14 days BND 250
Agency : Private Firm
Water services requires that BuildCo to perform a water pressure test. A sample
of the water is also taken to test the quality of the water. The report of this water
pressure test is required when applying for the permanent water connection.
14 Receive inspection for water test pressure 1 day no charge
Agency : Water Services of JKR (ABCi)
Once the water pressure test has been done, there is an inspection to verify the
water pressure test report. BuildCo will have to inform water services that both
the water pressure test and the inspection have been concluded.
15 Inform water services of the water pressure test result and physical 1 day no charge
inspection
Agency : Water Services of JKR (ABCi)
Once the water pressure test has been confirmed and the inspection received,
BuildCo must inform Water Services of JKR (ABCi) of the results of the water
pressure test and also that the inspection has been conducted.
This water pressure test is required when applying to change from temporary
water services to permanent water services.
16 Request final inspection and await confirmation 7 days no charge
Agency : ABCi
The Supervising qualified person requests the final inspection online via the
OneBiz portal by submitting Form E certifying that the construction has been
under his supervision and was done in compliance with the approved plans and
regulations. At the same time, pictures of the construction must be submitted as
evidence of the progression of the work. ABCi will evaluate the pictures and
organize the joint inspection from several departments and utilities.
Once the date of pre-inspection has been confirmed and conducted, all the
comments as noted during the pre-inspection the Qualified Person can proceed
to submit the Form E for subsequent issuance of the occupancy permit by ABCi
respectively.
17 Receive joint final inspection 1 day no charge
Agency : ABCi
A joint inspection is carried out by ABCi where the Fire department, the water
department, roads department, sewerage department and electrical department
will all inspect the building. If no discrepancies are discovered, the occupancy
permit is issued within 2 weeks.
Page 12Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
18 Pay for the Fire Department inspection fees 1 day BND 750
Agency : Fire Department
Once the inspection is completed, the Fire Department issue the payment notice
for the fee to be paid. During the inspection, the fire inspection will mark on a
specific form (Borang B) everything that applies. BuildCo must bring this form to
the Fire Department and pay the inspection fees. Payment must be done in
person as online services are not available for this payment. This proof of
payment must be submitted when requesting the occupancy permit.
19 Request and obtain Occupancy Certificate 13 days no charge
Agency : ABCi
According to article 16. (1) (a) Section 5 - Building Occupancy, an occupancy
certificate must be obtained prior to occupying any building. Proof of the payment
for the fire department inspection must be submitted to receive the occupancy
permit.
20 Submit request to change from temporary to permanent water connection 1 day BND 3,000
Agency : Water Services of JKR (ABCi)
Once the occupancy permit has been obtained, BuildCo must submit a request to
change the temporary water connection to a permanent water connection.
Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure.
Page 13Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer Score
Building quality control index (0-15) 12.0
Quality of building regulations index (0-2) 2.0
How accessible are building laws and regulations in your economy? (0-1) Available online; 1.0
Free of charge;
In official gazette.
Which requirements for obtaining a building permit are clearly specified in the building List of required 1.0
regulations or on any accessible website, brochure or pamphlet? (0-1) documents; Fees
to be paid;
Required
preapprovals.
Quality control before construction index (0-1) 1.0
Which third-party entities are required by law to verify that the building plans are in Private firm. 1.0
compliance with existing building regulations? (0-1)
Quality control during construction index (0-3) 2.0
What types of inspections (if any) are required by law to be carried out during construction? Inspections by 1.0
(0-2) external engineer
or firm;
Inspections at
various phases.
Do legally mandated inspections occur in practice during construction? (0-1) Mandatory 1.0
inspections are
always done in
practice.
Quality control after construction index (0-3) 3.0
Is there a final inspection required by law to verify that the building was built in accordance Yes, final 2.0
with the approved plans and regulations? (0-2) inspection is
done by
government
agency.
Do legally mandated final inspections occur in practice? (0-1) Final inspection 1.0
always occurs in
practice.
Liability and insurance regimes index (0-2) 0.0
Which parties (if any) are held liable by law for structural flaws or problems in the building No party is held 0.0
once it is in use (Latent Defect Liability or Decennial Liability)? (0-1) liable under the
law.
Which parties (if any) are required by law to obtain an insurance policy to cover possible No party is 0.0
structural flaws or problems in the building once it is in use (Latent Defect Liability Insurance required by law
or Decennial Insurance)? (0-1) to obtain
insurance .
Professional certifications index (0-4) 4.0
What are the qualification requirements for the professional responsible for verifying that the Minimum number 2.0
architectural plans or drawings are in compliance with existing building regulations? (0-2) of years of
experience;
University degree
in architecture or
engineering;
Being a
registered
architect or
engineer;
Passing a
certification
exam.
