Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Economy Pro le of Brunei
Doing Business 2018 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 Procedures, time and cost to complete all formalities to build a warehouse and the quality control and
permits safety mechanisms in the construction permitting system
Getting electricity Procedures, time and cost to get connected to the electrical grid, 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 and total tax 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
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 rms. 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 distance to frontier 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 e cient regulation; o ers 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 o ers detailed subnational reports, which exhaustively cover business regulation and reform in di erent
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 rst 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 bene ted 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. Page 2
for insolvency
Doing Business
Labor market 2018
regulation Brunei Darussalam
Flexibility in employment regulation and aspects of job quality
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 rms. 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 distance to frontier 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 e cient regulation; o ers 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 o ers detailed subnational reports, which exhaustively cover business regulation and reform in di erent
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 rst 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 bene ted 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.
The distance to frontier (DTF) measure shows the distance of each economy to the “frontier,” which represents the best
performance observed on each of the indicators across all economies in the Doing Business sample since 2005. An economy’s
distance to frontier is re ected on a scale from 0 to 100, where 0 represents the lowest performance and 100 represents the
frontier. The ease of doing business ranking ranges from 1 to 190. The ranking of 190 economies is determined by sorting the
aggregate distance to frontier scores, rounded to two decimals.
More about Doing Business (PDF, 5MB)
Ease of Doing Business in Region East Asia & Pacific DB 2018 Rank
190 1
Brunei Darussalam Income Category High income
56
Population 423,196 DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
GNI Per Capita (US$) 32,840 0 100
70.60
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
78.43: Malaysia (Rank: 24)
70.60: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 56)
66.47: Indonesia (Rank: 72)
65.29: China (Rank: 78)
62.70: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
Page 3
58.74: Philippines (Rank: 113)
aggregate distance to frontier scores, rounded to two decimals.
More
Doingabout 2018 (PDF,
Doing Business
Business 5MB)
Brunei Darussalam
Ease of Doing Business in Region East Asia & Pacific DB 2018 Rank
190 1
Brunei Darussalam Income Category High income
56
Population 423,196 DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
GNI Per Capita (US$) 32,840 0 100
70.60
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
78.43: Malaysia (Rank: 24)
70.60: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 56)
66.47: Indonesia (Rank: 72)
65.29: China (Rank: 78)
62.70: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
58.74: Philippines (Rank: 113)
Note: The distance to frontier (DTF) measure shows the distance of each economy to the “frontier,” which represents the best performance observed on each of
the indicators across all economies in the Doing Business sample since 2005. An economy’s distance to frontier is re ected on a scale from 0 to 100, where 0
represents the lowest performance and 100 represents the frontier. The ease of doing business ranking ranges from 1 to 190.
Rankings on Doing Business topics - Brunei
2
1
24
28 40
48
58 61 60
55
82
Rank
104
109
136
136 144
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
Distance to Frontier (DTF) on Doing Business topics - Brunei
100 95.00
90.23
86.46
80 73.62
69.41
65.00
58.70 60.95
60 55.11
DTF
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 Change:-1.11 Change:+2.08 Change:+35.00 Investors Change:+0.50 Borders Change:+3.70 Change:0.00
Change:+3.50 Permits Change:+10.00 Change:+1.01
Change:+3.58
Starting a Business
Page 4
This topic measures the paid-in minimum capital requirement, number of procedures, time and cost for a small- to medium-sized
a with Electricity Property Credit Minority Taxes across Contracts Insolvency
Business Construction Change:-1.11 Change:+2.08 Change:+35.00 Investors Change:+0.50 Borders Change:+3.70 Change:0.00
Change:+3.50 Permits Change:+10.00 Change:+1.01
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Change:+3.58
Starting a Business
This topic measures the paid-in minimum capital requirement, number of procedures, time and cost for a small- to medium-sized
limited liability company to start up and formally operate in 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 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 distance to frontier score for each indicator is the average of the scores
obtained for each of the component indicators.
The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Procedures to legally start and operate a To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions
company (number) about the business and the procedures are used. It is assumed that any
required information is readily available and that the entrepreneur will pay
Pre-registration (for example, name verification
no bribes.
or reservation, notarization)
Registration in economy’s largest business city The business:
- Is a limited liability company (or its legal equivalent). If there is more than
Post-registration (for example, social security
one type of limited liability company in the economy, the most common
registration, company seal)
among domestic rms is chosen. Information on the most common form is
Obtaining approval from spouse to start business
obtained from incorporation lawyers or the statistical o ce.
or leave home to register company
- Operates in the economy’s largest business city and the entire o ce
Obtaining any gender-specific permission that space is approximately 929 square meters (10,000 square feet). For 11
can impact company registration, company economies the data are also collected for the second largest business city.
operations and process of getting national - Is 100% domestically owned and has ve owners, none of whom is a legal
identity card entity; and has a start-up capital of 10 times income per capita and has a
Time required to complete each procedure turnover of at least 100 times income per capita.
(calendar days) - Performs general industrial or commercial activities, such as the
production or sale of goods or services to the public. The business does
Does not include time spent gathering
not perform foreign trade activities and does not handle products subject
information to a special tax regime, for example, liquor or tobacco. It does not use
Each procedure starts on a separate day (2 heavily polluting production processes.
procedures cannot start on the same day) - Leases the commercial plant or o ces and is not a proprietor of real
Procedures fully completed online are recorded estate and the amount of the annual lease for the o ce space is equivalent
as ½ day to 1 times income per capita.
Procedure is considered completed once final - Does not qualify for investment incentives or any special bene ts.
document is received - Has at least 10 and up to 50 employees one month after the
commencement of operations, all of whom are domestic nationals.
No prior contact with officials
- Has a company deed 10 pages long.
Cost required to complete each procedure (% of
The owners:
income per capita)
- Have reached the legal age of majority. If there is no legal age of majority,
Official costs only, no bribes they are assumed to be 30 years old.
No professional fees unless services required by - Are sane, competent, in good health and have no criminal record.
law or commonly used in practice - Are married and the marriage is monogamous and registered with the
authorities.
Paid-in minimum capital (% of income per capita)
- Where the answer di ers according to the legal system applicable to the
Funds deposited in a bank or with third party woman or man in question (as may be the case in economies where there
before registration or up to 3 months after is legal plurality), the answer used will be the one that applies to the
incorporation majority of the population.
Standardized Company Page 5
before registration or up to 3 months after is legal plurality), the answer used will be the one that applies to the
incorporation majority of the population.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Standardized Company
Legal form Private Limited Company
Paid-in minimum capital requirement BND 0
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Procedure – Men (number) 5 7.0 4.9 1.00 (New Zealand)
Time – Men (days) 12 22.7 8.5 0.50 (New Zealand)
Cost – Men (% of income per capita) 1.1 18.4 3.1 0.00 (United Kingdom)
Procedure – Women (number) 6 7.0 4.9 1.00 (New Zealand)
Time – Women (days) 13 22.8 8.5 0.50 (New Zealand)
Cost – Women (% of income per capita) 1.1 18.4 3.1 0.00 (United Kingdom)
Paid-in min. capital (% of income per capita) 0.0 15.1 8.7 0.00 (113 Economies)
Figure – Starting a Business in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
90.23: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 58)
85.47: China (Rank: 93)
83.78: Malaysia (Rank: 111)
82.32: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
77.93: Indonesia (Rank: 144)
68.88: Philippines (Rank: 173)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of starting a business is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for
starting a business. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators.
Figure – Starting a Business in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time Cost
0.7
12
0.6
ost (% of income per capita)
10
0.5
8
Time (days)
0.4
6
0.3
4 Page 6
0.2
starting a business. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Starting a Business in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time Cost
0.7
12
0.6
Cost (% of income per capita)
10
0.5
8
Time (days)
0.4
6
0.3
4
0.2
2 0.1
0 0
1 2 3 4 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 di erent procedure list for
men and women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website
(http://www.doingbusiness.org/methodology). For details on the procedures re ected here, see the summary below.
Details – Starting a Business in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedure 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
con rmation 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.
2 Check uniqueness of company name and reserve the name 1 day no charge
Agency : Registry of Companies and Business Names Division (ROCBN),
Ministry of Finance
Entrepreneurs can search by accessing www.roc.gov.bn for the availability of
names by themselves. As of December 31, 2014, the online system has been
able to support the payment for the name reservation. The process involves,
typing in the names of the proposed companies, uploading the ID
documents of the owners. The sta of the RoC reviews the forms with the ID
and submits the approval. The name reservation will be valid for 30 days
once company name is approved.
3 Submit incorporation documents and pay registration fees 7 days See procedure
Agency : Registry of Companies and Business Names Division, Ministry of details
Finance
As of May 2017, the online system has been enhanced to allow for instant
veri cation of the company name. The system automatically generates a Page 7
response if the name is unique. The name reservation is valid for 20 days.
(http://www.doingbusiness.org/methodology). For details on the procedures re ected here, see the summary below.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Starting a Business in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedure 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
con rmation 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.
2 Check uniqueness of company name and reserve the name 1 day no charge
Agency : Registry of Companies and Business Names Division (ROCBN),
Ministry of Finance
Entrepreneurs can search by accessing www.roc.gov.bn for the availability of
names by themselves. As of December 31, 2014, the online system has been
able to support the payment for the name reservation. The process involves,
typing in the names of the proposed companies, uploading the ID
documents of the owners. The sta of the RoC reviews the forms with the ID
and submits the approval. The name reservation will be valid for 30 days
once company name is approved.
3 Submit incorporation documents and pay registration fees 7 days See procedure
Agency : Registry of Companies and Business Names Division, Ministry of details
Finance
As of May 2017, the online system has been enhanced to allow for instant
veri cation of the company name. The system automatically generates a
response if the name is unique. The name reservation is valid for 20 days.
The Registry of Companies issues a certi cate of incorporation, two certi ed
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 noti es the Collector of Income Tax of the
company’s registration.
The documents required for incorporation are:
- IDs, date of birth
- Emails and contact information for each person
- Consent form to act as directors
- Form X (list of directors)
- Memorandum and Articles of Association signed by all directors.
Cost: Due the amendment of the Companies Act (Chapter 39), 2014 the fee
for registering an industrial company is BND 300 at registration fee
4 Stamp share certi cates at the Ministry of Finance 1 day no charge
Agency : Registry of Companies and Business Names Division, Ministry of
Finance
Each shareholder has a share certi cate that must be stamped by the
Revenue Division of the Ministry of Finance. All of the directors/shareholders
need to sign a document and get this stamp. The stamp contains a reference
number and the amount that has to be paid. There needs to be a date on Page 8
Cost: Due the amendment of the Companies Act (Chapter 39), 2014 the fee
Doing for registering
Business an industrial
2018 Brunei company is BND 300 at registration fee
Darussalam
4 Stamp share certi cates at the Ministry of Finance 1 day no charge
Agency : Registry of Companies and Business Names Division, Ministry of
Finance
Each shareholder has a share certi cate that must be stamped by the
Revenue Division of the Ministry of Finance. All of the directors/shareholders
need to sign a document and get this stamp. The stamp contains a reference
number and the amount that has to be paid. There needs to be a date on
the share certi cate in order for this document to get approved.
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 certi cates or o cial 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
procedure
Companies must pay into the Employees Provident Fund for national
employees. To complete the application process, companies must complete
the form and submit the following documents:
- Copy of the Certi cate of Incorporation
- Form X (particulars of the directors)
- Identity cards of the directors
Applies to women only.
Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure.
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 noti cations, 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
certi cation requirements. The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more
information
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Procedures to legally build a warehouse (number) To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions
about the construction company, the warehouse project and the utility
Submitting all relevant documents and obtaining
connections are used.
all necessary clearances, licenses, permits and
certificates The construction company (BuildCo):
Submitting all required notifications and - Is a limited liability company (or its legal equivalent) and operates in the
receiving all necessary inspections economy’s largest business city. For 11 economies the data are also
collected for the second largest business city.
Obtaining utility connections for water and
- Is 100% domestically and privately owned; has ve owners, none of whom
sewerage
is a legal entity. Has a licensed architect and a licensed engineer, both
Registering and selling the warehouse after its
registered with the local association of architects or engineers. BuildCo is
completion
not assumed to have any other employees who are technical or licensed
Time required to complete each procedure experts, such as geological or topographical experts.
(calendar days) - Owns the land on which the warehouse will be built and will sell the
warehouse upon its completion. Page 9
Does not include time spent gathering
Applies to women only.
Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure.
Doing Business 2018 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 noti cations, 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
certi cation requirements. The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more
information
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Procedures to legally build a warehouse (number) To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions
about the construction company, the warehouse project and the utility
Submitting all relevant documents and obtaining
connections are used.
all necessary clearances, licenses, permits and
certificates The construction company (BuildCo):
Submitting all required notifications and - Is a limited liability company (or its legal equivalent) and operates in the
receiving all necessary inspections economy’s largest business city. For 11 economies the data are also
collected for the second largest business city.
Obtaining utility connections for water and
- Is 100% domestically and privately owned; has ve owners, none of whom
sewerage
is a legal entity. Has a licensed architect and a licensed engineer, both
Registering and selling the warehouse after its
registered with the local association of architects or engineers. BuildCo is
completion
not assumed to have any other employees who are technical or licensed
Time required to complete each procedure experts, such as geological or topographical experts.
(calendar days) - Owns the land on which the warehouse will be built and will sell the
warehouse upon its completion.
Does not include time spent gathering
information
The warehouse:
Each procedure starts on a separate day— - Will be used for general storage activities, such as storage of books or
though procedures that can be fully completed stationery.
online are an exception to this rule - Will have two stories, both above ground, with a total constructed area of
Procedure is considered completed once final approximately 1,300.6 square meters (14,000 square feet). Each oor will
document is received be 3 meters (9 feet, 10 inches) high and will be located on a land plot of
No prior contact with officials approximately 929 square meters (10,000 square feet) that is 100% owned
by BuildCo, and the warehouse is valued at 50 times income per capita.
