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Gulf Insider
15-05-2025
- Business
- Gulf Insider
Over 400 Illegal Residents Rounded Up in 9-day Kuwait Crackdown
Kuwait has rounded up more than 400 expatriates for violating the country's residency and labour laws as part of an inexorable nationwide clampdown on illegal foreigners. The arrests were made by the Kuwaiti residency affairs police during a massive security crackdown across the country's six governorates conducted in coordination with relevant authorities over nine days resulting in detaining 440 violators. The raids covered residential areas, farms, and engineering companies operating in uninhabited areas across the country, a security source has disclosed. The Kuwaiti Ministry of Interior said the April 30-May 9 campaigns were part of an integrated security plan aimed at controlling irregular workers and exposing illegal residents. The ministry renewed a warning that its crackdown on illegals is ongoing across the country, and emphasized that violators and their employers will be held accountable. Kuwait, a country of an overall population of 4.9 million people mostly foreigners, is seeking to redress its demographic imbalance and regulate the labour market. Authorities there have recently mounted a nationwide crackdown on illegal foreign residents, who failed to take advantage of a three-month grace period to rectify their status. Thousands have since been rounded up. The amnesty, which commenced in March last year, allowed illegal expatriates to readjust their residency status or leave willingly the country without paying fines. During the grace period, irregular expatriates, who had no passports, were able to leave Kuwait without having to pay a fine and are allowed to re-enter the country. A new residency law, which went into effect in Kuwait in January incorporating reconciliation and payment of fines by violators, does not apply to expatriates who failed to heed the amnesty deadline. The new law licenses foreigners for regular residency for a period not exceeding five years, 10 years for real estate owners, and 15 years for investors. The code also sets a foreigner's temporary stay at three months with possible extension for a period not exceeding one year. Violating the temporary or regular residency or iqama rules is punishable by one year imprisonment and a fine of up to KD 1,200 (around $3,900). Violating the visit residency rules is punishable by one year in prison and a maximum fine of KD2,000 dinars. Also read: Kuwait Convicts Nine In One Of Its Deadliest Labour Tragedies
Arab Times
14-05-2025
- Business
- Arab Times
Nursery licensing fees will increase to KD5,000
KUWAIT CITY, May 14: The Ministry of Social Affairs is currently reviewing a proposal to increase the licensing fees for nurseries from KD2,000 -- payable for five years -- to KD5,000 at a new rate of KD1,000 annually. According to sources, the ministry is conducting a comprehensive review of all its services to identify those requiring price adjustments to better reflect actual costs. This move complies with the directives of the Council of Ministers and is based on the recommendations of the Ministerial Committee for Economic Affairs, which instructed government agencies to coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to reassess the pricing of their services. Sources said the ministry, through its relevant sectors, is evaluating the financial criteria for issuing operating licenses for around 400 nurseries in the country. They revealed that the proposed changes will lead to a licensing fee rise to KD 5,000 distributed evenly over five years. Sources also confirmed that this review is in line with the efforts of the ministry to transform from being solely a provider of financial aid to a revenue-generating entity. 'The goal is to alleviate pressure on the State budget by rationalizing expenditures and boosting income,' sources explained. Sources added that Minister of Social Affairs Dr. Amthal Al-Huwailah is committed to implementing Decree-Law No. 1/2025 on fees and costs for the use of public facilities and services
Arab Times
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Arab Times
Drug Offenders Face Death in Kuwait's New Crackdown
KUWAIT CITY, April 21: The committee tasked to address procedural loopholes in the Anti-Narcotics Law has submitted its report; which includes a draft law containing amendments aimed at rectifying deficiencies, curbing the spread of drugs, and increasing penalties for related crimes. Acting Prime Minister Sheikh Fahad Yousef Saud Al-Sabah formed the committee with Advisor Mohammad Rashid Al-Duaij as chairman. The following are the important amendments in the draft law: * Trafficking in narcotics and psychotropic substances is punishable by death penalty and a fine of up to KD2 million, increased from the previous maximum sentence of seven years imprisonment. * The death penalty applies to individuals who trade in drugs within a prison, as well as those who facilitate or contribute to the introduction of these substances into a prison. * The death penalty extends to any employee who exploits his professional position to engage in the trafficking of narcotics or psychotropic substances. * Distribution of narcotics or psychotropic substances to two or more individuals, without compensation, for the purpose of consumption or promotion, warrants the death penalty. * Soliciting a service or benefitwhether lawful or unlawful — in exchange for delivering narcotics or psychotropic substances to another for consumption, or promising to do so, is punishable by death. * Drug and psychotropic substance testing is now mandated for prospective spouses, driving license applicants and public job candidates. * Random drug and psychotropic substance testing will be conducted for all