Page 14Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
What are the qualification requirements for the professional who supervises the construction Minimum number 2.0
on the ground? (0-2) of years of
experience;
University degree
in engineering,
construction or
construction
management;
Being a
registered
architect or
engineer;
Passing a
certification
exam.
Page 15Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Getting Electricity
This topic measures the procedures, time and cost required for a business to obtain a permanent electricity connection for a newly
constructed warehouse. Additionally, the reliability of supply and transparency of tariffs index measures reliability of supply, transparency of
tariffs and the price of electricity. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in May 2018. See the methodology
for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Procedures to obtain an electricity connection To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions about the
(number) warehouse, the electricity connection and the monthly consumption are used.
• Submitting all relevant documents and obtaining The warehouse:
all necessary clearances and permits
- Is owned by a local entrepreneur and is used for storage of goods.
• Completing all required notifications and - Is located in the economy’s largest business city. For 11 economies the data are
receiving all necessary inspections
also collected for the second largest business city.
• Obtaining external installation works and possibly - Is located in an area where similar warehouses are typically located and is in an
purchasing material for these works area with no physical constraints. For example, the property is not near a railway.
- Is a new construction and is being connected to electricity for the first time.
• Concluding any necessary supply contract and
- Has two stories with a total surface area of approximately 1,300.6 square meters
obtaining final supply
(14,000 square feet). The plot of land on which it is built is 929 square meters
Time required to complete each procedure (10,000 square feet).
(calendar days)
The electricity connection:
• Is at least 1 calendar day
- Is a permanent one with a three-phase, four-wire Y connection with a subscribed
• Each procedure starts on a separate day capacity of 140-kilo-volt-ampere (kVA) with a power factor of 1, when 1 kVA = 1
• Does not include time spent gathering kilowatt (kW).
information - Has a length of 150 meters. The connection is to either the low- or medium-voltage
distribution network and is either overhead or underground, whichever is more
• Reflects the time spent in practice, with little common in the area where the warehouse is located and requires works that involve
follow-up and no prior contact with officials
the crossing of a 10-meter road (such as by excavation or overhead lines) but are all
Cost required to complete each procedure (% of carried out on public land. There is no crossing of other owners’ private property
income per capita) because the warehouse has access to a road.
- Does not require work to install the internal wiring of the warehouse. This has
• Official costs only, no bribes already been completed up to and including the customer’s service panel or
• Value added tax excluded switchboard and the meter base.
The reliability of supply and transparency of The monthly consumption:
tariffs index (0-8)
- It is assumed that the warehouse operates 30 days a month from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00
• Duration and frequency of power outages (0–3) p.m. (8 hours a day), with equipment utilized at 80% of capacity on average and that
• Tools to monitor power outages (0–1) there are no electricity cuts (assumed for simplicity reasons) and the monthly energy
consumption is 26,880 kilowatt-hours (kWh); hourly consumption is 112 kWh.
• Tools to restore power supply (0–1) - If multiple electricity suppliers exist, the warehouse is served by the cheapest
• Regulatory monitoring of utilities’ performance supplier.
(0–1) - Tariffs effective in January of the current year are used for calculation of the price of
electricity for the warehouse. Although January has 31 days, for calculation
• Financial deterrents limiting outages (0–1) purposes only 30 days are used.
• Transparency and accessibility of tariffs (0–1)
Price of electricity (cents per kilowatt-hour)*
• Price based on monthly bill for commercial
warehouse in case study
*Note: Doing Business measures the price of
electricity, but it is not included in the ease of doing
business score nor the ranking on the ease of
getting electricity.
Page 16Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Getting Electricity - Brunei Darussalam
Standardized Connection
Price of electricity (US cents per kWh) 5.2
Name of utility Department of Electrical Services (at the Ministry of Energy)
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan
Indicator Brunei East Asia & OECD high Best Regulatory
Darussalam Pacific income Performance
Procedures (number) 5 4.3 4.5 3 (25 Economies)
Time (days) 35 65.0 77.2 18 (3 Economies)
Cost (% of income per capita) 40.1 625.1 64.2 0.0 (3 Economies)
Reliability of supply and transparency of tariff 7 4.0 7.5 8.0 (27 Economies)
index (0-8)
Figure – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Ranking and Score
DB 2019 Getting Electricity Score
0 100
99.27: Malaysia (Rank: 4)
92.01: China (Rank: 14)
87.45: Philippines (Rank: 29)
86.57: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 31)
86.38: Indonesia (Rank: 33)
75.06: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of getting electricity is determined by sorting their scores for getting electricity. These scores are
the simple average of the scores for all the component indicators except the price of electricity.
