Job Discussion Forums

[celtica]

[jsteventon]

Hi Celtica,

I am not in the CfBT office, if that is what you are implying. Just that as working on a tourist or dependent visa is illegal, I think it is useful for folks to realise the implications before deciding to come with a spouse who might really want to work. Better to be informed before coming out to Brunei surely.

Not sure what is wrong with stating it how it is - these are not simply 'rules,' they are laws with serious consequences if flouted.

Mind you, there are many non-working spouses here who really enjoy their lifestyle. Plenty to do with the leisure time!

JS

[celtica]

If you are concerned for the people who may want to work, why don't you supply a balanced and informed reply mentioning the fact that a number of spouses do successfully find legal work with visa?

the number who do study first then find legal work with visa? the ones who are employed at the International schools in special positions with the acceptance of Immigration? the ones who work in other Educational Institutions and are supplied with visa? in medicine...with visa....


it has been suggested elsewhere in this forum by others that you may be a mouthpiece for the cfbt office ......it is not necessarily my view.

[jsteventon]

My comments were actually just a follow-up to those of Zootalaws who stated that most dependent spouses were on tourist visas and whose post pointed out at length how difficult it is to obtain legal work.

JS

[ironopolis]

What is the visa situation for teachers (particularly CfBT teachers) in Brunei?

The impression I have is that the visa is tied to the job and is valid only as long your present contract. So every time you renew your contract, you have to renew your (and any dependents') visa accordingly. And when your job is finished, then your visa is too. Have I got all that right?

How about for teachers in Brunei fairly long term? Is it possible to move to some kind of more favourable visa status after you have been there a certain number of years? I remember when I was in Japan that after you'd renewed your 1 year visa a couple of times, and were in what Immigration thought was fairly stable employment, they would renew you for 3 years instead of just 1. Anything like that in Brunei?

And how about permanent residence? Is that feasible for long term expats who are not married to a Bruneian? I think in Hong Kong your were eligible to apply for PR after 7 continuous years there and in Japan it was 10 years. How about Brunei?

[lacsap]

Regarding visas in Brunei, yes, your visas and those of your dependents is strictly attached to the job. When that ends, so does your visa. CFBT contracts are for either one or two years and so visas need to be renewed accordingly. CFBT do this for you, but it has become a fairly lengthy process in recent years, and often the visa expires before the end of your contract, particularly when it is a 2 year contract, so has to be done again during the contract. Permanent residence is theoretically possible, but would require something like 20 years residence and I don't know of anyone who has ever done it. The bureaucracy involved would without doubt be a nightmare.
The rules on spouses working have been tightened up greatly in the last couple of years and it is illegal to work on a dependent visa. Many do, but in doing so jeopardise their status and that of their spouse on the working visa. The spouse can get a job but would have to have a working visa in their own right and in the classic catch 22 cannot get a visa without a job offer. Some spouses get jobs in one of the international schools but outside of teaching, opportunities are limited.

[ironopolis]

Thanks very much for your reply, lacsap, and for confirming what I thought was the case about the length of working visas. And that situation remains the same however long you're in Brunei, right?

[celtica]

Just a little thought... outside, but not too far away from, the box....local Chinese (ie born and bred in Brunei) have to pass a Malay exam to get citizenship.


if you cannot find any information on the process.... right or wrong....that's probably a loud whisper on how often its desired/applied for/awarded...???

Been here more than ten years and never heard of ANYONE doing/having done it.

[ironopolis]

[celtica]

None.

Why would you want to?

[ironopolis]

[BellaBrunei]

To weigh in on the PR thing- Brunei is a great place to live and work. However, I feel that it's pretty clear that we (ESL teachers) are intended to be here as guest professionals rather than long term migrants. From my observations, Brunei doesn't really seem to have much of a culture of seeking out the western migrants (e.g. buying retirement properties) the way countries like Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines have. My thought is that ultimately, the state pays for all citizens' basic needs (housing/ health/ education) and maybe it's not in the state's best interest to pay for more people than it needs to.

I know one local born Chinese, 3rd generation, who was able to transfer from red IC to yellow IC but she had to pass several tests in language and culture before she was able to.

If I were thinking of retiring on Borneo, I would look at the 'Malaysia my second home' scheme after I had saved enough in Brunei and maybe buy in Sabah or Sarawak.

What particular benefits would being PR in Brunei bring? I can think of being able to buy property, start a business without a local partner and change employment at will- what else?

[celtica]

[ironopolis]

[bule_boy69]

Looking back over this thread.....

It seems like Brunei is very appealing to Married folk with kids for obvious reasons.

Goes without saying that if your fave weekend activity is nightclubbing you are in the wrong place, and those of us who enjoy going to bars would have to make some sacrifices.

So how do the single blokes like it and what do you get up to?