Cost required to complete each procedure (% of
- Will have complete architectural and technical plans prepared by a
warehouse value)
licensed architect. If preparation of the plans requires such steps as
Official costs only, no bribes obtaining further documentation or getting prior approvals from external
agencies, these are counted as procedures.
Building quality control index (0-15)
- Will take 30 weeks to construct (excluding all delays due to administrative
Sum of the scores of six component indices: and regulatory requirements).
Quality of building regulations (0-2)
The water and sewerage connections:
Quality control before construction (0-1) - Will be 150 meters (492 feet) from the existing water source and sewer
Quality control during construction (0-3) tap. If there is no water delivery infrastructure in the economy, a borehole
Quality control after construction (0-3) will be dug. If there is no sewerage infrastructure, a septic tank in the
smallest size available will be installed or built.
Liability and insurance regimes (0-2)
- Will have an average water use of 662 liters (175 gallons) a day and an
Professional certifications (0-4)
average wastewater ow 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 ow of
1,136 liters (300 gallons) a day.
- Will have a constant level of water demand and wastewater ow
throughout the year; will be 1 inch in diameter for the water connection
and 4 inches in diameter for the sewerage connection.
Standardized Warehouse Page 10
and 4 inches in diameter for the sewerage connection.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Standardized Warehouse
Estimated value of warehouse BND 2,268,157.60
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Procedures (number) 20 15.2 12.5 7.00 (Denmark)
Time (days) 83 138.2 154.6 27.5 (Korea, Rep.)
Cost (% of warehouse value) 1.8 2.2 1.6 0.10 (5 Economies)
Building quality control index (0-15) 12.0 8.9 11.4 15.00 (3 Economies)
Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
82.19: Malaysia (Rank: 11)
73.62: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 48)
69.60: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
66.84: Philippines (Rank: 101)
66.08: Indonesia (Rank: 108)
47.28: China (Rank: 172)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of dealing with construction permits is determined by sorting their distance to frontier
scores for dealing with construction permits. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the
component indicators.
Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time Cost
0.8
80
0.7
70
Cost (% of warehouse value)
0.6
60
50 0.5
Time (days)
0.4
40
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.
Page 11
component indicators.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time Cost
0.8
80
0.7
70
Cost (% of warehouse value)
0.6
60
50 0.5
Time (days)
0.4
40
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 di erent procedure list for
men and women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website
(http://www.doingbusiness.org/methodology). For details on the procedures re ected here, see the summary below.
Figure – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
14 13.0 13.0
12.0 12.0
12
9.6
10 8.9
Index score
8
6
4
2
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedure 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 7 days BND 3,225
map
Agency : Private Land Surveyor
A land surveyor is hired to check the accuracy of the copy of the survey map
and con rm that the boundaries of the land provided in the copy of the
survey plan are accurate. The report prepared by the Land surveyor will Page 12
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Dealing with Construction Permits in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedure 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 7 days BND 3,225
map
Agency : Private Land Surveyor
A land surveyor is hired to check the accuracy of the copy of the survey map
and con rm 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 17,011
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 o cer to conduct inspections during 1 day BND 14,000
construction
Agency : Private
According to the Building Control Order (2014) and Building Control
Regulations (2014), an independent technical o cer is hired with the
mandate to conduct inspections during construction, and to issue a
compliance certi cate 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 Quali ed 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 veri cation of the compliance with special
conditions of title and other terms of the Land Title Deed.
Form A must also be submitted certifying that the Quali ed Person will be Page 13
building is in compliance with the regulations and was built according to the
Doing approved
Businessplans.
2018 Brunei Darussalam
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 Quali ed 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 veri cation of the compliance with special
conditions of title and other terms of the Land Title Deed.
Form A must also be submitted certifying that the Quali ed Person will be
responsible for compliance with the Building Guidelines Requirements.
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 re
department fees. This process is completed in person. This approval is
needed to obtain the building permit from ABCi
8 Obtain development approval of building works from ABCi 14 days BND 451
Agency : ABCi - Building department
The Quali ed Person submits an application form for development approval
of any building works from ABCi accompanied with 7 sets of plan, the re
safety plans are also included.
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 quali ed person submits the notice of completion of all 1 day no charge
piling works
Agency : ABCi
According to Article 25 (1) (a), (a) the supervising quali ed 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 certi cate of supervision of
those piling works within 28 days of completion of those piling works;
11 Supervising quali ed person submits a certi cate stating that the 1 day no charge
building 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 o cer who has conducted all the inspections during
construction must submit a compliance certi cate 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 Certi cate 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 certi cate 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 Page 14
plans.
supervised the construction of the building and that it was done in
Business with
Doing compliance 2018the approved plans.
Brunei Darussalam
12 Builder submits the Builder's Completion Certi cate 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 certi cate 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 con rmed 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 nal inspection and awaits con rmation 7 days no charge
Agency : ABCi
The Supervising quali ed person requests the nal inspection online 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. A con rmation of the inspection will be sent to the applicant.
17 Receive joint nal 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.
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 re inspection will
mark on a speci c form (Borang B) everything that applies. BuildCo must
bring this form to the Fire Department and pay the inspection fees. Payment Page 15
must be done in person as online services are not available for this payment.
department will all inspect the building. If no discrepancies are discovered,
Doing the occupancy
Business permit
2018 is issued
Brunei within 2 weeks.
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 re inspection will
mark on a speci c 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 Certi cate 13 days no charge
Agency : ABCi
According to article 16. (1) (a) Section 5 - Building Occupancy, an occupancy
certi cate must be obtained prior to occupying any building. Proof of the
payment for the re department inspection must be submitted to receive
the occupancy permit.
20 Submit request to change from temporary to permanent water 1 day BND 3,000
connection
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.
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
o cial gazette.
Which requirements for obtaining a building permit are clearly speci ed 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 rm. 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 Inspections by 1.0
construction? (0-2) external
engineer or rm;
Inspections at
various phases. Page 16
Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure.
Doing Business 2018 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
o cial gazette.
Which requirements for obtaining a building permit are clearly speci ed 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 rm. 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 Inspections by 1.0
construction? (0-2) external
engineer or rm;
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 nal inspection required by law to verify that the building was built in Yes, nal 2.0
accordance with the approved plans and regulations? (0-2) inspection is
done by
government
agency.
Do legally mandated nal 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 aws or problems in the No party is held 0.0
building 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 No party is 0.0
possible structural aws or problems in the building once it is in use (Latent Defect required by law
Liability Insurance or Decennial Insurance)? (0-1) to obtain
insurance .
Page 17
Professional certi cations index (0-4) 4.0
building once it is in use (Latent Defect Liability or Decennial Liability)? (0-1) liable under the
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam law.
Which parties (if any) are required by law to obtain an insurance policy to cover No party is 0.0
possible structural aws or problems in the building once it is in use (Latent Defect required by law
Liability Insurance or Decennial Insurance)? (0-1) to obtain
insurance .
Professional certi cations index (0-4) 4.0
What are the quali cation requirements for the professional responsible for verifying Minimum 2.0
that the architectural plans or drawings are in compliance with existing building number of years
regulations? (0-2) of experience;
University
degree in
architecture or
engineering;
Being a
registered
architect or
engineer;
Passing a
certi cation
exam.
What are the quali cation requirements for the professional who supervises the Minimum 2.0
construction on the ground? (0-2) number of years
of experience;
University
degree in
engineering,
construction or
construction
management;
Being a
registered
architect or
engineer;
Passing a
certi cation
exam.
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 tari s index measures reliability of supply,
transparency of tari s and the price of electricity. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June
2017. 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 are
(number) 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
receiving all necessary inspections
data are 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
Page 18
purchasing material for these works in an area with no physical constraints. For example, the property is not
certi cation
exam.
Doing Business 2018 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 tari s index measures reliability of supply,
transparency of tari s and the price of electricity. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June
2017. 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 are
(number) 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
receiving all necessary inspections
data are 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
purchasing material for these works in an area with no physical constraints. For example, the property is not
Concluding any necessary supply contract and near a railway.
obtaining final supply - Is a new construction and is being connected to electricity for the rst
time.
Time required to complete each procedure
- Has two stories with a total surface area of approximately 1,300.6 square
(calendar days)
meters (14,000 square feet). The plot of land on which it is built is 929
Is at least 1 calendar day square meters (10,000 square feet).
Each procedure starts on a separate day
Does not include time spent gathering The electricity connection:
information - Is a permanent one with a three-phase, four-wire Y connection with a
subscribed capacity of 140-kilo-volt-ampere (kVA) with a power factor of 1,
Reflects the time spent in practice, with little
when 1 kVA = 1 kilowatt (kW).
follow-up and no prior contact with officials
- Has a length of 150 meters. The connection is to either the low- or
Cost required to complete each procedure (% of medium-voltage distribution network and is either overhead or
income per capita) underground, whichever is more common in the area where the
warehouse is located and requires works that involve the crossing of a 10-
Official costs only, no bribes
meter road (such as by excavation or overhead lines) but are all carried out
Value added tax excluded
on public land. There is no crossing of other owners’ private property
The reliability of supply and transparency of because the warehouse has access to a road.
tari s index (0-8) - Does not require work to install the internal wiring of the warehouse. This
has already been completed up to and including the customer’s service
Duration and frequency of power outages (0–3)
panel or switchboard and the meter base.
Tools to monitor power outages (0–1)
Tools to restore power supply (0–1) The monthly consumption:
Regulatory monitoring of utilities’ performance - It is assumed that the warehouse operates 30 days a month from 9:00
(0–1) a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (8 hours a day), with equipment utilized at 80% of capacity
Financial deterrents limiting outages (0–1) on average and that there are no electricity cuts (assumed for simplicity
reasons) and the monthly energy consumption is 26,880 kilowatt-hours
Transparency and accessibility of tariffs (0–1)
(kWh); hourly consumption is 112 kWh.
Price of electricity (cents per kilowatt-hour)* - If multiple electricity suppliers exist, the warehouse is served by the
Price based on monthly bill for commercial cheapest supplier.
warehouse in case study - Tari s e ective in March of the current year are used for calculation of
the price of electricity for the warehouse. Although March has 31 days, for
* N o t e : Doing Business m e a s u r e s t h e p r i c e o f calculation purposes only 30 days are used.
electricity, but it is not included in the distance to
frontier score nor the ranking on the ease of getting
electricity.
Page 19
Standardized Connection
frontier score nor the ranking on the ease of getting
electricity.
Doing Business 2018 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
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Procedures (number) 5 4.5 4.7 2 (United Arab
Emirates)
Time (days) 36 71.6 79.1 10 (United Arab
Emirates)
Cost (% of income per capita) 41.5 712.0 63.0 0.00 (Japan)
Reliability of supply and transparency of tariff 7 3.7 7.4 8.00 (28 Economies)
index (0-8)
Figure – Getting Electricity in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
94.33: Malaysia (Rank: 8)
86.46: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 24)
84.31: Philippines (Rank: 31)
83.87: Indonesia (Rank: 38)
72.23: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
68.83: China (Rank: 98)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of getting electricity is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for
getting electricity. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators.
Figure – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time Cost
40
35
35
30
Cost (% of income per capita)
30
25
25
Time (days)
20
20
15
15
10
10
5 Page 20
5
getting electricity. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time Cost
40
35
35
30
Cost (% of income per capita)
30
25
25
Time (days)
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 di erent procedure list for
men and women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website
(http://www.doingbusiness.org/methodology). For details on the procedures re ected here, see the summary below.
Figure – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
9
8
8
7
7
6
6
Index score
5 5
5
4 3.7
3
2
1
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Hire professional engineer (PE) for approval of the single-line diagram 1 calendar day BND 300
Agency : Professional engineer (PE)
Since June 2016, the electricity utility (DES) no longer reviews the single line
diagram. It is instead submitted and reviewed ahead of the application by a
professional engineer (PE) that is licensed with the Ministry of Development.
The PE is a separate entity than the electrical contractor (i.e. quali ed
person) that submits the new connection request and carries-out the
connection works.
2 Submit new connection application and permit to dig application 7 calendar days BND 0
Agency : Authority for Building and Construction Industry (ABCi)
Page 21
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Hire professional engineer (PE) for approval of the single-line diagram 1 calendar day BND 300
Agency : Professional engineer (PE)
Since June 2016, the electricity utility (DES) no longer reviews the single line
diagram. It is instead submitted and reviewed ahead of the application by a
professional engineer (PE) that is licensed with the Ministry of Development.
The PE is a separate entity than the electrical contractor (i.e. quali ed
person) that submits the new connection request and carries-out the
connection works.
2 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 a quali ed person (chartered electrical engineer)
that is registered and licensed with the Ministry of Development. This person
will prepare the drawings and calculations.
The quali ed person (QP) must then submit the external electrical layout
(both internal and external). For underground connections crossing public
roads, a permit to dig is also required - and it can be requested as part of the
application for connection at the o ce of ABCi. All forms are available on the
website of DES. The application can be lodged online but hard copy
documents also need to be submitted for endorsement at the o ce of ABCi.
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 then issue a letter stating the connection fee to be paid
during the nal procedure (BND 1,650). The letter also allows the contractor
to purchase a meter from DES approved vendors.
3 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) con rm 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.
4 Obtain external works and meter installation from approved electrical 21 calendar days BND 16,892.5
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. In addition, the contractor
will need to purchase a meter and install it. Finally, the contractor will need
to test the internal wiring if he has both QP and PE certi cations. Otherwise a
separate Electrical Professional Engineer (PE) will need to come on site to
carry the nal inspection. For capacities larger than 215 kVA (300 Amp) a
substation will also be needed.
5 Obtain approval for permanent supply and electricity turn-on 7 calendar days BND 1,650
Agency : Department of Electrical Services
Page 22
Once the internal wiring has been completed - and the meter is installed -
carry the nal inspection. For capacities larger than 215 kVA (300 Amp) a
Businesswill
Doing substation 2018also be needed.