Page 17Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time (days) Cost (% of income per capita)
35 40
30 35
Cost (% of income per capita)
30
25
Time (days)
25
20
20
15
15
10
10
5 5
0 0
1 *2 3 *4 5
Procedures (number)
* This symbol is shown beside procedure numbers that take place simultaneously with the previous procedure.
Note: Online procedures account for 0.5 days in the total time calculation. For economies that have a different procedure list for men and
women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website
(http://doingbusiness.org/en/methodology ). For details on the procedures reflected here, see the summary below.
Figure – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
8
8
7
7
6 5.8 6
6
Index score
5
4.0
4
3
2
1
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Page 18Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedures Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Submit new connection application and permit to dig application 7 calendar days BND 0
Agency : Authority for Building and Construction Industry (ABCi)
The client needs to hire an electrical contractor who is registered and licensed
with the Ministry of Development. The contractor must then submit the proposed
electrical tapping point (external electrical layout) and permit to dig application
form online to ABCi via OneBiz.
From there, ABCi will take care of the excavation permit, and coordinate with
DES for the technical study for the connection. Once the site survey is carried-
out,ABCi will upload a letter through OneBiz stating the connection fee to be paid
during the final procedure (BND 1,650). The letter also allows the contractor to
purchase a meter from DES approved vendors. The permit to dig approval is also
uploaded together with the letter.
2 Obtain site survey 1 calendar day BND 0
Agency : Department of Electrical Services
Once an application is submitted to ABCi, they will schedule a site survey. In the
majority of cases the client (or his contractor) will be physically present during the
site visit. The external site inspection is needed to (i) confirm the location of the
tapping supply, (ii) make sure the network does not need to be extended, and (iii)
carry-out the technical study of the connection works.
3 Obtain external works and meter installation from approved electrical 21 calendar days BND 15,000
contractor
Agency : Approved electrical contractor
The external works is completed by the approved electrical contractor (QP) and
this consists mainly of laying underground cables from the warehouse to the
closest point of supply on the LV network. DES will assist to turn off the supply
prior to connecting to the LV network. In addition, the contractor will need to
purchase a meter and install it. DES will turn on the supply in order for live testing
to be done by the contractor and verified by an electrical professional engineer
(PE). For capacities larger than 215 kVA (300 Amp) a substation will also be
needed.
4 Obtain test certification on internal wiring from professional engineer 1 calendar day BND 0
Agency : Certified professional engineer (PE)
A registered professional engineer (PE) will carry out the internal wiring tests with
the presence of the electrical contractor who did the installation of the electrical
wiring and applied for power supply on behalf of the client. The internal wiring
inspection will take around a day depending on the size of the warehouse.
Among other things, the PE has to verify/certify the cable size used, the depth of
the cable laid, the trench routing and whether is complies with DES
requirements.
The professional engineer (PE) is a chartered engineer who needs to be
registered with the Board of Architects, Professional Engineers and Quantity
Surveyors (BAPEQS) under the Ministry of Development.
5 Obtain approval for permanent supply and electricity turn-on 7 calendar days BND 1,650
Agency : Department of Electrical Services
The contractor must submits a test certification report by a Professional Engineer
and an occupation permit online via OneBiz. DES will then process to check the
documents, and issue an electronic bill through OneBiz. The payment can be
made online or by cash at the Business Support Centre, after which the approval
of permanent supply will be given.
Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure.
Page 19Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer
Reliability of supply and transparency of tariff index (0-8) 7
Total duration and frequency of outages per customer a year (0-3) 3
System average interruption duration index (SAIDI) 0.5
System average interruption frequency index (SAIFI) 0.4
What is the minimum outage time (in minutes) that the utility considers for the calculation of SAIDI/SAIFI 1.0
Mechanisms for monitoring outages (0-1) 1
Does the distribution utility use automated tools to monitor outages? Yes
Mechanisms for restoring service (0-1) 1
Does the distribution utility use automated tools to restore service? Yes
Regulatory monitoring (0-1) 0
Does a regulator—that is, an entity separate from the utility—monitor the utility’s performance on reliability of No
supply?
Financial deterrents aimed at limiting outages (0-1) 1
Does the utility either pay compensation to customers or face fines by the regulator (or both) if outages Yes
exceed a certain cap?
