Kuwait introduces fee for visit-to-work visa transfers

Foreigners belonging to specific categories are now able to convert their entry visit visas into regular residency in Kuwait, the Interior Ministry said Sunday, provided they pay a KD 150 fee.

Domestic helpers are exempted from paying the fee. The decision, published in the official gazette Kuwait Al-Youm, was implemented immediately, according to the decision issued by the first deputy prime minister and interior minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef Al-Sabah.

According to the by-laws of the residency law, there are five types of expatriates who can apply to transfer their entry visa into a regular residency permit for a fee of KD 150.

Expatriates are also among the eligible categories; for them, the government entry visas are issued by the ministries, public establishments or government authorities.

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The decision, however, only applies to university degree holders with technical specialisations.

It also extends a provision allowing dependents of legal expatriate residents who are coming in either on a dependent visa or tourist visa to be able to transfer to the regular residency category on the same terms.

Additionally, expatriates who had been in Kuwait on work visas and had begun the process of obtaining residency permits but were subsequently forced to depart the country in the event of an emergency may benefit from the transfer as well.

If they were out of Kuwait for more than a month then the rule does not apply.

The decision also states that the facility can be granted in other situations which are not specifically contained in the decision, if approved by the Director General of Residency Department.

There are also domestic helpers and others who are authorised to obtain regular residency permits from their entry visas.

Unlike the other categories that would have to pay the KD 150 fee, they are not required to pay the fee despite the new regulations and yet they are still allowed to take part in the transfer procedure.

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