Brunei Darussalam
5 Obtain approval for permanent supply and electricity turn-on 7 calendar days BND 1,650
Agency : Department of Electrical Services
Once the internal wiring has been completed - and the meter is installed -
the contractor must submits an application for electricity turn-on to the
Customer Services Section of the Department of Electrical Services (DES)
together with a test certi cation report veri ed by an Authorized
Professional Engineer (PE) and an occupation permit. Submission can be
done online via OneBiz, and the payment can be made online or by cash at
the Business Support Centre. DES will then process to check the documents,
after which the permanent supply will be given.
Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure.
Details – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer
Reliability of supply and transparency of tari 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 No
reliability of supply?
Financial deterrents aimed at limiting outages (0-1) 1
Does the utility either pay compensation to customers or face nes by the regulator (or both) if outages Yes
exceed a certain cap?
Communication of tari s and tari changes (0-1) 1
Are e ective tari s available online? Yes
Link to the website, if available online http://des.gov.bn/Sit
ePages/Electricity%2
0Tari .aspx
Are customers noti ed of a change in tari 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 tari index. Page 23
Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Getting Electricity in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer
Reliability of supply and transparency of tari 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 No
reliability of supply?
Financial deterrents aimed at limiting outages (0-1) 1
Does the utility either pay compensation to customers or face nes by the regulator (or both) if outages Yes
exceed a certain cap?
Communication of tari s and tari changes (0-1) 1
Are e ective tari s available online? Yes
Link to the website, if available online http://des.gov.bn/Sit
ePages/Electricity%2
0Tari .aspx
Are customers noti ed of a change in tari 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 tari 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.
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 ve 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 June 2017. See the methodology for more information.
Page 24
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
If the minimum outage time considered for SAIDI/SAIFI is over 5 minutes, the economy is not eligible to score on the index.
Doing Business 2018 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 ve 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 June 2017. See the methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Procedures to legally transfer title on immovable To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions
property (number) about the parties to the transaction, the property and the procedures are
used.
Preregistration procedures (for example,
checking for liens, notarizing sales agreement,
The parties (buyer and seller):
paying property transfer taxes)
- Are limited liability companies (or the legal equivalent).
Registration procedures in the economy's largest
- Are located in the periurban area of the economy’s largest business city.
business citya.
For 11 economies the data are also collected for the second largest
Postregistration procedures (for example, filling business city.
title with municipality) - Are 100% domestically and privately owned.
Time required to complete each procedure - Have 50 employees each, all of whom are nationals.
(calendar days) - Perform general commercial activities.
Does not include time spent gathering
information The property (fully owned by the seller):
- Has a value of 50 times income per capita, which equals the sale price.
Each procedure starts on a separate day - though
- Is fully owned by the seller.
procedures that can be fully completed online
- Has no mortgages attached and has been under the same ownership for
are an exception to this rule
the past 10 years.
Procedure is considered completed once final - Is registered in the land registry or cadastre, or both, and is free of title
document is received disputes.
No prior contact with officials - Is located in a periurban commercial zone, and no rezoning is required.
Cost required to complete each procedure (% of - Consists of land and a building. The land area is 557.4 square meters
property value) (6,000 square feet). A two-story warehouse of 929 square meters (10,000
square feet) is located on the land. The warehouse is 10 years old, is in
Official costs only (such as administrative fees, good condition, has no heating system and complies with all safety
duties and taxes). standards, building codes and legal requirements. The property,
Value Added Tax, Capital Gains Tax and illicit consisting of land and building, will be transferred in its entirety.
payments are excluded - Will not be subject to renovations or additional construction following the
Quality of land administration index (0-30) purchase.
- Has no trees, natural water sources, natural reserves or historical
Reliability of infrastructure index (0-8) monuments of any kind.
Transparency of information index (0–6) - Will not be used for special purposes, and no special permits, such as for
Geographic coverage index (0–8) residential use, industrial plants, waste storage or certain types of
agricultural activities, are required.
Land dispute resolution index (0–8)
- Has no occupants, and no other party holds a legal interest in it.
Equal access to property rights index (-2–0)
Standard Property Transfer
Property value BND 2,268,157.60
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan
Page 25
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Standard Property Transfer
Property value BND 2,268,157.60
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Procedures (number) 7 5.5 4.6 1.00 (4 Economies)
Time (days) 298.5 74.5 22.3 1.00 (3 Economies)
Cost (% of property value) 0.6 4.3 4.2 0.00 (5 Economies)
Quality of the land administration index (0-30) 18.0 15.8 22.7 29.00 (Singapore)
Figure – Registering Property in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
76.15: China (Rank: 41)
76.06: Malaysia (Rank: 42)
59.01: Indonesia (Rank: 106)
57.55: Philippines (Rank: 114)
57.21: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
51.48: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 136)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of registering property is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for
registering property. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators.
Figure – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time Cost
0.7
0.6
250
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.
Page 26
Note: Online procedures account for 0.5 days in the total time calculation. For economies that have a di erent procedure list for
registering property. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
Time Cost
0.7
0.6
250
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 di erent procedure list for
men and women, the graph shows the time for women. For more information on methodology, see the Doing Business website
(http://www.doingbusiness.org/methodology). For details on the procedures re ected here, see the summary below.
Figure – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
30 27.5
25
20 18.0 18.3
Index score
15.8
15 12.5
11.3
10
5
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Checking for encumbrances by Lawyer 1 day BND 8 (BND 3 for
Agency : Land O ce searching on the
property, buyer, and
The lawyer acting on behalf of both seller and buyer will do a land search.
seller plus BND 5 for
The lawyer will verify that the seller is rightful owner and is entitled to sell the
survey plan extract)
property. In order to do that, it is common to request a search not only for
the 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,
Page 27
the results of the search can take more time.
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam – Procedure, Time and Cost
No. Procedure Time to Complete Associated Costs
1 Checking for encumbrances by Lawyer 1 day BND 8 (BND 3 for
Agency : Land O ce searching on the
property, buyer, and
The lawyer acting on behalf of both seller and buyer will do a land search.
seller plus BND 5 for
The lawyer will verify that the seller is rightful owner and is entitled to sell the
survey plan extract)
property. In order to do that, it is common to request a search not only for
the 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 a day BND 2 (BND 1 per
Agency : High Court (online procedure) name)
for a simple search.
The lawyer conducts a search at the High Court to determine whether any of
If a certified extract
the parties involved in the transaction has had a bankruptcy/winding up case
is needed : 1 week
or has any pending cases that could a ect 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 ll in a form and
provide a name plus an identi er. 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 100 - 300
Agency : Land O ce
The sale-purchase agreement is signed by both parties in the lawyer's o ce.
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.
4 Submit application via Lands Department in order to obtain approval 280 days BND 1 for each form
for the Memorandum of Transfer by "His Majesty in Council"
Agency : Land O ce
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 O ce.
The Land o ce 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 o cials representing the Sultan.
The petition to transfers follows a three-step process. First, the Lands Page 28
fee schedule of the Legal Profession Act (Chapter 132), Advocates and
Doing Solicitors
Business (Remuneration)
2018 Brunei Rules would apply.
Darussalam
4 Submit application via Lands Department in order to obtain approval 280 days BND 1 for each form
for the Memorandum of Transfer by "His Majesty in Council"
Agency : Land O ce
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 O ce.
The Land o ce 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 o cials representing the Sultan.
The petition to transfers follows a three-step process. First, the Lands
Department will check that all the information has been lled 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 o ce 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 O ce.
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
di ers. 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 O ce 1 day no cost
Agency : Land O ce (simultaneous with
Procedure 5)
An inspector from the Land o ce 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 6 for every BND
Agency : Land O ce 1000 of the assessed
value of the property
The Seller's nominee and the Buyer's nominee will attend to the Land O ce
+ Registration fee of
to sign the Memorandum of Transfer (MOT), and the Full Payment Form in
BND 1 + Land Tax
the presence of an o cer from the Land O ce.
BND 150 per quarter
acre fo commercial
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 land per year (not
property value). counted in
estimations)
7 Register property transfer at the Land O ce/Registry 15 days no cost
Agency : Land O ce
The nal 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 29
property (in case of a property transfer, a new Title would be issued).
Takes Business
Doing 2018 Brunei
place simultaneously Darussalam
with previous procedure.
Details – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer Score
Quality of the land administration index (0-30) 18.0
Reliability of infrastructure index (0-8) 5.0
What is the institution in charge of immovable property registration? Lands
Department
In what format are the majority of title or deed records kept in the largest business city Paper 0.0
—in a paper format or in a computerized format (scanned or fully digital)?
Is there an electronic database for checking for encumbrances (liens, mortgages, Yes 1.0
restrictions and the like)?
Institution in charge of the plans showing legal boundaries in the largest business city: Survey
Department
In what format are the majority of maps of land plots kept in the largest business city— Computer/Fully 2.0
in a paper format or in a computerized format (scanned or fully digital)? digital
Is there an electronic database for recording boundaries, checking plans and providing Yes 1.0
cadastral information (geographic information system)?
Is the information recorded by the immovable property registration agency and the Separate 0.0
cadastral or mapping agency kept in a single database, in di erent but linked databases databases
or in separate databases?
Do the immovable property registration agency and cadastral or mapping agency use Yes 1.0
the same identi cation number for properties?
Transparency of information index (0–6) 4.5
Who is able to obtain information on land ownership at the agency in charge of Anyone who 1.0
immovable property registration in the largest business city? pays the o cial
fee
Is the list of documents that are required to complete any type of property transaction Yes, online 0.5
made publicly available–and if so, how?
Link for online access: https://laris.gov.
bn/en-
us/pages/faq.asp
x
Is the applicable fee schedule for any property transaction at the agency in charge of Yes, online 0.5
immovable property registration in the largest business city made publicly available–
and if so, how?
Link for online access:
Does the agency in charge of immovable property registration commit to delivering a Yes, online 0.5
legally binding document that proves property ownership within a speci c time frame–
and if so, how does it communicate the service standard?
Link for online access: http://www.land.
Page 30
gov.bn/SitePages
Takes place simultaneously with previous procedure.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Registering Property in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer Score
Quality of the land administration index (0-30) 18.0
Reliability of infrastructure index (0-8) 5.0
What is the institution in charge of immovable property registration? Lands
Department
In what format are the majority of title or deed records kept in the largest business city Paper 0.0
—in a paper format or in a computerized format (scanned or fully digital)?
Is there an electronic database for checking for encumbrances (liens, mortgages, Yes 1.0
restrictions and the like)?
Institution in charge of the plans showing legal boundaries in the largest business city: Survey
Department
In what format are the majority of maps of land plots kept in the largest business city— Computer/Fully 2.0
in a paper format or in a computerized format (scanned or fully digital)? digital
Is there an electronic database for recording boundaries, checking plans and providing Yes 1.0
cadastral information (geographic information system)?
Is the information recorded by the immovable property registration agency and the Separate 0.0
cadastral or mapping agency kept in a single database, in di erent but linked databases databases
or in separate databases?
Do the immovable property registration agency and cadastral or mapping agency use Yes 1.0
the same identi cation number for properties?
Transparency of information index (0–6) 4.5
Who is able to obtain information on land ownership at the agency in charge of Anyone who 1.0
immovable property registration in the largest business city? pays the o cial
fee
Is the list of documents that are required to complete any type of property transaction Yes, online 0.5
made publicly available–and if so, how?
Link for online access: https://laris.gov.
bn/en-
us/pages/faq.asp
x
Is the applicable fee schedule for any property transaction at the agency in charge of Yes, online 0.5
immovable property registration in the largest business city made publicly available–
and if so, how?
Link for online access:
Does the agency in charge of immovable property registration commit to delivering a Yes, online 0.5
legally binding document that proves property ownership within a speci c time frame–
and if so, how does it communicate the service standard?
Link for online access: http://www.land.
gov.bn/SitePages
/Application%20a Page 31
legally binding document that proves property ownership within a speci c time frame–
and if
Doing so, how does
Business 2018it communicate the service standard?
Brunei Darussalam
Link for online access: http://www.land.
gov.bn/SitePages
/Application%20a
nd%20Duration
%20of%20Proces
s%20By%20Land
%20Department.
aspx
Is there a speci c and separate mechanism for ling complaints about a problem that No 0.0
occurred at the agency in charge of immovable property registration?
Contact information:
Are there publicly available o cial statistics tracking the number of transactions at the Yes 0.5
immovable property registration agency?
Number of property transfers in the largest business city in 2015:
Who is able to consult maps of land plots in the largest business city? Anyone who 0.5
pays the o cial
fee
Is the applicable fee schedule for accessing maps of land plots made publicly available Yes, online 0.5
—and if so, how?
Link for online access: http://survey.gov
.bn/web/survey_
department/cad
astral- eld-
survey1
Does the cadastral or mapping agency commit to delivering an updated map within a Yes, online 0.5
speci c time frame—and if so, how does it communicate the service standard?
Link for online access: http://www.mod.
gov.bn/survey/Si
tePages/Tekad%
20Pemedulian%2
0Orang%20Rama
i.aspx
Is there a speci c and separate mechanism for ling complaints about a problem that No 0.0
occurred at the cadastral or mapping agency?
Contact information:
Geographic coverage index (0–8) 4.0
Are all privately held land plots in the economy formally registered at the immovable No 0.0
property registry?
Are all privately held land plots in the largest business city formally registered at the Yes 2.0
immovable property registry?
Are all privately held land plots in the economy mapped? No 0.0
Are all privately held land plots in the largest business city mapped? Yes 2.0
Land dispute resolution index (0–8) 4.5 Page 32
Are all
Doing privately held
Business 2018 landBrunei
plots in Darussalam
the economy mapped? No 0.0
Are all privately held land plots in the largest business city mapped? Yes 2.0
Land dispute resolution index (0–8) 4.5
Does the law require that all property sale transactions be registered at the immovable Yes 1.5
property registry to make them opposable to third parties?
Is the system of immovable property registration subject to a state or private Yes 0.5
guarantee?