Communication of tariffs and tariff changes (0-1) 1
Are effective tariffs available online? Yes
Link to the website, if available online http://des.gov.bn/Site
Pages/Electricity%20
Tariff.aspx
Are customers notified of a change in tariff ahead of the billing cycle? Yes
Note:
If the duration and frequency of outages is 100 or less, the economy is eligible to score on the Reliability of supply and transparency of tariff
index.
If the duration and frequency of outages is not available, or is over 100, the economy is not eligible to score on the index.
If the minimum outage time considered for SAIDI/SAIFI is over 5 minutes, the economy is not eligible to score on the index.
Page 20Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Registering Property
This topic examines the steps, time and cost involved in registering property, assuming a standardized case of an entrepreneur who wants to
purchase land and a building that is already registered and free of title dispute. In addition, the topic also measures the quality of the land
administration system in each economy. The quality of land administration index has five dimensions: reliability of infrastructure, transparency
of information, geographic coverage, land dispute resolution, and equal access to property rights. The most recent round of data collection for
the project was completed in May 2018. See the methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Procedures to legally transfer title on To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions about the
immovable property (number) parties to the transaction, the property and the procedures are used.
• Preregistration procedures (for example, The parties (buyer and seller):
checking for liens, notarizing sales agreement,
paying property transfer taxes) - Are limited liability companies (or the legal equivalent).
- Are located in the periurban area of the economy’s largest business city. For 11
• Registration procedures in the economy's largest economies the data are also collected for the second largest business city.
business city.
- Are 100% domestically and privately owned.
• Postregistration procedures (for example, filling - Have 50 employees each, all of whom are nationals.
title with municipality) - Perform general commercial activities.
Time required to complete each procedure The property (fully owned by the seller):
(calendar days)
- Has a value of 50 times income per capita, which equals the sale price.
• Does not include time spent gathering - Is fully owned by the seller.
information - Has no mortgages attached and has been under the same ownership for the past
• Each procedure starts on a separate day - 10 years.
though procedures that can be fully completed - Is registered in the land registry or cadastre, or both, and is free of title disputes.
online are an exception to this rule - Is located in a periurban commercial zone, and no rezoning is required.
- Consists of land and a building. The land area is 557.4 square meters (6,000
• Procedure is considered completed once final square feet). A two-story warehouse of 929 square meters (10,000 square feet) is
document is received
located on the land. The warehouse is 10 years old, is in good condition, has no
• No prior contact with officials heating system and complies with all safety standards, building codes and legal
requirements. The property, consisting of land and building, will be transferred in its
Cost required to complete each procedure (% of entirety.
property value) - Will not be subject to renovations or additional construction following the purchase.
• Official costs only (such as administrative fees, - Has no trees, natural water sources, natural reserves or historical monuments of
duties and taxes). any kind.
- Will not be used for special purposes, and no special permits, such as for
• Value Added Tax, Capital Gains Tax and illicit residential use, industrial plants, waste storage or certain types of agricultural
payments are excluded activities, are required.
- Has no occupants, and no other party holds a legal interest in it.
Quality of land administration index (0-30)
• Reliability of infrastructure index (0-8)
• Transparency of information index (0–6)
• Geographic coverage index (0–8)
• Land dispute resolution index (0–8)
• Equal access to property rights index (-2–0)
Page 21Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Registering Property - Brunei Darussalam
Indicator Brunei East Asia & OECD high Best Regulatory
Darussalam Pacific income Performance
Procedures (number) 7 5.4 4.7 1 (4 Economies)
Time (days) 298.5 72.6 20.1 1 (New Zealand)
Cost (% of property value) 0.6 4.5 4.2 0.0 (Saudi Arabia)
Quality of the land administration index (0-30) 18.0 16.3 23.0 None in 2017/18
Figure – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Ranking and Score
DB 2019 Registering Property Score
0 100
80.80: China (Rank: 27)
80.38: Malaysia (Rank: 29)
61.67: Indonesia (Rank: 100)
57.56: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
57.56: Philippines (Rank: 116)
51.48: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 142)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of registering property is determined by sorting their scores for registering property. These
scores are the simple average of the scores for each of the component indicators.
Figure – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time (days) Cost (% of property value)
0.7
250 0.6
Cost (% of property value)
0.5
200
Time (days)
0.4
150
0.3
100
0.2
50
0.1
0 0
1 *2 3 4 *5 6 7
Procedures (number)
* This symbol is shown beside procedure numbers that take place simultaneously with the previous procedure.
Note: Online procedures account for 0.5 days in the total time calculation. For economies that have a different procedure list for men and
women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website
(http://doingbusiness.org/en/methodology ). For details on the procedures reflected here, see the summary below.
