Brunei company registration

DOING BUSINESS IN BRUNEI IN 2023

Since 2003, Healy Consultants Group PLC has assisted our Clients with business registration in Brunei. Our services include i) Brunei company incorporation ii) government license registration iii) business bank account opening iv) employee recruitment v) visa strategies and vi) office rental solutions.

Compare different Brunei entities	Resident LLC	Free zone LLC	Brunei PLC	Branch	Representative office
Best use of company?	Local Trading	Manuf./Logistics	Holding/Trading	Agent/Trading	Marketing/Research
Legally tax exempt if properly structured?	No	Yes	No	No	Yes
Corporate bank account location?	HSBC Brunei	SCB Brunei	HSBC Brunei	Citibank Brunei	SCB Brunei
Client must travel to Brunei?	No	No	No	No	No
Can secure trade finance?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Limited liability entity?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
VAT payable on sales to local customers?	No	No	No	No	N/A
Withholding tax on payments to overseas shareholders?	No	No	No	No	N/A
Average total engagement costs?	US$18,215	US$21,380	US$26,730	US$14,780	Contact us
Average total engagement period?	5 months	5 months	5 months	6 months	3.5 months

See full table

Accounting and tax considerations	Resident LLC	Free zone LLC	Brunei PLC	Branch	Representative office
Statutory corporation tax payable?	18.5%	0%	18.5%	18.5%	0%
Must file an annual tax return?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Effective corporation tax rate on net profits of US$250,000?	18.5%	0%	18.5%	18.5%	0%
Must file annual financial statements?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Investment income is legally tax exempt in Brunei?	No	Yes	No	No	Yes
Access to double taxation treaties?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Monthly GST reporting to the Government?	No	No	No	No	No
Legally tax exempt entity?	No	Yes	No	No	Yes
Dividends received are legally tax exempt?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A
Company registration	Resident LLC	Free zone LLC	Brunei PLC	Branch	Representative office
Resident director required?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Minimum number of shareholders/partners?	2	2	7	Parent company	Parent company
Minimum number of directors/managers?	2	1	2	1	1
Minimum paid up share capital?	US$1	US$1	US$1	N/A	N/A
Shelf companies available?	Yes	No	No	No	No
Time to incorporate a new entity?	3 months	3 months	3 months	3 months	3 months
Can easily convert to a local PLC company?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
Can have preference shareholders?	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
Business considerations	Resident LLC	Free zone LLC	Brunei PLC	Branch	Representative office
Can invoice local customers?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Can hire local staff?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Can rent local office space?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Secures a residence visa for business owner?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Good entity for trademark registration?	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No

Brunei has signed free trade agreements?	Yes
This country is a member of WIPO and TRIPS?	Yes
The country is a member of the ICSID?	Yes
Average customs duties suffered?	3.3
Government foreign investment approval is required?	No
Average monthly office rental? (US$ per sq m)	60
Minimum statutory monthly salary?	No legal minimum salary in Brunei
Average monthly US$ salary for local employees?	2,780
Brunei dollar deposit interest rate? (1-year average)	0.3%
US$ deposit interest rate? (1-year average)	0.1%
Overseas remittance currency controls?	No
Public register of shareholders and directors?	No
Banking considerations
Multi-currency bank accounts available?	Yes
Corporate visa debit cards available?	Yes
Quality of e-banking platform?	Good
Crowd funding available in this country?	Yes

Brunei business setup summary

Company deregistration in Brunei | Learn an easy way to deregister your company!

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Advantages of Brunei company registration
1. Brunei has signed 18 agreements for the avoidance of double taxation. This implies a lessening of the tax burden from all the companies operating in Brunei that directly deal with these 18 countries.
2. The country has a stable economy and currency, with the Brunei Dollar directly pegged to the Singapore Dollar;
3. It offers several incentives for foreign investments, such as:
  - Companies which are given a pioneer certificate will enjoy i) exemption of 30% of corporate tax for a period of up to 11 years, depending on the capital expenditure; ii) exemption of import taxes on certain products and raw materials, among other incentives;
  - Companies which produce products or services for export are also eligible for exemption of income tax for up to 11 years;
  - Tax exemption may also be granted for companies which acquire foreign loans for the purchase of production equipment.
4. Brunei has an online portal for registration of companies making the incorporation process quick and easy. The first step is to obtain usual login credentials and the proposed company/ branch name should be validated. Thereafter, all statutory documents need to be submitted online. After payment, the application is reviewed and the applicant is notified by email. Moreover, templates of all statutory documents are easily available.

Disadvantages of Brunei company registration
1. By the 24^th December 2017, all Brunei IBCs as well as Brunei Offshore Companies were fully closed, as declared by the Brunei Registry. The Brunei government took this step in order to promote and protect the local businesses in Brunei. As a result, all the foreign investors had to shut down or sell their businesses, thereby reducing the foreign investor’s confidence and reliance over this jurisdiction.
2. Brunei is still perceived as a tax haven in some circles because:
  - While the Sultanate is not anymore on the black list of tax havens prepared by the OECD, Brunei-based companies continue to attract additional scrutiny from Western tax authorities and banks, but less than traditional tax haven countries;
  - While many countries including i) France and ii) Canada have recently removed Brunei from their list of tax havens, but others including i) Portugal and ii) Colombia have not done so yet. As a result, funds transfers from these countries to a Brunei company are still subject to higher withholding tax rates.
3. Half of the Brunei Limited Liability Company (SDN BHD) directors must be resident Bruneian’s or Brunei permanent residents, while branches require a minimum of two resident representatives. If our Client does not have staff on the ground in Brunei, Healy Consultants Group PLC will supply your business with passive professional passive resident nominee director services.

Tell us what you need - we’ll send you a customised proposal in 5 hours!

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Within 5 hours, one of our senior staff will ring or email you:

Company purpose?
Will the LLC be a trading company or a holding company?
Will the entity be a subsidiary of a foreign company?
The LLC will be tax resident? Having local customers and local staff and local suppliers?
The entity will receive investment income or professional services fees or sales from trading with multi-national customers?
Is double taxation treaty access important?
Do you need our help to legally minimize your international tax obligations?
Do you need our help to increase e-commerce sales (click link)?
Company structure?
Will the shareholders be individuals or corporate?

In what country do you require a corporate bank account? Refer to this web page (click link) for ideas

Do you need multi-currency corporate visa debit cards?

Do you need a resident director?

Nationality of shareholders and directors?
Expected annual sales and net profits?
Does the entity need a special regulatory license or import or export license?
Additional comments?
Tell us about your existing business?
Name of your existing company?
Your business web site address?
What products and services does your company supply?
How many years are you operating this business?
Is your Firm regulated by a Government agency?
In what country are the majority of your customers?

In what country are the majority of your suppliers?
Tell us about you?
Your name?
Your email address?
What country are you based in?

Specifically, what deliverables (click link) do you need?
What is your US$ budget for the services you need?
What does quality customer service mean to you?
How do we contact you?
For now, do you prefer Healy Consultants PLC staff to phone you, or just email reply you with some corporate solutions?
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If an email, what email address can our Consultant email you at?
What alternative email address can our Consultant email you at?
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Global business set up experts

DOING BUSINESS IN BRUNEI IN 2023

Brunei business setup summary

Advantages of Brunei company registration

Disadvantages of Brunei company registration

Tell us what you need - we’ll send you a customised proposal in 5 hours!

Company purpose?

Company structure?

Tell us about your existing business?

Tell us about you?

How do we contact you?

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