Is there a speci c compensation mechanism to cover for losses incurred by parties who No 0.0
engaged in good faith in a property transaction based on erroneous information
certi ed by the immovable property registry?
Does the legal system require a control of legality of the documents necessary for a Yes 0.5
property transaction (e.g., checking the compliance of contracts with requirements of
the law)?
If yes, who is responsible for checking the legality of the documents? Registrar.
Does the legal system require veri cation of the identity of the parties to a property Yes 0.5
transaction?
If yes, who is responsible for verifying the identity of the parties? Registrar.
Is there a national database to verify the accuracy of identity documents? Yes 1.0
For a standard land dispute between two local businesses over tenure rights of a High Court of
property worth 50 times gross national income (GNI) per capita and located in the Brunei
largest business city, what court would be in charge of the case in the rst instance? Darussalam
How long does it take on average to obtain a decision from the rst-instance court for More than 3 0.0
such a case (without appeal)? years
Are there any statistics on the number of land disputes in the rst instance? Yes 0.5
Number of land disputes in the largest business city in 2015: 259.0
Equal access to property rights index (-2–0) 0.0
Do unmarried men and unmarried women have equal ownership rights to property? Yes 0.0
Do married men and married women have equal ownership rights to property? Yes 0.0
Getting Credit
This topic explores two sets of issues—the strength of credit reporting systems and the e ectiveness of collateral and bankruptcy
laws in facilitating lending. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the
methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Strength of legal rights index (0–12) Doing Business assesses the sharing of credit information and the legal
rights of borrowers and lenders with respect to secured transactions
Rights of borrowers and lenders through
through 2 sets of indicators. The depth of credit information index
collateral laws (0-10)
measures rules and practices a ecting the coverage, scope and
Protection of secured creditors’ rights through
accessibility of credit information available through a credit registry or a
bankruptcy laws (0-2) Page 33
credit bureau. The strength of legal rights index measures the degree to
Do married men and married women have equal ownership rights to property? Yes 0.0
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Getting Credit
This topic explores two sets of issues—the strength of credit reporting systems and the e ectiveness of collateral and bankruptcy
laws in facilitating lending. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the
methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Strength of legal rights index (0–12) Doing Business assesses the sharing of credit information and the legal
rights of borrowers and lenders with respect to secured transactions
Rights of borrowers and lenders through
through 2 sets of indicators. The depth of credit information index
collateral laws (0-10)
measures rules and practices a ecting the coverage, scope and
Protection of secured creditors’ rights through
accessibility of credit information available through a credit registry or a
bankruptcy laws (0-2)
credit bureau. The strength of legal rights index measures the degree to
Depth of credit information index (0–8) which collateral and bankruptcy laws protect the rights of borrowers and
lenders and thus facilitate lending. For each economy it is first determined
Scope and accessibility of credit information
whether a unitary secured transactions system exists. Then two case
distributed by credit bureaus and credit
scenarios, case A and case B, are used to determine how a nonpossessory
registries (0-8)
security interest is created, publicized and enforced according to the law.
Credit bureau coverage (% of adults) Special emphasis is given to how the collateral registry operates (if
Number of individuals and firms listed in largest registration of security interests is possible). The case scenarios involve a
credit bureau as a percentage of adult population secured borrower, company ABC, and a secured lender, BizBank.
Credit registry coverage (% of adults) In some economies the legal framework for secured transactions will allow
Number of individuals and firms listed in credit only case A or case B (not both) to apply. Both cases examine the same set
registry as a percentage of adult population of legal provisions relating to the use of movable collateral.
Several assumptions about the secured borrower (ABC) and lender
(BizBank) are used:
- ABC is a domestic limited liability company (or its legal equivalent).
- ABC has up to 50 employees.
- ABC has its headquarters and only base of operations in the economy’s
largest business city. For 11 economies the data are also collected for the
second largest business city.
- Both ABC and BizBank are 100% domestically owned.
The case scenarios also involve assumptions. In case A, as collateral for the
loan, ABC grants BizBank a nonpossessory security interest in one category
of movable assets, for example, its machinery or its inventory. ABC wants
to keep both possession and ownership of the collateral. In economies
where the law does not allow nonpossessory security interests in movable
property, ABC and BizBank use a fiduciary transfer-of-title arrangement (or
a similar substitute for nonpossessory security interests).
In case B, ABC grants BizBank a business charge, enterprise charge, floating
charge or any charge that gives BizBank a security interest over ABC’s
combined movable assets (or as much of ABC’s movable assets as
possible). ABC keeps ownership and possession of the assets.
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Strength of legal rights index (0-12) 12 7.2 6.0 12.00 (4 Economies)
Depth of credit information index (0-8) 7 4.2 6.6 8.00 (34 Economies)
Page 34
Credit registry coverage (% of adults) 71.9 16.0 18.3 100.00 (3 Economies)
possible). ABC keeps ownership and possession of the assets.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Strength of legal rights index (0-12) 12 7.2 6.0 12.00 (4 Economies)
Depth of credit information index (0-8) 7 4.2 6.6 8.00 (34 Economies)
Credit registry coverage (% of adults) 71.9 16.0 18.3 100.00 (3 Economies)
Credit bureau coverage (% of adults) 0.0 22.3 63.7 100.00 (23 Economies)
Figure – Getting Credit in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
95.00: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 2)
80.00: Malaysia (Rank: 20)
65.00: Indonesia (Rank: 55)
60.00: China (Rank: 68)
57.00: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
30.00: Philippines (Rank: 142)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of getting credit is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for getting
credit. These scores are the distance to frontier score for the sum of the strength of legal rights index and the depth of credit
information index.
Figure – Legal Rights in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies
14
12
12
10
Index score
8
8 7.2
6
6
4
4
2 1
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Legal Rights in Brunei Darussalam
Strength of legal rights index (0-12) 12
Does an integrated or uni ed legal framework for secured transactions that extends to the creation, publicity and Yes
enforcement of functional equivalents to security interests in movable assets exist in the economy?
Does the law allow businesses to grant a non possessory security right in a single category of movable assets, without Yes
requiring a speci c description of collateral? Page 35
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Legal Rights in Brunei Darussalam
Strength of legal rights index (0-12) 12
Does an integrated or uni ed legal framework for secured transactions that extends to the creation, publicity and Yes
enforcement of functional equivalents to security interests in movable assets exist in the economy?
Does the law allow businesses to grant a non possessory security right in a single category of movable assets, without Yes
requiring a speci c description of collateral?
Does the law allow businesses to grant a non possessory security right in substantially all of its assets, without requiring Yes
a speci c description of collateral?
May a security right extend to future or after-acquired assets, and does it extend automatically to the products, proceeds Yes
or replacements of the original assets?
Is a general description of debts and obligations permitted in collateral agreements; can all types of debts and Yes
obligations be secured between parties; and can the collateral agreement include a maximum amount for which the
assets are encumbered?
Is a collateral registry in operation for both incorporated and non-incorporated entities, that is uni ed geographically Yes
and by asset type, with an electronic database indexed by debtor's name?
Does a notice-based collateral registry exist in which all functional equivalents can be registered? Yes
Does a modern collateral registry exist in which registrations, amendments, cancellations and searches can be Yes
performed online by any interested third party?
Are secured creditors paid rst (i.e. before tax claims and employee claims) when a debtor defaults outside an insolvency Yes
procedure?
Are secured creditors paid rst (i.e. before tax claims and employee claims) when a business is liquidated? Yes
Are secured creditors subject to an automatic stay on enforcement when a debtor enters a court-supervised Yes
reorganization procedure? Does the law protect secured creditors’ rights by providing clear grounds for relief from the
stay and/or sets a time limit for it?
Does the law allow parties to agree on out of court enforcement at the time a security interest is created? Does the law Yes
allow the secured creditor to sell the collateral through public auction or private tender, as well as, for the secured
creditor to keep the asset in satisfaction of the debt?
Figure – Credit Information in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies
10
8 8
8
7 7
Index score
6
5
4.2
4
2
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Credit Information in Brunei Darussalam Page 36
0
Brunei Darussalam
Doing Business China
2018 Brunei Darussalam Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Credit Information in Brunei Darussalam
Credit Credit
Depth of credit information index (0-8) bureau registry Score
Are data on both firms and individuals distributed? No Yes 1
Are both positive and negative credit data distributed? No Yes 1
Are data from retailers or utility companies - in addition to data from banks and financial institutions - No Yes 1
distributed?
Are at least 2 years of historical data distributed? (Credit bureaus and registries that distribute more No Yes 1
than 10 years of negative data or erase data on defaults as soon as they are repaid obtain a score of 0
for this component.)
Are data on loan amounts below 1% of income per capita distributed? No Yes 1
By law, do borrowers have the right to access their data in the credit bureau or credit registry? No Yes 1
Can banks and financial institutions access borrowers’ credit information online (for example, No Yes 1
through an online platform, a system-to-system connection or both)?
Are bureau or registry credit scores offered as a value-added service to help banks and financial No No 0
institutions assess the creditworthiness of borrowers?
Score ("yes" to either public bureau or private registry) 7
Note: An economy receives a score of 1 if there is a "yes" to either bureau or registry. If the credit bureau or registry is not operational or covers less than 5% of the adult
population, the total score on the depth of credit information index is 0.
Coverage Credit bureau Credit registry
Number of individuals 0 208,911
Number of firms 0 11,396
Total 0 220,307
Percentage of adult population 0.0 71.9
Protecting Minority Investors
This topic measures the strength of minority shareholder protections against misuse of corporate assets by directors for their
personal gain as well as shareholder rights, governance safeguards and corporate transparency requirements that reduce the risk
of abuse. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more
information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Extent of disclosure index (0–10): Review and To make the data comparable across economies, a case study uses several
approval requirements for related-party assumptions about the business and the transaction.
transactions; Disclosure requirements for
related-party transactions The business (Buyer):
Extent of director liability index (0–10): Ability of - Is a publicly traded corporation listed on the economy’s most important
minority shareholders to sue and hold interested stock exchange. If the number of publicly traded companies listed on that
directors liable for prejudicial related-party exchange is less than 10, or if there is no stock exchange in the economy, it
is assumed that Buyer is a large private company with multiple
Page 37
transactions; Available legal remedies (damages,
Percentage of adult population 0.0 71.9
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Protecting Minority Investors
This topic measures the strength of minority shareholder protections against misuse of corporate assets by directors for their
personal gain as well as shareholder rights, governance safeguards and corporate transparency requirements that reduce the risk
of abuse. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more
information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Extent of disclosure index (0–10): Review and To make the data comparable across economies, a case study uses several
approval requirements for related-party assumptions about the business and the transaction.
transactions; Disclosure requirements for
related-party transactions The business (Buyer):
Extent of director liability index (0–10): Ability of - Is a publicly traded corporation listed on the economy’s most important
minority shareholders to sue and hold interested stock exchange. If the number of publicly traded companies listed on that
directors liable for prejudicial related-party exchange is less than 10, or if there is no stock exchange in the economy, it
transactions; Available legal remedies (damages, is assumed that Buyer is a large private company with multiple
disgorgement of profits, fines, imprisonment, shareholders.
rescission of the transaction) - Has a board of directors and a chief executive o cer (CEO) who may
legally act on behalf of Buyer where permitted, even if this is not speci cally
Ease of shareholder suits index (0–10): Access to
required by law.
internal corporate documents; Evidence
- Has a supervisory board (applicable to economies with a two-tier board
obtainable during trial and allocation of legal
system) on which 60% of the shareholder-elected members have been
expenses
appointed by Mr. James, who is Buyer’s controlling shareholder and a
Extent of conflict of interest regulation index
member of Buyer’s board of directors.
(0–10): Simple average of the extent of disclosure,
- Has not adopted any bylaws or articles of association that di er from
extent of director liability and ease of
default minimum standards and does not follow any nonmandatory codes,
shareholder indices
principles, recommendations or guidelines relating to corporate
Extent of shareholder rights index (0-10): governance.
Shareholders’ rights and role in major corporate - Is a manufacturing company with its own distribution network.
decisions
Extent of ownership and control index (0-10): The transaction involves the following details:
Governance safeguards protecting shareholders - Mr. James owns 60% of Buyer and elected two directors to Buyer’s ve-
from undue board control and entrenchment member board.
Extent of corporate transparency index (0-10): - Mr. James also owns 90% of Seller, a company that operates a chain of
Corporate transparency on ownership stakes, retail hardware stores. Seller recently closed a large number of its stores.
compensation, audits and financial prospects - Mr. James proposes that Buyer purchase Seller’s unused eet of trucks to
expand Buyer’s distribution of its food products, a proposal to which Buyer
Extent of shareholder governance index (0–10):
agrees. The price is equal to 10% of Buyer’s assets and is higher than the
Simple average of the extent of shareholders
market value.
rights, extent of ownership and control and
- The proposed transaction is part of the company’s ordinary course of
extent of corporate transparency indices
business and is not outside the authority of the company.
Strength of minority investor protection index - Buyer enters into the transaction. All required approvals are obtained,
(0–10): Simple average of the extent of conflict of and all required disclosures made (that is, the transaction is not
interest regulation and extent of shareholder fraudulent).
governance indices
- The transaction causes damages to Buyer. Shareholders sue Mr. James
and the other parties that approved the transaction.
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Extent of conflict of interest regulation index (0- 6.7 5.7 6.4 9.3 (New Zealand)
10)
Extent of shareholder governance index (0-10) 6.3 4.8 6.4 Page 38
9.00 (Kazakhstan)
and the other parties that approved the transaction.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Extent of conflict of interest regulation index (0- 6.7 5.7 6.4 9.3 (New Zealand)
10)
Extent of shareholder governance index (0-10) 6.3 4.8 6.4 9.00 (Kazakhstan)
Figure – Protecting Minority Investors in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
80.00: Malaysia (Rank: 4)
65.00: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 40)
63.33: Indonesia (Rank: 43)
52.33: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
48.33: China (Rank: 119)
40.00: Philippines (Rank: 146)
Note: The ranking of economies on the strength of minority investor protections is determined by sorting their distance to frontier
scores for protecting minority investors. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for the extent of
con ict of interest regulation index and the extent of shareholder governance index.
