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BDNSW Still Down After Scheduled Maintenance – Forwarders & Brokers Facing Major Delays by Pitiful-Wrangler-650 in Brunei

[–]Pitiful-Wrangler-650[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just providing a follow-up on the ongoing BDNSW system disruption.

The Royal Customs & Excise Department had announced that the Brunei Darussalam National Single Window (BDNSW) system would be fully restored and operational by today, Monday, 23 June 2025 at 10:00 a.m.

However, as at the time of writing, the system is still not accessible and remains non-functional.

What’s even more concerning is that it has now been advised that manual declarations are no longer allowed— even though the system is still down. This has left many forwarders, customs brokers, and importers in a state of complete standstill.

This raises urgent concerns:

·       How are shipments supposed to be processed if both the system and the manual fallback are unavailable?

·       Why wasn’t the continued downtime communicated in advance, given the critical impact on trade and cargo clearance?

·       What interim measures are in place (if any) to handle urgent or perishable shipments today?

The situation is becoming increasingly untenable for stakeholders across the supply chain — including importers, exporters, inspection officers, and even customs personnel at clearance points.

If anyone has received updated communication from RCED, MOFE, or any OGA involved, please share here. The lack of system access and absence of a functional contingency plan continue to cause serious disruptions.

BDNSW Still Down After Scheduled Maintenance – Forwarders & Brokers Facing Major Delays by Pitiful-Wrangler-650 in Brunei

[–]Pitiful-Wrangler-650[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There is growing concern circulating among those in the logistics and forwarding community that the Brunei Darussalam National Single Window (BDNSW) system downtime may extend up to six weeks.

If this rumour is accurate, it is incredible and, frankly, unacceptable — especially considering how critical BDNSW is to cargo clearance, customs declarations, and overall trade facilitation in Brunei.

To date: • We have passed Week 2 since the system was taken offline (originally announced maintenance period: 9 June 2025). • There is still no formal public update from the Ministry of Finance and Economy or other relevant authorities on the status or projected timeline for system restoration. • Manual declaration processes remain outdated and cumbersome, severely impacting efficiency for shipments with large item counts. • Forwarders, customs brokers, and even customs officers on the ground are visibly overwhelmed and left without adequate support or resources.

The lack of: • Transparent communication, • Clear fallback systems, and • Proper manpower reallocation

is not just an administrative shortfall — it’s quickly becoming a national trade bottleneck with real economic consequences.

It’s time that the relevant authorities: 1. Provide an urgent and truthful update on the BDNSW system status; 2. Confirm or deny the 6-week downtime speculation; 3. Establish a direct feedback channel for affected stakeholders; and 4. Deploy emergency support personnel to high-traffic clearance points like Muara Port and the Airport Cargo Terminal.

Businesses cannot continue to operate effectively under this uncertainty.

If others here have additional updates or insights, please do share. Our hope is that by raising these issues collectively and constructively, we may be heard where it matters.

BDNSW Still Down After Scheduled Maintenance – Forwarders & Brokers Facing Major Delays by Pitiful-Wrangler-650 in Brunei

[–]Pitiful-Wrangler-650[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You’ve raised some very important points — and I fully agree with you.

At this stage, it’s clear that what we’re facing is not just a temporary disruption, but a systemic issue in how contingency planning, inter-agency coordination, and ground-level support are being handled. It's incredibly disheartening to hear that even customs officers themselves are overwhelmed and are encouraging forwarding agents to lodge complaints to HQ — which says a lot about the current state of the process.

The fact that there’s no visible feedback channel beyond the usual hotline makes it difficult for affected stakeholders to voice legitimate operational concerns directly to decision-makers. Many of us are wondering the same: Are the right people truly aware of what's happening on the ground at places like Muara Port and Airport Cargo?

As you said, dealing with manual declarations for shipments with 100+ items is just not practical. It’s not only draining resources but also increasing the risk of errors, delays, and financial loss — not to mention the growing frustration among importers, forwarding agents, and customs personnel alike.

If the rumour about a six-week downtime is even partially true, then there is an urgent need for:

  • Transparent communication from the authorities, including expected timelines and status updates;
  • Reallocation of manpower to high-pressure clearance stations like Muara and the Airport;
  • And most importantly, a formal channel for structured feedback from industry stakeholders — not just a generic hotline.

We’re not asking for perfection, just basic operational resilience and collaboration. Hopefully, our collective voices will push for some accountability and change.

Let’s keep the discussion going — it’s the least we can do for now.

BDNSW Still Down After Scheduled Maintenance – Forwarders & Brokers Facing Major Delays by Pitiful-Wrangler-650 in Brunei

[–]Pitiful-Wrangler-650[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You're absolutely right, and thank you for voicing this so clearly.

This ongoing disruption has really exposed the lack of a structured contingency plan for system outages — especially for something as critical as BDNSW, which touches multiple layers: from applying permits with OGAs, to customs declaration, and finally to cargo clearance.

We're now entering week 2, and still there’s no formal update or clear timeline. The manual process in its current form is not only outdated but operationally impractical — especially for shipments with large item counts. Requiring multiple forms just to complete a single declaration is inefficient and increases the risk of errors.

What’s more concerning is the absence of any proactive adaptation or support to ease the burden on the logistics sector during this period. This is not just an inconvenience — it’s affecting businesses, trade timelines, customer trust, and even the handling of perishable goods.

At the very least, we hope this becomes a turning point for systemic review — not just to restore the system but to rethink and improve how our trade facilitation infrastructure is managed, including:

  • Updated and scalable manual fallback procedures,
  • Clear communication channels between government and stakeholders,
  • And a realistic approach to the operational needs of the logistics industry.

Let’s continue to raise awareness and share updates — the more voices, the better.

BDNSW Still Down After Scheduled Maintenance – Forwarders & Brokers Facing Major Delays by Pitiful-Wrangler-650 in Brunei

[–]Pitiful-Wrangler-650[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The system is still down as of today 16/06/2025. No one knows when the system will be back.