military personnel, regardless of rank, in the ministries of Interior and Defense, National Guard and Kuwait Fire Force (KFF). * Random testing for drugs and psychotropic substances will be carried out on all students in schools, institutes and universities. * Refusal to undergo testing without a valid reason, excluding marriage applicants and students, is punishable by up to four years imprisonment. * Penalties for drug use within prisons, schools and health clubs have been increased. * Penalties for individuals who commit violent crimes or cause harm while under the infl uence of drugs or psychotropic substances have been increased. * Police officers are authorized to make immediate arrests upon suspicion of drug use. * Association with drug users, even without personal use, is punishable by three years imprisonment. * Incitement of others to use drugs warrants a three-year prison sentence. * Physicians who dispense psychotropic substances without legitimate medical justification are subject to three years imprisonment. * Pharmacies that fail to secure psychotropic substances will be fined up to KD100,000. The court may order the closure of a violating pharmacy for up to five years. * Confidential reporting of drug users is available through modern electronic channels, with the potential for involuntary placement in a rehabilitation center for up to six months. * Criminal proceedings will not be initiated against individuals who voluntarily seek treatment for addiction. * The Minister of Health retains the authority to suspend any physician who violates regulations concerning the handling of narcotics or psychotropic substances. * Financial rewards will be given to those who report information regarding drug users. * Wearing apparel or carrying publications that promote the use of narcotics or psychotropic substances will result in a fine. * All judgments rendered in drugrelated cases are subject to immediate execution. * Coercing another individual or providing another with narcotics or psychotropic substances without their consent warrants a 15-year prison sentence, with the possibility of the death penalty if the victim is convicted.
Gulf Insider
20-04-2025
- Politics
- Gulf Insider
Kuwait Rounds Up Over 400 Illegal Residents In Three-Day Crackdown
Kuwaiti authorities have arrested over 400 individuals in a sweeping crackdown on violators of the country's residency and labor laws, conducted over a three-day period earlier this month. According to the Ministry of Interior, 419 violators were apprehended during intensified security operations across all six governorates from April 6 to 8. The ministry reaffirmed its commitment to continue the crackdown under an 'all-out security plan,' urging full compliance with national laws. The campaign is part of Kuwait's broader effort to address its demographic imbalance and bring order to the labor market. Foreign nationals make up the majority of the country's 4.9 million population. The arrests come after the expiration of a three-month amnesty period launched in March last year. The initiative allowed illegal residents to regularize their status or leave the country without penalties. Those without passports were also permitted to exit Kuwait without fines and could re-enter at a later date. However, those who failed to act within the amnesty deadline are now subject to the full force of the law. A new residency law that took effect in January offers reconciliation and fine payments only to violators who responded during the grace period. Under the updated law, regular residency permits are capped at five years, with extended terms of up to 10 years for property owners and 15 years for investors. Temporary stays are limited to three months, with a possible extension of up to one year. Penalties for violating residency or visa rules are severe, including imprisonment of up to one year and fines ranging from KD1,200 to KD2,000 (approximately $3,900 to $6,500), depending on the type of violation.
Gulf Insider
10-04-2025
- Business
- Gulf Insider
Kuwait: Government Staffer Jailed, Fined $3.5 Million In Bribery Case
A Kuwaiti court has sentenced a government employee to seven years in prison and ordered him to pay KD1.1 million (around $3.5 million) in a bribery case amid a relentless anti-corruption crackdown in the country. The defendant, the head of a department at a ministry, was charged with illegally awarding KD296,000 worth contracts to a company and obtaining half of the amount in bribes, the Kuwaiti news portal Mediacourt reported. The criminal Court also ordered the defendant be dismissed from his job. In the same case, the court handed down a similar jail sentence to an expatriate accomplice and ordered his deportation from the country after serving the term. It was not clear when the case surfaced. In recent years, Kuwait has stepped up anti-corruption efforts, bringing several suspects to court. Last month, a Kuwaiti court sentenced two expatriates to varying jail terms including a lifer, on charges of money laundering. The Criminal Court handed down a life sentence to the prime defendant, a head of the accounting unit at a company in which the state has a 25% stake. The court also ordered the defendant, an Egyptian national, be dismissed from his job, and pay KD2 million in a fine, amounting to a double of the money he is accused of laundering after seizing it from the company. The second defendant, an American national, was given seven years in prison on charges of collusion with the prime accused in exchange for obtaining 5% of the stolen money. In another case, the Criminal Court sentenced in March a Kuwaiti doctor in absentia to five years in prison and fined him KD1 million on charges of fraud after he had been found to have unlawfully received his monthly salary while living abroad for 15 years.