Figure – Protecting Minority Investors in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
Brunei Darussalam 8 8 4 4 7 8
China 9 1 10 2 3 4
Indonesia 7 5 10 7 7 2
Malaysia 8 9 10 6 8 7
Philippines 7 3 2 5 0 7
OECD high income 7.3 5.6 6.5 5.2 6.3 7.4
East Asia & Pacific 5.6 4.6 6.2 3.9 5.3 6.1
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Sub-Indicator Score
Extent of corporate transparency index (010) Extent of director liability index (010) Extent of disclosure index (010)
Extent of ownership and control index (010) Extent of shareholder rights index (010) Ease of shareholder suits index (010)
Details – Protecting Minority Investors in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer Score Page 39
Extent of ownership and control index (010) Extent of shareholder rights index (010) Ease of shareholder suits index (010)
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Protecting Minority Investors in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer Score
Extent of con ict of interest regulation index (0-10) 6.7
Extent of disclosure index (0-10) 4
Which corporate body is legally su cient to approve the Buyer-Seller transaction? (0-3) Board of 2.0
directors
excluding
interested
members
Must an external body review the terms of the transaction before it takes place? (0-1) No 0.0
Must Mr. James disclose his con ict of interest to the board of directors? (0-2) Existence of a 1.0
con ict without
any speci cs
Must Buyer disclose the transaction in published periodic lings (annual reports)? (0-2) Disclosure on 1.0
the transaction
only
Must Buyer immediately disclose the transaction to the public and/or shareholders? (0- No disclosure 0.0
2) obligation
Extent of director liability index (0-10) 8
Can shareholders representing 10% of Buyer's share capital sue directly or derivatively Yes 1.0
for the damage the transaction caused to Buyer? (0-1)
Can shareholders hold the interested director liable for the damage the transaction Liable if negligent 1.0
caused to Buyer? (0-2)
Can shareholders hold the other directors liable for the damage the transaction caused Liable if unfair or 2.0
to Buyer (0-2) prejudicial
Must Mr. James pay damages for the harm caused to Buyer upon a successful claim by Yes 1.0
shareholders? (0-1)
Must Mr. James repay pro ts made from the transaction upon a successful claim by Yes 1.0
shareholders? (0-1)
Is Mr. James disquali ed or ned and imprisoned upon a successful claim by No 0.0
shareholders? (0-1)
Can a court void the transaction upon a successful claim by shareholders? (0-2) Voidable if unfair 2.0
or prejudicial
Ease of shareholder suits index (0-10) 8
Before suing can shareholders representing 10% of Buyer's share capital inspect the Yes 1.0
transaction documents? (0-1)
Can the plainti obtain any documents from the defendant and witnesses at trial? (0-3) Any relevant 3.0
document
Can the plainti request categories of documents from the defendant without Yes 1.0
identifying speci c ones? (0-1) Page 40
Can the plainti obtain any documents from the defendant and witnesses at trial? (0-3) Any relevant 3.0
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam document
Can the plainti request categories of documents from the defendant without Yes 1.0
identifying speci c ones? (0-1)
Can the plainti directly question the defendant and witnesses at trial? (0-2) Yes 2.0
Is the level of proof required for civil suits lower than that of criminal cases? (0-1) Yes 1.0
Can shareholder plainti s recover their legal expenses from the company? (0-2) At the discretion 0.0
of the court
Extent of shareholder governance index (0-10) 6.3
Extent of shareholder rights index (0-10) 7
Does the sale of 51% of Buyer's assets require shareholder approval? Yes 1.0
Can shareholders representing 10% of Buyer's share capital call for a meeting of Yes 1.0
shareholders?
Must Buyer obtain its shareholders’ approval every time it issues new shares? No 0.0
Do shareholders automatically receive preemption rights every time Buyer issues new Yes 1.0
shares?
Must shareholders approve the election and dismissal of the external auditor? Yes 1.0
Are changes to the rights of a class of shares only possible if the holders of the a ected Yes 1.0
shares approve?
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, does the sale of 51% of its assets require Yes 1.0
member approval?
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, can members representing 10% call for a Yes 1.0
meeting of members?
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must all members consent to add a new No 0.0
member?
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must a member rst o er to sell their No 0.0
interest to the existing members before they can sell to non-members?
Extent of ownership and control index (0-10) 4
Is it forbidden to appoint the same individual as CEO and chair of the board of No 0.0
directors?
Must the board of directors include independent and nonexecutive board members? Yes 1.0
Can shareholders remove members of the board of directors without cause before the Yes 1.0
end of their term?
Must the board of directors include a separate audit committee exclusively comprising Yes 1.0
board members?
Must a potential acquirer make a tender o er to all shareholders upon acquiring 50% No 0.0
of Buyer?
Must Buyer pay declared dividends within a maximum period set by law? No 0.0
Is a subsidiary prohibited from acquiring shares issued by its parent company? Yes 1.0
Page 41
Buyer pay declared
MustBusiness
Doing dividends
2018 Brunei within a maximum period set by law?
Darussalam No 0.0
Is a subsidiary prohibited from acquiring shares issued by its parent company? Yes 1.0
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must Buyer have a mechanism to resolve No 0.0
disagreements among members?
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must a potential acquirer make a tender No 0.0
o er to all shareholders upon acquiring 50% of Buyer?
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must Buyer distribute pro ts within a No 0.0
maximum period set by law?
Extent of corporate transparency index (0-10) 8
Must Buyer disclose direct and indirect bene cial ownership stakes representing 5%? No 0.0
Must Buyer disclose information about board members’ primary employment and Yes 1.0
directorships in other companies?
Must Buyer disclose the compensation of individual managers? Yes 1.0
Must a detailed notice of general meeting be sent 21 days before the meeting? No 0.0
Can shareholders representing 5% of Buyer’s share capital put items on the general Yes 1.0
meeting agenda?
Must Buyer's annual nancial statements be audited by an external auditor? Yes 1.0
Must Buyer disclose its audit reports to the public? Yes 1.0
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must members meet at least once a year? Yes 1.0
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, can members representing 5% put items on Yes 1.0
the meeting agenda?
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must Buyer's annual nancial statements be Yes 1.0
audited by an external auditor?
Paying Taxes
This topic records the taxes and mandatory contributions that a medium-size company must pay or withhold in a given year, as well
as measures the administrative burden in paying taxes and contributions. The most recent round of data collection for the project
was completed on June 30, 2017 covering for the Paying Taxes indicator calendar year 2016 (January 1, 2016 – December 31, 2016).
Last year (Doing Business 2017) the scope of data collection was expanded to better understand the overall tax environment in an
economy. The questionnaire was expanded to include new questions on post- ling processes: VAT refund and tax audit. The data
shows where post ling processes and practices work e ciently and what drives the di erences in the overall tax compliance cost
across economies.
The new section covers both the legal framework and the administrative burden on businesses to comply with post ling processes.
See the methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Tax payments for a manufacturing company in Using a case scenario, Doing Business records taxes and mandatory
2016 (number per year adjusted for electronic and contributions a medium size company must pay in a year, and measures
joint ling and payment) the administrative burden of paying taxes, contributions and dealing with
post ling processes. Information is also compiled on frequency of ling
Total number of taxes and contributions paid,
Page 42
and payments, time taken to comply with tax laws, time taken to comply
including consumption taxes (value added tax,
Assuming that Buyer is a limited company, must Buyer's annual nancial statements be Yes 1.0
audited by an external auditor?
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Paying Taxes
This topic records the taxes and mandatory contributions that a medium-size company must pay or withhold in a given year, as well
as measures the administrative burden in paying taxes and contributions. The most recent round of data collection for the project
was completed on June 30, 2017 covering for the Paying Taxes indicator calendar year 2016 (January 1, 2016 – December 31, 2016).
Last year (Doing Business 2017) the scope of data collection was expanded to better understand the overall tax environment in an
economy. The questionnaire was expanded to include new questions on post- ling processes: VAT refund and tax audit. The data
shows where post ling processes and practices work e ciently and what drives the di erences in the overall tax compliance cost
across economies.
The new section covers both the legal framework and the administrative burden on businesses to comply with post ling processes.
See the methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Tax payments for a manufacturing company in Using a case scenario, Doing Business records taxes and mandatory
2016 (number per year adjusted for electronic and contributions a medium size company must pay in a year, and measures
joint ling and payment) the administrative burden of paying taxes, contributions and dealing with
post ling processes. Information is also compiled on frequency of ling
Total number of taxes and contributions paid,
and payments, time taken to comply with tax laws, time taken to comply
including consumption taxes (value added tax,
with the requirements of post ling processes and time waiting.
sales tax or goods and service tax)
Method and frequency of filing and payment To make data comparable across economies, several assumptions are
used:
Time required to comply with 3 major taxes
- TaxpayerCo is a medium-size business that started operations on January
(hours per year)
1, 2015. It produces ceramic flowerpots and sells them at retail. All taxes
Collecting information, computing tax payable and contributions recorded are paid in the second year of operation
Completing tax return, filing with agencies (calendar year 2016). Taxes and mandatory contributions are measured at
all levels of government.
Arranging payment or withholding
Preparing separate tax accounting books, if
The VAT refund process:
required - In June 2016, TaxpayerCo. makes a large capital purchase: the value of the
Total tax and contribution rate (% of pro t before machine is 65 times income per capita of the economy. Sales are equally
all taxes) spread per month (1,050 times income per capita divided by 12) and cost
of goods sold are equally expensed per month (875 times income per
Profit or corporate income tax
capita divided by 12). The machinery seller is registered for VAT and excess
Social contributions, labor taxes paid by input VAT incurred in June will be fully recovered after four consecutive
employer months if the VAT rate is the same for inputs, sales and the machine and
Property and property transfer taxes the tax reporting period is every month. Input VAT will exceed Output VAT
Dividend, capital gains, financial transactions in June 2016.
taxes The corporate income tax audit process:
Waste collection, vehicle, road and other taxes - An error in calculation of income tax liability (for example, use of incorrect
Post ling Index tax depreciation rates, or incorrectly treating an expense as tax deductible)
leads to an incorrect income tax return and a corporate income
Time to comply with a VAT refund tax underpayment. TaxpayerCo. discovered the error and voluntarily
Time to receive a VAT refund noti ed the tax authority. The value of the underpaid income tax liability is
Time to comply with a corporate income tax audit 5% of the corporate income tax liability due. TaxpayerCo. submits
corrected information after the deadline for submitting the annual tax
Time to complete a corporate income tax audit
return, but within the tax assessment period.
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Payments (number per year) 15 21.8 10.9 3 (Hong Kong SAR,
China)
Page 43
return, but within the tax assessment period.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Payments (number per year) 15 21.8 10.9 3 (Hong Kong SAR,
China)
Time (hours per year) 64.2 189.2 160.7 55 (Luxembourg)
Total tax and contribution rate (% of profit) 8.0 33.6 40.1 18.47% (32 Economies)
Postfiling index (0-100) 0.00 56.55 83.45 99.38 (Estonia)
Figure – Paying Taxes in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
76.07: Malaysia (Rank: 73)
72.42: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
69.41: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 104)
69.27: Philippines (Rank: 105)
68.04: Indonesia (Rank: 114)
62.90: China (Rank: 130)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of paying taxes is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores on the ease of
paying taxes. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the four component indicators –
number of tax payments. time, total tax rate and post ling index – with a threshold and a nonlinear transformation applied to one of
the component indicators, the total tax rate. The nonlinear distance to frontier for the total tax rate is equal to the distance to
frontier for the total tax rate to the power of 0.8. The threshold is de ned as the total tax rate at the 15th percentile of the overall
distribution for all years included in the analysis up to and including Doing Business 2015, which is 26.1%. All economies with a total
tax rate below this threshold receive the same score as the economy at the threshold.
Figure – Paying Taxes in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
80
68.82
70
60 56.55
52.65 50.00
49.08
Index score
50
40
30
20
10
0.00
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Paying Taxes in Brunei Darussalam
Total tax and
Payments Notes on Time Statutory contribution rate Notes
Tax or mandatory contribution (number) Payments (hours) tax rate Tax base (% of profit) on TTR
Page 44
Employer paid - Employee 11 22 5% plus gross 7.92
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Paying Taxes in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
80
68.82
70
60 56.55
52.65 50.00
49.08
Index score
50
40
30
20
10
0.00
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Paying Taxes in Brunei Darussalam
Total tax and
Payments Notes on Time Statutory contribution rate Notes
Tax or mandatory contribution (number) Payments (hours) tax rate Tax base (% of profit) on TTR
Employer paid - Employee 11 22 5% plus gross 7.92
Provident Fund (Tabung Amanah 3.5% salary
Pekerja TAP) capped
Corporate income tax 1 online 43 18.5% taxable 0.09
profit
Vehicle tax 1 B$4.50 depending 0.01
per 100 on engine
c.c size
Building tax 1 up to assessed 0.00 small
12% rental amount
value
Employee paid - Employee 0 jointly 5% plus gross 0.00 withheld
Provident Fund (Tabung Amanah 3.5% salary
Pekerja TAP) capped
Land tax 1 assessed 0.00 small
property amount
value
Totals 15 64.2 8.0
Details – Paying Taxes in Brunei Darussalam – Tax by Type
Taxes by type Answer
Profit tax (% of profit) 0.1
Labor tax and contributions (% of profit) 7.9
Other taxes (% of profit) 0.0
Page 45
Totals 15 64.2 8.0
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Paying Taxes in Brunei Darussalam – Tax by Type
Taxes by type Answer
Profit tax (% of profit) 0.1
Labor tax and contributions (% of profit) 7.9
Other taxes (% of profit) 0.0
Details – Paying Taxes in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer Score
Post ling index (0-100) 0.00
VAT refunds
Does VAT exist? No
Does a VAT refund process exist per the case study? N/A
Restrictions on VAT refund process N/A
Percentage of cases exposed to a VAT audit (%) Not applicable
Is there a mandatory carry forward period? No
Time to comply with VAT refund (hours) No VAT No VAT
Time to obtain a VAT refund (weeks) No VAT No VAT
Corporate income tax audits
Does corporate income tax exist? Yes
Percentage of cases exposed to a corporate income tax audit (%) 50% - 74%
Time to comply with a corporate income tax audit (hours) 137.0 0
Time to complete a corporate income tax audit (weeks) 65.4 0
Notes: Names of taxes have been standardized. For instance income tax, pro t tax, tax on company's income are all named
corporate income tax in this table.
