Brunei spouse visa (Long-Term Social Visit Pass)

JIPK reserves the Long-Term Social Visit Pass for foreign nationals who have family ties with citizens or permanent residents of Brunei Darussalam but do not yet meet the criteria and eligibility conditions to apply for permanent resident status. It is the usual long-term status for a foreign husband or wife during the years before the marriage-based permanent residence categories become available.

JIPK's visit visa checklist lists the documents used to prove close family ties: a marriage certificate for a husband or wife, a marriage certificate for children, birth certificates for siblings, the marriage certificate and the spouse's birth certificate for parents-in-law, and an adoption certificate for adopted children. Documents not in Malay or English need an official translation issued through the relevant embassy in Brunei.

Enquiries and application forms for the Long-Term Social Visit Pass are handled by the Visa, Visit and Diplomatic Division on the second floor of JIPK headquarters on Jalan Menteri Besar, Bandar Seri Begawan, or at JIPK branch offices; questions can also be sent to info@immigration.gov.bn. Before a long-term pass, a spouse can visit on a visa waiver or a visit visa sponsored by the Brunei spouse, for which JIPK requires the guarantor's letter and identity card and the marriage certificate.

Under JIPK's permanent residence guidelines updated from 31 December 2024, a foreign wife of a Brunei citizen qualifies after 15 years of a first marriage, if the husband applies for her and is alive when JIPK accepts the application, she lives in Brunei and holds a valid travel document and medical insurance. A foreign husband of a Brunei citizen woman qualifies on the same terms after 15 years, with the wife applying. For spouses of stateless permanent residents the period is 20 years.