Page 22Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
30 27.5
25 23.7
Index score
20 18.0
16.3
14.5
15 12.5
10
5
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedures Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Checking for encumbrances by Lawyer 1 day BND 8; (BND 8 (BND
Agency : Land Office 3 for searching on the
The lawyer acting on behalf of both seller and buyer will do a land search. The property, buyer, and
lawyer will verify that the seller is rightful owner and is entitled to sell the
seller plus BND 5 for
property. In order to do that, it is common to request a search not only for the
survey plan extract))
property, but also for the seller and the buyer(that is, a search in which any
property rights registered under the name of the seller is listed). This is done
because in Brunei there are restrictions on the number of properties that
someone can own. If all the information has been computerized, then the results
can be obtained in one day. In this case, the Lands Department gives a computer
printout of the information requested. On the contrary, the results of the search
can take more time.
It is also common to ask for a survey extract of the property at the Lands
Department.
2 Lawyer conducts a winding up search at the Court Less than one day, BND 2; (BND 2 (BND
Agency : High Court online 1 per name))
The lawyer conducts a search at the High Court to determine whether any of the
parties involved in the transaction has had a bankruptcy/winding up case or has
any pending cases that could affect the property. Since 2016 this search can be
done online, purchasing a ticket to search for a limited amount of time. Most of
the records since 2005 are available. If the search would involve a case prior to
that, the lawyer would have to request this information physically at the court.
Before you had to fill in a form and provide a name plus an identifier. Now you
can search this information online. This information cannot be obtained at the
Lands Department.
3 Sale-purchase agreement is signed 1 day BND 200; (BND 100 -
Agency : Land Office 300)
The sale-purchase agreement is signed by both parties in the lawyer's office. The
Memorandum of Transfer (MOT) is prepared at the same time.
The cost of this procedure corresponds to the search services provided by the
lawyer. If the lawyer would draft the sale and purchase agreement, the fee
schedule of the Legal Profession Act (Chapter 132), Advocates and Solicitors
(Remuneration) Rules would apply.
Page 23Doing Business 2019 Brunei Darussalam
4 Submit application via Lands Department in order to obtain approval for 280 days BND 2; (BND 1 for
the Memorandum of Transfer by "His Majesty in Council" each form)
Agency : Land Office
Local companies in Brunei cannot own land. However, they can register long
term lease interests over land for a maximum period of 60 years. In this case, the
company would register and endorsement to the original title, securing its
sublease right. This lease interest is transferrable and can be used as collateral.
Both forms "A" & "B" must be completed and submitted to the Land Office. The
Land office will give an appointment to return and sign the MOT, usually within 2
weeks. Every transfer in Brunei Darussalam requires the approval of "His
Majesty in Council" which is a council of officials representing the Sultan. The
petition to transfers follows a three-step process. First, the Lands Department will
check that all the information has been filled in appropriately, and will check the
technicalities of the transactions, issuing a report to the Ministry of Development.
The Ministry would then review this information and would review whether the
transaction is in line with the land policies of the government, submitting a report
to His Majesty in Council if the transaction can proceed.
Upon approval of the MOT, the Land office will assess the market value of the
property and inform the applicant of the amount to be paid as stamp duty, the
registration fee and land tax must be paid. The proof of payment must be
provided to the Land Office.
The procedure to register an ownership transfer and a lease interest is the same.
However, the time to obtain the approval of His Majesty in Council differs. On
average, the approval of a lease interests takes between 8 to 12 months
(however, in some cases it can take up to 24 months). Property transfers
between local citizens take between 6 to 8 months to receive an approval.
5 Visit of a property by the Land Office 1 day no charge
Agency : Land Office
An inspector from the Land office will visit the property with the purpose of
determining the actual stamp duty due, and identifying the activities carried out in
the building.
6 Pay stamp duty and sign the MOT at the Lands Department 1 day BND 12,457; (BND 6
Agency : Land Office for every BND 1000
The Seller's nominee and the Buyer's nominee will attend to the Land Office to of the assessed value
sign the Memorandum of Transfer (MOT), and the Full Payment Form in the
of the property +
presence of an officer from the Land Office.
Registration fee of
BND 1 + Land Tax
Since in the case study there will be no rents paid monthly, the stamp duty would
be calculated on the total consideration of the lease (which equals the property BND 150 per quarter
value). acre for commercial
land per year (not
counted in
estimations))
7 Register property transfer at the Land Office/Registry 15 days no charge
Agency : Land Office
The final transfer is registered at the Land Registry and a new endorsement on
the Title is issued recognizing the lease interest of the company on the property
(in case of a property transfer, a new Title would be issued).
Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure.
Page 24You can also read