The hours for VAT include all the VAT and sales taxes applicable.
The hours for Social Security include all the hours for labor taxes and mandatory contributions in general.
The post ling index is the average of the scores on time to comply with VAT refund, time to obtain a VAT refund, time to comply with
a corporate income tax audit and time to complete a corporate income tax audit.
N/A = Not applicable.
Trading across Borders
Doing Business records the time and cost associated with the logistical process of exporting and importing goods. Doing Business
measures the time and cost (excluding tari s) associated with three sets of procedures—documentary compliance, border
compliance and domestic transport—within the overall process of exporting or importing a shipment of goods. The most recent
round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information.
Page 46
Given the importance of trade digitalization, in Doing Business 2018, the Trading across Borders questionnaire included research
a corporate income tax audit and time to complete a corporate income tax audit.
N/A = Not applicable.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Trading across Borders
Doing Business records the time and cost associated with the logistical process of exporting and importing goods. Doing Business
measures the time and cost (excluding tari s) associated with three sets of procedures—documentary compliance, border
compliance and domestic transport—within the overall process of exporting or importing a shipment of goods. The most recent
round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information.
Given the importance of trade digitalization, in Doing Business 2018, the Trading across Borders questionnaire included research
questions on the availability and status of implementation of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Single Window (SW) systems.
With this information, Doing Business built a comprehensive dataset on the adoption and level of sophistication of electronic
platforms in 190 economies. These data are not used to compute the distance to frontier score or ranking of the ease of doing
business. The new dataset on EDI and SW systems is available here.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Documentary compliance To make the data comparable across economies, a few assumptions are
made about the traded goods and the transactions:
Obtaining, preparing and submitting documents
during transport, clearance, inspections and port
Time: Time is measured in hours, and 1 day is 24 hours (for example, 22
or border handling in origin economy
days are recorded as 22×24=528 hours). If customs clearance takes 7.5
Obtaining, preparing and submitting documents
hours, the data are recorded as is. Alternatively, suppose documents are
required by destination economy and any transit
submitted to a customs agency at 8:00a.m., are processed overnight and
economies
can be picked up at 8:00a.m. the next day. The time for customs clearance
Covers all documents required by law and in would be recorded as 24 hours because the actual procedure took 24
practice, including electronic submissions of hours.
information
Border compliance Cost: Insurance cost and informal payments for which no receipt is issued
are excluded from the costs recorded. Costs are reported in U.S. dollars.
Customs clearance and inspections Contributors are asked to convert local currency into U.S. dollars based on
Inspections by other agencies (if applied to more the exchange rate prevailing on the day they answer the questionnaire.
than 20% of shipments) Contributors are private sector experts in international trade logistics and
Handling and inspections that take place at the are informed about exchange rates.
economy’s port or border
Assumptions of the case study: - For all 190 economies covered by Doing
Domestic transport
Business, it is assumed a shipment is in a warehouse in the largest
Loading or unloading of the shipment at the business city of the exporting economy and travels to a warehouse in the
warehouse or port/border largest business city of the importing economy. - It is assumed each
Transport between warehouse and port/border economy imports 15 metric tons of containerized auto parts (HS 8708)
from its natural import partner—the economy from which it imports the
Traffic delays and road police checks while
shipment is en route largest value (price times quantity) of auto parts. It is assumed each
economy exports the product of its comparative advantage (de ned by the
largest export value) to its natural export partner—the economy that is the
largest purchaser of this product. Shipment value is assumed to be
$50,000. - The mode of transport is the one most widely used for the
chosen export or import product and the trading partner, as is the
seaport, or land border crossing. - All electronic information submissions
requested by any government agency in connection with the shipment are
considered to be documents obtained, prepared and submitted during the
export or import process. - A port or border is a place (seaport, airport or
land border crossing) where merchandise can enter or leave an economy. -
Relevant government agencies include customs, port authorities, road
police, border guards, standardization agencies, ministries or departments
of agriculture or industry, national security agencies and any other
government authorities.
Page 47
of agriculture or industry, national security agencies and any other
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam government authorities.
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Time to export: Border compliance (hours) 117 55.9 12.7 0 (17 Economies)
Cost to export: Border compliance (USD) 340 387.5 149.9 0.00 (19 Economies)
Time to export: Documentary compliance 155 68.2 2.4 1.0 (25 Economies)
(hours)
Cost to export: Documentary compliance (USD) 90 112.1 35.4 0.00 (19 Economies)
Time to import: Border compliance (hours) 48 70.5 8.7 0.00 (21 Economies)
Cost to import: Border compliance (USD) 395 431.0 111.6 0.00 (27 Economies)
Time to import: Documentary compliance 132 65.6 3.5 1.0 (30 Economies)
(hours)
Cost to import: Documentary compliance (USD) 50 111.4 25.6 0.00 (30 Economies)
Figure – Trading across Borders in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
82.75: Malaysia (Rank: 61)
69.97: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
69.91: China (Rank: 97)
69.39: Philippines (Rank: 99)
66.59: Indonesia (Rank: 112)
58.70: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 144)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of trading across borders is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for
trading across borders. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for the time and cost for
documentary compliance and border compliance to export and import (domestic transport is not used for calculating the ranking).
Figure – Trading across Borders in Brunei Darussalam – Time and Cost
Time Cost
180 450
155 395
160 400
340 132
140 350
117
120 300
Time (hours)
Cost (USD)
100 250
80 200
60 48 150
90
40 100
50
20 50
0 0
Export - Border Compliance Export - Documentary Compliance Import - Border Compliance Import - Documentary CompliancePage 48
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Trading across Borders in Brunei Darussalam – Time and Cost
Time Cost
180 450
155 395
160 400
340 132
140 350
117
120 300
Time (hours)
Cost (USD)
100 250
80 200
60 48 150
90
40 100
50
20 50
0 0
Export - Border Compliance Export - Documentary Compliance Import - Border Compliance Import - Documentary Compliance
Details – Trading across Borders in Brunei Darussalam
Characteristics Export Import
Product HS 29 : Organic chemicals HS 8708: Parts and accessories of motor vehicles
Trade partner Japan Japan
Border Muara port Muara port
Distance (km) 25 25
Domestic transport time (hours) 3 3
Domestic transport cost (USD) 150 150
Details – Trading across Borders in Brunei Darussalam – Components of Border Compliance
Time to Complete Associated Costs
(hours) (USD)
Export: Clearance and inspections required by customs authorities 45.0 100.0
Export: Clearance and inspections required by agencies other than customs 0.0 0.0
Export: Port or border handling 72.0 240.0
Import: Clearance and inspections required by customs authorities 48.0 80.0
Import: Clearance and inspections required by agencies other than customs 0.0 0.0
Import: Port or border handling 48.0 315.0
Details – Trading across Borders in Brunei Darussalam – Trade Documents
Export Import
Bill of lading Bill of Lading
Commercial invoice Shipping Delivery Order Page 49
Domestic transport cost (USD) 150 150
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Trading across Borders in Brunei Darussalam – Components of Border Compliance
Time to Complete Associated Costs
(hours) (USD)
Export: Clearance and inspections required by customs authorities 45.0 100.0
Export: Clearance and inspections required by agencies other than customs 0.0 0.0
Export: Port or border handling 72.0 240.0
Import: Clearance and inspections required by customs authorities 48.0 80.0
Import: Clearance and inspections required by agencies other than customs 0.0 0.0
Import: Port or border handling 48.0 315.0
Details – Trading across Borders in Brunei Darussalam – Trade Documents
Export Import
Bill of lading Bill of Lading
Commercial invoice Shipping Delivery Order
Customs export declaration Commercial Invoice
Packing list Packing list
Material Safety Data Sheet Customs Import Declaration
SOLAS certificate Technical Certificate
SOLAS certificate
Enforcing Contracts
The enforcing contracts indicator measures the time and cost for resolving a commercial dispute through a local rst-instance
court, and the quality of judicial processes index, evaluating whether each economy has adopted a series of good practices that
promote quality and e ciency in the court system. The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the
methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Time required to enforce a contract through the The dispute in the case study involves the breach of a sales contract
courts (calendar days) between 2 domestic businesses. The case study assumes that the court
hears an expert on the quality of the goods in dispute. This distinguishes
Time to file and serve the case
the case from simple debt enforcement.
Time for trial and to obtain the judgment
To make the data comparable across economies, Doing Business uses
Time to enforce the judgment
several assumptions about the case:
Cost required to enforce a contract through the - The dispute concerns a lawful transaction between two businesses (Seller
courts (% of claim) and Buyer), both located in the economy’s largest business city. For 11
Attorney fees economies the data are also collected for the second largest business city.
- The buyer orders custom-made goods, then fails to pay.
Court fees
- The value of the dispute is 200% of the income per capita Page 50
or the
Enforcement fees
SOLAS certificate
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Enforcing Contracts
The enforcing contracts indicator measures the time and cost for resolving a commercial dispute through a local rst-instance
court, and the quality of judicial processes index, evaluating whether each economy has adopted a series of good practices that
promote quality and e ciency in the court system. The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the
methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Time required to enforce a contract through the The dispute in the case study involves the breach of a sales contract
courts (calendar days) between 2 domestic businesses. The case study assumes that the court
hears an expert on the quality of the goods in dispute. This distinguishes
Time to file and serve the case
the case from simple debt enforcement.
Time for trial and to obtain the judgment
To make the data comparable across economies, Doing Business uses
Time to enforce the judgment
several assumptions about the case:
Cost required to enforce a contract through the - The dispute concerns a lawful transaction between two businesses (Seller
courts (% of claim) and Buyer), both located in the economy’s largest business city. For 11
Attorney fees economies the data are also collected for the second largest business city.
- The buyer orders custom-made goods, then fails to pay.
Court fees
- The value of the dispute is 200% of the income per capita or the
Enforcement fees equivalent in local currency of USD 5,000, whichever is greater.
Quality of judicial processes index (0-18) - The seller sues the buyer before the court with jurisdiction over
commercial cases worth 200% of income per capita or $5,000.
Court structure and proceedings (-1-5)
- The seller requests a pretrial attachment to secure the claim.
Case management (0-6) - The dispute on the quality of the goods requires an expert opinion.
Court automation (0-4) - The judge decides in favor of the seller; there is no appeal.
Alternative dispute resolution (0-3) - The seller enforces the judgment through a public sale of the buyer’s
movable assets.
Standardized Case
Claim value BND 68,449.00
Court name Bandar Seri Begawan Intermediate Court
City Covered Bandar Seri Begawan
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Time (days) 540 565.7 577.8 164.00 (Singapore)
Cost (% of claim value) 36.6 47.3 21.5 9.00 (Iceland)
Quality of judicial processes index (0-18) 10.5 7.9 11.0 15.50 (Australia)
Figure – Enforcing Contracts in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
78.23: China (Rank: 5)
66.61: Malaysia (Rank: 44)
60.95: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 61) Page 51
of judicial processes
Quality Business
Doing index (0-18)
2018 Brunei Darussalam 10.5 7.9 11.0 15.50 (Australia)
Figure – Enforcing Contracts in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
78.23: China (Rank: 5)
66.61: Malaysia (Rank: 44)
60.95: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 61)
53.09: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
47.23: Indonesia (Rank: 145)
45.96: Philippines (Rank: 149)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of enforcing contracts is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for
enforcing contracts. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for each of the component indicators.
Figure – Enforcing Contracts in Brunei Darussalam – Time and Cost
Time Cost
1200 80
70.3
962 70
1000
Cost (% of claim value)
60
800 47.3
Time (days)
50
540 36.6 565.7 37.3 577.8
600 496.3 40
31.0
403.2 425
30
400 21.5
16.2 20
200
10
0 0
Brunei Darussalam China East Asia & Indonesia Malaysia OECD high income Philippines
Pacific
Figure – Enforcing Contracts in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
Brunei Darussalam 2 3 2.5 3
China 3 4.5 3 4.5
Indonesia 2.5 1.8 0.6 3
Malaysia 2.5 3 2.5 4
Philippines 2.5 1.5 0.5 3
OECD high income 2.5 2.9 2 3.6
East Asia & Pacific 2.2 2 1.3 3
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Page 52
16
Brunei Darussalam China East Asia & Indonesia Malaysia OECD high income Philippines
Pacific
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Enforcing Contracts in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
Brunei Darussalam 2 3 2.5 3
China 3 4.5 3 4.5
Indonesia 2.5 1.8 0.6 3
Malaysia 2.5 3 2.5 4
Philippines 2.5 1.5 0.5 3
OECD high income 2.5 2.9 2 3.6
East Asia & Pacific 2.2 2 1.3 3
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
Sub-Indicator Score
Alternative dispute resolution (03) Case management (06) Court automation (04) Court structure and proceedings (15)
Details – Enforcing Contracts in Brunei Darussalam
Indicator
Time (days) 540
Filing and service 50
Trial and judgment 400
Enforcement of judgment 90
Cost (% of claim value) 36.6
Attorney fees 30
Court fees 3.6
Enforcement fees 3
Quality of judicial processes index (0-18) 10.5
Court structure and proceedings (-1-5) 3.0
Case management (0-6) 3.0
Court automation (0-4) 2.5
Alternative dispute resolution (0-3) 2.0
Details – Enforcing Contracts in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Page 53
Alternative dispute resolution (0-3) 2.0
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Enforcing Contracts in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer Score
Quality of judicial processes index (0-18) 10.5
Court structure and proceedings (-1-5) 3.0
1. Is there a court or division of a court dedicated solely to hearing commercial cases? No 0.0
2. Small claims court 1.5
2.a. Is there a small claims court or a fast-track procedure for small claims? Yes
2.b. If yes, is self-representation allowed? Yes
3. Is pretrial attachment available? Yes 1.0
4. Are new cases assigned randomly to judges? Yes, but manual 0.5
5. Does a woman's testimony carry the same evidentiary weight in court as a man's? Yes 0.0
Case management (0-6) 3.0
1. Time standards 0.0
1.a. Are there laws setting overall time standards for key court events in a civil case? Yes
1.b. If yes, are the time standards set for at least three court events? No
1.c. Are these time standards respected in more than 50% of cases? No
2. Adjournments 0.0
2.a. Does the law regulate the maximum number of adjournments that can be No
granted?
2.b. Are adjournments limited to unforeseen and exceptional circumstances? Yes
2.c. If rules on adjournments exist, are they respected in more than 50% of cases? No
3. Can two of the following four reports be generated about the competent court: (i) No 0.0
time to disposition report; (ii) clearance rate report; (iii) age of pending cases report;
and (iv) single case progress report?
4. Is a pretrial conference among the case management techniques used before the Yes 1.0
competent court?
5. Are there any electronic case management tools in place within the competent court Yes 1.0
for use by judges?
6. Are there any electronic case management tools in place within the competent court Yes 1.0
for use by lawyers?
Court automation (0-4) 2.5
1. Can the initial complaint be led electronically through a dedicated platform within Yes 1.0
the competent court?
2. Is it possible to carry out service of process electronically for claims led before the No 0.0
competent court?
Page 54
1. Can the initial complaint be led electronically through a dedicated platform within Yes 1.0
Businesscourt?
the competent
Doing 2018 Brunei Darussalam
2. Is it possible to carry out service of process electronically for claims led before the No 0.0
competent court?
3. Can court fees be paid electronically within the competent court? Yes 1.0
4. Publication of judgments 0.5
4.a Are judgments rendered in commercial cases at all levels made available to the No
general public through publication in o cial gazettes, in newspapers or on the
internet or court website?
4.b. Are judgments rendered in commercial cases at the appellate and supreme Yes
court level made available to the general public through publication in o cial
gazettes, in newspapers or on the internet or court website?
Alternative dispute resolution (0-3) 2.0
1. Arbitration 1.5
1.a. Is domestic commercial arbitration governed by a consolidated law or Yes
consolidated chapter or section of the applicable code of civil procedure
encompassing substantially all its aspects?
1.b. Are there any commercial disputes—aside from those that deal with public No
order or public policy—that cannot be submitted to arbitration?
1.c. Are valid arbitration clauses or agreements usually enforced by the courts? Yes
2. Mediation/Conciliation 0.5
2.a. Is voluntary mediation or conciliation available? Yes
2.b. Are mediation, conciliation or both governed by a consolidated law or No
consolidated chapter or section of the applicable code of civil procedure
encompassing substantially all their aspects?
2.c. Are there nancial incentives for parties to attempt mediation or conciliation (i.e., No
if mediation or conciliation is successful, a refund of court ling fees, income tax
credits or the like)?
Resolving Insolvency
Doing Business studies the time, cost and outcome of insolvency proceedings involving domestic legal entities. These variables are
used to calculate the recovery rate, which is recorded as cents on the dollar recovered by secured creditors through reorganization,
liquidation or debt enforcement (foreclosure or receivership) proceedings. To determine the present value of the amount recovered
by creditors, Doing Business uses the lending rates from the International Monetary Fund, supplemented with data from central
banks and the Economist Intelligence Unit.
The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Time required to recover debt (years) To make the data on the time, cost and outcome comparable across
economies, several assumptions about the business and the case are
Measured in calendar years
used:
Appeals and requests for extension are included
- A hotel located in the largest city (or cities) has 201 employees and 50
Cost required to recover debt (% of debtor’s estate)
suppliers. The hotel experiences nancial di culties. Page 55
Measured as percentage of estate value - The value of the hotel is 100% of the income per capita or the equivalent
if mediation or conciliation is successful, a refund of court ling fees, income tax
credits or the like)?
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Resolving Insolvency
Doing Business studies the time, cost and outcome of insolvency proceedings involving domestic legal entities. These variables are
used to calculate the recovery rate, which is recorded as cents on the dollar recovered by secured creditors through reorganization,
liquidation or debt enforcement (foreclosure or receivership) proceedings. To determine the present value of the amount recovered
by creditors, Doing Business uses the lending rates from the International Monetary Fund, supplemented with data from central
banks and the Economist Intelligence Unit.
The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Time required to recover debt (years) To make the data on the time, cost and outcome comparable across
economies, several assumptions about the business and the case are
Measured in calendar years
used:
Appeals and requests for extension are included
- A hotel located in the largest city (or cities) has 201 employees and 50
Cost required to recover debt (% of debtor’s estate)
suppliers. The hotel experiences nancial di culties.
Measured as percentage of estate value - The value of the hotel is 100% of the income per capita or the equivalent
Court fees in local currency of USD 200,000, whichever is greater.
- The hotel has a loan from a domestic bank, secured by a mortgage over
Fees of insolvency administrators
the hotel’s real estate. The hotel cannot pay back the loan, but makes
Lawyers’ fees enough money to operate otherwise.
Assessors’ and auctioneers’ fees
In addition, Doing Business evaluates the adequacy and integrity of the
Other related fees
existing legal framework applicable to liquidation and reorganization
Outcome proceedings through the strength of insolvency framework index. The
index tests whether economies adopted internationally accepted good
Whether business continues operating as a going
practices in four areas: commencement of proceedings, management of
concern or business assets are sold piecemeal
debtor’s assets, reorganization proceedings and creditor participation.
Recovery rate for creditors
Measures the cents on the dollar recovered by
secured creditors
Outcome for the business (survival or not)
determines the maximum value that can be
recovered
Official costs of the insolvency proceedings are
deducted
Depreciation of furniture is taken into account
Present value of debt recovered
Strength of insolvency framework index (0- 16)
Sum of the scores of four component indices:
Commencement of proceedings index (0-3)
Management of debtor’s assets index (0-6)
Reorganization proceedings index (0-3)
Creditor participation index (0-4)
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 47.2 35.4 71.2 93.1 (Norway)
Time (years) 2.5 2.6 1.7 0.4 (Ireland)
Page 56
Cost (% of estate) 3.5 20.6 9.1 1.00 (Norway)
Creditor participation index (0-4)
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Brunei East Asia & OECD high
Indicator Darussalam Pacific income Overall Best Performer
Recovery rate (cents on the dollar) 47.2 35.4 71.2 93.1 (Norway)
Time (years) 2.5 2.6 1.7 0.4 (Ireland)
Cost (% of estate) 3.5 20.6 9.1 1.00 (Norway)
Outcome (0 as piecemeal sale and 1 as going 0 .. .. ..
concern)
Strength of insolvency framework index (0-16) 9.5 7.0 12.1 15.00 (6 Economies)
Figure – Resolving Insolvency in Brunei and comparator economies – Ranking and DTF
DB 2018 Distance to Frontier (DTF)
0 100
67.61: Indonesia (Rank: 38)
62.51: Malaysia (Rank: 46)
55.82: China (Rank: 56)
55.22: Philippines (Rank: 59)
55.11: Brunei Darussalam (Rank: 60)
40.78: Regional Average (East Asia & Pacific)
Note: The ranking of economies on the ease of resolving insolvency is determined by sorting their distance to frontier scores for
resolving insolvency. These scores are the simple average of the distance to frontier scores for the recovery rate and the strength of
insolvency framework index.
Figure – Resolving Insolvency in Brunei Darussalam – Time and Cost
Time Cost
3 32.0 35
2.6 2.7
2.5
2.5 30
22.0 21.6 25 Cost (% of estate)
Time (years)
2 20.6
1.7 1.7
20
1.5
1.1 15
1.0
1 10.0 9.1
10
0.5 3.5 5
0 0
Brunei Darussalam China East Asia & Indonesia Malaysia OECD high income Philippines
Pacific
Figure – Resolving Insolvency in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
Brunei Darussalam 5 3 0 1.5
Page 57
China 5 3 1 2.5
Brunei Darussalam China East Asia & Indonesia Malaysia OECD high income Philippines
Pacific
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Figure – Resolving Insolvency in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Measure of Quality
Brunei Darussalam 5 3 0 1.5
China 5 3 1 2.5
Indonesia 5 3 2 0.5
Malaysia 2 2 2 0
Philippines 5.5 2.5 3 3
OECD high income 5.4 2.8 2.3 1.9
East Asia & Pacific 3.7 2.3 1.2 1
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
Sub-Indicator Score
Management of debtor's assets index (06) Commencement of proceedings index (03) Creditor participation index (04)
Reorganization proceedings index (03)
Figure – Resolving Insolvency in Brunei Darussalam and comparator economies – Recovery Rate
Recovery Rate (cents on the dollar)
90 81.3
80
70 64.7
60
50
47.2
40
36.9 35.4
30 21.3
20
10
0
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Details – Resolving Insolvency in Brunei Darussalam
Indicator Answer Explanation
Proceeding foreclosure After Mirage's default, BizBank would enforce its security interest over Mirage's assets as the
debenture holder and initiate foreclosure proceeding in the High Court
Outcome piecemeal sale The hotel will stop operating and Mirage's assets will be sold piecemeal upon the completion
of insolvency proceeding. Usually the assets will be sold through tender sale.
Time (in years) 2.5 The foreclosure procedure takes approximate 2.5 years until BizBank is repaid some or all of
the money owed to it. The delay is largely due to the possible delaying tactics adopted by
Mirage. When the BizBank tries to foreclose the assets, it is likely that Mirage would file for an
injunction at the Court. It takes at least 1 year for the Court to hold several hearings until the
execution order is granted to BizBank. Then the preparation and execution of the assets sale
would take at least an additional 1 year until BizBank receives the sales proceeds.
Page 58
Cost (% of 3.5 The costs associated with the case would amount to approximately 4% of the value of the
Brunei Darussalam China Indonesia Malaysia Philippines East Asia & Pacific
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Resolving Insolvency in Brunei Darussalam
Indicator Answer Explanation
Proceeding foreclosure After Mirage's default, BizBank would enforce its security interest over Mirage's assets as the
debenture holder and initiate foreclosure proceeding in the High Court
Outcome piecemeal sale The hotel will stop operating and Mirage's assets will be sold piecemeal upon the completion
of insolvency proceeding. Usually the assets will be sold through tender sale.
Time (in years) 2.5 The foreclosure procedure takes approximate 2.5 years until BizBank is repaid some or all of
the money owed to it. The delay is largely due to the possible delaying tactics adopted by
Mirage. When the BizBank tries to foreclose the assets, it is likely that Mirage would file for an
injunction at the Court. It takes at least 1 year for the Court to hold several hearings until the
execution order is granted to BizBank. Then the preparation and execution of the assets sale
would take at least an additional 1 year until BizBank receives the sales proceeds.
Cost (% of 3.5 The costs associated with the case would amount to approximately 4% of the value of the
estate) debtor's estate; Main components of the costs incurred during the insolvency process
include attorney fees (up to 2%), insolvency representative fees (1%), fees of accountants,
assessors, inspectors and other professionals (1%).
Recovery rate (cents on the 47.2
dollar)
Details – Resolving Insolvency in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer Score
Strength of insolvency framework index (0-16) 9.5
Commencement of proceedings index (0-3) 3.0
What procedures are available to a DEBTOR when commencing insolvency (a) Debtor may 1.0
proceedings? le for both
liquidation and
reorganization
Does the insolvency framework allow a CREDITOR to le for insolvency of the debtor? (a) Yes, a creditor 1.0
may le for both
liquidation and
reorganization
What basis for commencement of the insolvency proceedings is allowed under the (a) Debtor is 1.0
insolvency framework? generally unable
to pay its debts
as they mature
Management of debtor's assets index (0-6) 5.0
Does the insolvency framework allow the continuation of contracts supplying essential No 0.0
goods and services to the debtor?
Does the insolvency framework allow the rejection by the debtor of overly burdensome Yes 1.0
contracts?
Does the insolvency framework allow avoidance of preferential transactions? Yes 1.0 Page 59
dollar)
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Resolving Insolvency in Brunei Darussalam – Measure of Quality
Answer Score
Strength of insolvency framework index (0-16) 9.5
Commencement of proceedings index (0-3) 3.0
What procedures are available to a DEBTOR when commencing insolvency (a) Debtor may 1.0
proceedings? le for both
liquidation and
reorganization
Does the insolvency framework allow a CREDITOR to le for insolvency of the debtor? (a) Yes, a creditor 1.0
may le for both
liquidation and
reorganization
What basis for commencement of the insolvency proceedings is allowed under the (a) Debtor is 1.0
insolvency framework? generally unable
to pay its debts
as they mature
Management of debtor's assets index (0-6) 5.0
Does the insolvency framework allow the continuation of contracts supplying essential No 0.0
goods and services to the debtor?
Does the insolvency framework allow the rejection by the debtor of overly burdensome Yes 1.0
contracts?
Does the insolvency framework allow avoidance of preferential transactions? Yes 1.0
Does the insolvency framework allow avoidance of undervalued transactions? Yes 1.0
Does the insolvency framework provide for the possibility of the debtor obtaining credit Yes 1.0
after commencement of insolvency proceedings?
Does the insolvency framework assign priority to post-commencement credit? (b) Yes over 1.0
ordinary
unsecured
creditors but not
over secured
creditors
Reorganization proceedings index (0-3) 1.5
Which creditors vote on the proposed reorganization plan? (a) All creditors 0.5
Does the insolvency framework require that dissenting creditors in reorganization Yes 1.0
receive at least as much as what they would obtain in a liquidation?
Are the creditors devided into classes for the purposes of voting on the reorganization No 0.0
plan, does each class vote separately and are creditors in the same class treated
equally?
Creditor participation index (0-4) 0.0
Does the insolvency framework require approval by the creditors for selection or No 0.0
appointment of the insolvency representative? Page 60
Creditor
Doing participation
Business 2018 index (0-4) Darussalam
Brunei 0.0
Does the insolvency framework require approval by the creditors for selection or No 0.0
appointment of the insolvency representative?
Does the insolvency framework require approval by the creditors for sale of substantial No 0.0
assets of the debtor?
Does the insolvency framework provide that a creditor has the right to request No 0.0
information from the insolvency representative?
Does the insolvency framework provide that a creditor has the right to object to No 0.0
decisions accepting or rejecting creditors' claims?
Note: Even if the economy’s legal framework includes provisions related to insolvency proceedings (liquidation or reorganization),
the economy receives 0 points for the strength of insolvency framework index, if time, cost and outcome indicators are recorded as
“no practice”.
Labor Market Regulation
Doing Business presents the data for the labor market regulation indicators in an annex. The report does not present rankings of
economies on these indicators or include the topic in the aggregate distance to frontier score or ranking on the ease of doing
business. Detailed data collected on labor market regulation are available on the Doing Business website
(http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploretopics/labor-market-regulation).
The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Hiring To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions
(i) whether xed-term contracts are prohibited for about the worker and the business are used.
permanent tasks; (ii) maximum cumulative duration
of xed-term contracts; (iii) length of the The worker:
probationary period; (iv) minimum wage. - Is a cashier in a supermarket or grocery store, age 19, with one year of
work experience.
Working hours
- Is a full-time employee.
(i) maximum number of working days allowed per
- Is not a member of the labor union, unless membership is mandatory.
week; (ii) premiums for work: at night, on a weekly
rest day and overtime; (iii) whether there are The business:
restrictions on work at night, work on a weekly rest - Is a limited liability company (or the equivalent in the economy).
day and for overtime work; (iv) whether nonpregnant - Operates a supermarket or grocery store in the economy’s largest
Page 61
the economy receives 0 points for the strength of insolvency framework index, if time, cost and outcome indicators are recorded as
“no practice”.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Labor Market Regulation
Doing Business presents the data for the labor market regulation indicators in an annex. The report does not present rankings of
economies on these indicators or include the topic in the aggregate distance to frontier score or ranking on the ease of doing
business. Detailed data collected on labor market regulation are available on the Doing Business website
(http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploretopics/labor-market-regulation).
The most recent round of data collection was completed in June 2017. See the methodology for more information.
What the indicators measure Case study assumptions
Hiring To make the data comparable across economies, several assumptions
(i) whether xed-term contracts are prohibited for about the worker and the business are used.
permanent tasks; (ii) maximum cumulative duration
of xed-term contracts; (iii) length of the The worker:
probationary period; (iv) minimum wage. - Is a cashier in a supermarket or grocery store, age 19, with one year of
work experience.
Working hours
- Is a full-time employee.
(i) maximum number of working days allowed per
- Is not a member of the labor union, unless membership is mandatory.
week; (ii) premiums for work: at night, on a weekly
rest day and overtime; (iii) whether there are The business:
restrictions on work at night, work on a weekly rest - Is a limited liability company (or the equivalent in the economy).
day and for overtime work; (iv) whether nonpregnant - Operates a supermarket or grocery store in the economy’s largest
and nonnursing women can work same night hours business city. For 11 economies the data are also collected for the second
as men; (v) length of paid annual leave. largest business city.
- Has 60 employees.
Redundancy rules
- Is subject to collective bargaining agreements if such agreements cover
(i) whether redundancy can be basis for terminating
more than 50% of the food retail sector and they apply even to rms that
workers; (ii) whether employer needs to notify
are not party to them.
and/or get approval from third party to terminate 1
- Abides by every law and regulation but does not grant workers more
redundant worker and a group of 9 redundant
bene ts than those mandated by law, regulation or (if applicable) collective
workers; (iii) whether law requires employer to
bargaining agreements.
reassign or retrain a worker before making worker
redundant; (iv) whether priority rules apply for
redundancies and reemployment.
Redundancy cost
(i) notice period for redundancy dismissal; (ii)
severance payments due when terminating a
redundant worker.
Job quality
(i) whether law mandates equal remuneration for
work of equal value and nondiscrimination based on
gender in hiring; (ii) whether law mandates paid or
unpaid maternity leave; (iii) length of paid maternity
leave; (iv) whether employees on maternity leave
receive 100% of wages; (v) availability of ve fully paid
days of sick leave a year; (vi) eligibility requirements
for unemployment protection.
Details – Labor Market Regulation in Brunei Darussalam
Answer
Hiring
Page 62
Fixed-term contracts prohibited for permanent tasks? No
days of sick leave a year; (vi) eligibility requirements
for unemployment protection.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Details – Labor Market Regulation in Brunei Darussalam
Answer
Hiring
Fixed-term contracts prohibited for permanent tasks? No
Maximum length of a single xed-term contract (months) No limit
Maximum length of xed-term contracts, including renewals (months) No limit
Minimum wage applicable to the worker assumed in the case study (US$/month) 0.0
Ratio of minimum wage to value added per worker 0.0
Maximum length of probationary period (months) n.a.
Working hours
Standard workday 8.0
Maximum number of working days per week 6.0
Premium for night work (% of hourly pay) 0.0
Premium for work on weekly rest day (% of hourly pay) 50.0
Premium for overtime work (% of hourly pay) 50.0
Restrictions on night work? No
Whether nonpregnant and nonnursing women can work the same night hours as men Yes
Restrictions on weekly holiday? No
Restrictions on overtime work? No
Paid annual leave for a worker with 1 year of tenure (working days) 7.0
Paid annual leave for a worker with 5 years of tenure (working days) 14.0
Paid annual leave for a worker with 10 years of tenure (working days) 14.0
Paid annual leave (average for workers with 1, 5 and 10 years of tenure, in working days) 11.7
Redundancy rules
Dismissal due to redundancy allowed by law? Yes
Third-party noti cation if one worker is dismissed? No
Third-party approval if one worker is dismissed? No
Third-party noti cation if nine workers are dismissed? No
Third-party approval if nine workers are dismissed? No
Retraining or reassignment obligation before redundancy? No
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Third-party
Doing approval
Business 2018 if nine workers
Brunei are dismissed?
Darussalam No
Retraining or reassignment obligation before redundancy? No
Priority rules for redundancies? No
Priority rules for reemployment? No
Redundancy cost
Notice period for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 1 year of tenure 1.0
Notice period for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 5 years of tenure 4.0
Notice period for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 10 years of tenure 4.0
Notice period for redundancy dismissal (average for workers with 1, 5 and 10 years of tenure) 3.0
Severance pay for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 1 year of tenure 0.0
Severance pay for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 5 years of tenure 0.0
Severance pay for redundancy dismissal for a worker with 10 years of tenure 0.0
Severance pay for redundancy dismissal (average for workers with 1, 5 and 10 years of tenure) 0.0
Job quality
Equal remuneration for work of equal value? No
Gender nondiscrimination in hiring? No
Paid or unpaid maternity leave mandated by law? Yes
Minimum length of maternity leave (calendar days)? 91.0
Receive 100% of wages on maternity leave? Yes
Five fully paid days of sick leave a year? Yes
Unemployment protection after one year of employment? No
Minimum contribution period for unemployment protection (months)? n.a.
Business Reforms in Brunei
In the year ending June 1, 2017, 119 economies implemented 264 total reforms across the di erent areas measured by Doing
Business. Doing Business has recorded more than 2,900 regulatory reforms making it easier to do business since 2004. Reforms
inspired by Doing Business have been implemented by economies in all regions. The following are the reforms for Brunei
implemented since Doing Business 2008.
= Doing Business reform making it easier to do business. = Change making it more di cult to do business.
DB2018
Starting a Business: Brunei Darussalam made starting a business faster by removing post-incorporation procedures.
Dealing with Construction Permits: Brunei Darussalam made dealing with construction permits less cumbersome by
streamlining the process of obtaining a building permit.
Getting Electricity: Brunei Darussalam made getting electricity more di cult by increasing the number of procedures needed to
obtain a new connection. At the same time, a new compensation scheme was introduced to incentivize the utility to improve
reliability.
Page 64
Registering Property: Brunei made registering property easier by increasing the transparency of its land administration system
Minimum contribution period for unemployment protection (months)? n.a.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
Business Reforms in Brunei
In the year ending June 1, 2017, 119 economies implemented 264 total reforms across the di erent areas measured by Doing
Business. Doing Business has recorded more than 2,900 regulatory reforms making it easier to do business since 2004. Reforms
inspired by Doing Business have been implemented by economies in all regions. The following are the reforms for Brunei
implemented since Doing Business 2008.
= Doing Business reform making it easier to do business. = Change making it more di cult to do business.
DB2018
Starting a Business: Brunei Darussalam made starting a business faster by removing post-incorporation procedures.
Dealing with Construction Permits: Brunei Darussalam made dealing with construction permits less cumbersome by
streamlining the process of obtaining a building permit.
Getting Electricity: Brunei Darussalam made getting electricity more di cult by increasing the number of procedures needed to
obtain a new connection. At the same time, a new compensation scheme was introduced to incentivize the utility to improve
reliability.
Registering Property: Brunei made registering property easier by increasing the transparency of its land administration system
and by improving the land administration system’s dispute resolution mechanisms.
Getting Credit: Brunei Darussalam strengthened access to credit by adopting a new law on secured transactions that establishes
a uni ed legal framework for movable assets and creates a modern, notice-based collateral registry. The law also establishes priority
rules for secured creditors inside and outside of insolvency proceedings as well as allows for out of court enforcement.
Protecting Minority Investors: Brunei Darussalam strengthened minority investor protections by increasing shareholder rights
and role in major corporate decisions, clarifying ownership and control structures and requiring greater corporate transparency.
Paying Taxes: Brunei Darussalam made paying taxes easier by introducing an online system for ling and paying labor
contributions.
Trading across Borders: Brunei Darussalam made exporting and importing easier by enhancing the Brunei Darussalam National
Single Window and the customs clearance process.
Enforcing Contracts: Brunei Darussalam made enforcing contracts easier by introducing an electronic case management system
for the use of judges and lawyers.
DB2017
Getting Electricity: The utility in Brunei Darussalam streamlined the processes of reviewing applications, and the time to issue
an excavation permit was reduced. In addition, Brunei Darussalam increased the reliability of power supply by rolling out a
Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) automatic energy management system for the monitoring of outages and the
restoration of service.
Getting Credit: Brunei Darussalam strengthened access to credit by adopting a new insolvency law that contemplates
protections for secured creditors during an automatic stay in reorganization proceedings. Brunei also improved access to credit
information by beginning to distribute data from two utility companies.
Protecting Minority Investors: Brunei Darussalam strengthened minority investor protections by clarifying ownership and
control structures, making it easier to sue directors in case of prejudicial related-party transactions, and allowing the rescission of
related-party transactions that harm the company.
Paying Taxes: Brunei Darussalam made paying taxes easier by fully implementing an electronic system for ling and paying
corporate income tax.
Enforcing Contracts: Brunei Darussalam made enforcing contracts easier by introducing an electronic ling system as well as a
platform that allows users to pay court fees electronically.
Resolving Insolvency: Brunei Darussalam made resolving insolvency easier by adopting a new insolvency law that introduced a
reorganization procedure and facilitated continuation of the debtor’s business during insolvency proceedings. Brunei Darussalam
also introduced regulations for insolvency practitioners.
DB2016
Page 65
Starting a Business: Brunei Darussalam made starting a business easier by improving online procedures and simplifying
reorganization procedure and facilitated continuation of the debtor’s business during insolvency proceedings. Brunei Darussalam
also introduced regulations for insolvency practitioners.
Doing Business 2018 Brunei Darussalam
DB2016
Starting a Business: Brunei Darussalam made starting a business easier by improving online procedures and simplifying
registration and post registration requirements.
Paying Taxes: Brunei Darussalam made paying taxes easier and less costly for companies by merging contributions for the
Employee Provident Fund and the Supplemental Pension Fund and increasing the capital allowance for industrial buildings. In
addition, it reduced the corporate income tax rate, though it also abolished the partial exemption of income and introduced a at
rate.
DB2015
Dealing with Construction Permits: Brunei Darussalam made dealing with construction permits easier by consolidating nal
inspections.
Paying Taxes: Brunei Darussalam made paying taxes easier for companies by allowing joint ling and payment of supplemental
contributory pension and employee provident fund contributions and by introducing an online system for paying these 2
contributions.
DB2014
Getting Credit: Brunei Darussalam improved access to credit information by establishing a public credit registry.
DB2013
Dealing with Construction Permits: Brunei Darussalam made dealing with construction permits easier by creating a one-stop
shop for preconstruction approvals.
Paying Taxes: Brunei Darussalam made paying taxes less costly for companies by reducing the pro t tax rate.
DB2012
Getting Electricity: Brunei Darussalam made getting electricity easier by establishing a one-stop shop and reducing the time
required to obtain an excavation permit.
DB2011
Starting a Business: Brunei Darussalam made starting a business easier by improving e ciency at the company registrar and
implementing an electronic system for name searches.
Paying Taxes: Brunei Darussalam reduced the corporate income tax rate from 23.5% to 22% while also introducing a lower tax
rate for small businesses, ranging from 5.5% to 11%.
Trading across Borders: The introduction of an electronic customs system in Brunei Darussalam made trading easier.
Labor Market Regulation: Brunei Darussalam instituted mandatory minimum annual leave and reduced notice periods applicable
in case of redundancy dismissals.
DB2010
Paying Taxes: Brunei Darussalam made paying taxes less costly for companies by reducing the corporate income tax rate.
Page 66
DB2010
Paying
Doing Taxes: Brunei
Business 2018 Brunei made
Darussalam paying taxes less costly for companies by reducing the corporate income tax rate.
Darussalam
Page 67